Wednesday, June 25

HBCU trio grateful to showcase abilities at Combine, Swingman Classic

Trio of HBCU gamers excited to play in Swingman Classic

n”,”providerName”:”Twitter”,”providerUrl”:”https://twitter.com”,”type”:”oembed”,”width”:550,”contentType”:”rich”},”__typename”:”Markdown”,”content”:”Hall, together with Trey Paige and Xavier Meachem are three of the 50 gamers chosen to play within the Swingman Classic. They are additionally the one three HBCU student-athletes collaborating on this week’s MLB Draft Combine. The trio has been showcasing their talent in front of scouts and front-office staff at Chase Field. All three of them feel that the Combine is beneficial for athletes who come from smaller schools and don’t always get a chance to garner attention. The exposure at an HBCU is less than that of many Power 5 schools.nnPaige grew up a Phillies fan and went to plenty of their games. He never imagined he’d one day travel out of state, take the field at an MLB ballpark and show his talents in front of all 30 teams. His hard work paid off.nn* Top 2023 Draft prospectsnn”I didn’t expect to be invited [to the Combine] at all. I was super excited,” said Paige, an infielder from Delaware State who is transferring to Kentucky for his senior year. “I called my parents and my sister right away, they were freaking out. I think my mom started crying on the phone. It just shows that I put in a lot of hard work and it’s getting noticed.nn“This shows that you can go to an HBCU and still get the same recognition as some of these bigger-name schools.””,”type”:”text”,”__typename”:”OEmbed”,”html”:”

So grateful for this chance! https://t.co/7gQkLwVNtm

— Trey (@treypaige_) June 15, 2023

nn”,”providerName”:”Twitter”,”providerUrl”:”https://twitter.com”,”type”:”oembed”,”width”:550,”contentType”:”rich”,”__typename”:”Markdown”,”content”:”Hall spent the 2021 season at Washington State, which had 22,612 students, before transferring in 2022 to Bethune-Cookman, which had just 2,444 students. He has enjoyed the brotherhood of an HBCU, saying that his teammates push him to become a better version of himself.nn“I think everything happens for a reason,” Hall said. “I thank God for putting me in that position. He wouldn’t give you something that you’re not ready for. It’s just something that had to happen to me. That’s my story.””,”type”:”text”, #𝗣𝗿𝗲𝘆𝗧𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 pic.twitter.com/YCys5ZnuKz

— ⚾️B-CU Baseball (@BCUDiamondCats) June 20, 2023

nn”,”providerName”:”Twitter”,”providerUrl”:”https://twitter.com”,”type”:”oembed”,”width”:550,”contentType”:”rich”,”__typename”:”Markdown”,”content”:”Meachem has been across the HBCU setting since he was a toddler. His dad and mom attended North Carolina Central and went to the homecoming occasions. He’s a right-handed pitcher, however idolized Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen. In truth, McCutchen is the rationale Meachem determined to develop his hair out. He has discovered the affect illustration in baseball can have on younger followers. He noticed how the sport impacted his teammates at North Carolina A&T.nn“A lot of guys are hungry and have gone through adversity throughout their whole baseball career,” Meachem mentioned. “So a lot of guys play with a chip on [their] shoulder [is what’s] special about our program.nn“It’s really important because in the future [there will be] a lot more minorities in the game,” Meachem mentioned. “MLB providing these resources is going to increase [the participation for] those players. You’ll see a lot more minority talent in the league sooner or later.””,”type”:”text”],”contentType”:”news”,”subHeadline”:””,”abstract”:”PHOENIX — Hylan Hall was on the trail to being drafted out of highschool, however an damage throughout his senior yr delayed that dream.nLittle did the outfielder know there can be loads of alternatives forward of him, together with receiving recommendation from a Hall of Famer.nA good friend of”,”tagline(“formatString”:”none”)”:null,”tags”:[“__typename”:”InternalTag”,”slug”:”storytype-article”,”title”:”Article”,”type”:”article”,”__typename”:”ContributorTag”,”slug”:”jesus-cano”,”title”:”Jesús Cano”,”type”:”contributor”,”__typename”:”TaxonomyTag”,”slug”:”swingman-classic”,”title”:”Swingman Classic”,”type”:”taxonomy”,”__typename”:”TaxonomyTag”,”slug”:”apple-news”,”title”:”Apple News”,”type”:”taxonomy”],”type”:”story”,”thumbnail”:”https://img.mlbstatic.com/mlb-images/image/upload/formatInstructions/mlb/ezax7xnnudijgn9qizrm”,”title”:”Trio of HBCU gamers excited to play in Swingman Classic”}}}}
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58 minutes in the past

PHOENIX — Hylan Hall was on the trail to being drafted out of highschool, however an damage throughout his senior yr delayed that dream.

Little did the outfielder know there can be loads of alternatives forward of him, together with receiving recommendation from a Hall of Famer.

A good friend of Hall’s in Florida arrange a lunch between the faculty junior and Ken Griffey Jr., one in all Hall’s favourite gamers. The teenager was in a position to choose the thoughts of the Mariners legend, studying secrets and techniques on methods to enhance his sport and finally make it to the Majors.

Hall and Griffey will reunite throughout All-Star weekend in Seattle on the inaugural HBCU Swingman Classic, a sport that’s designed to showcase baseball expertise at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

Griffey pushed to create the Swingman Classic as an expertise for baseball student-athletes from Division I Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). Two groups, managed by Jerry Manuel and Bo Porter, will play at T-Mobile Park on July 7. Griffey, Rickie Weeks Jr., Andre Dawson, Marquis Grissom and Vince Coleman will function coaches.

“It’s also good to see him give back by creating the Swingman Classic,” Hall mentioned of Griffey. “He doesn’t have to do that.”

Hall, together with Trey Paige and Xavier Meachem are three of the 50 gamers chosen to play within the Swingman Classic. They are additionally the one three HBCU student-athletes collaborating on this week’s MLB Draft Combine. The trio has been showcasing their expertise in entrance of scouts and front-office employees at Chase Field. All three of them really feel that the Combine is helpful for athletes who come from smaller faculties and don’t all the time get an opportunity to garner consideration. The publicity at an HBCU is lower than that of many Power 5 faculties.

Paige grew up a Phillies fan and went to loads of their video games. He by no means imagined he’d sooner or later journey out of state, take the sector at an MLB ballpark and present his abilities in entrance of all 30 groups. His arduous work paid off.

“I did not count on to be invited [to the Combine] in any respect. I used to be tremendous excited,” mentioned Paige, an infielder from Delaware State who’s transferring to Kentucky for his senior yr. “I referred to as my dad and mom and my sister straight away, they had been freaking out. I believe my mother began crying on the telephone. It simply exhibits that I put in a number of arduous work and it is getting observed.

“This shows that you can go to an HBCU and still get the same recognition as some of these bigger-name schools.”

Hall spent the 2021 season at Washington State, which had 22,612 college students, earlier than transferring in 2022 to Bethune-Cookman, which had simply 2,444 college students. He has loved the brotherhood of an HBCU, saying that his teammates push him to turn out to be a greater model of himself.

“I think everything happens for a reason,” Hall mentioned. “I thank God for putting me in that position. He wouldn’t give you something that you’re not ready for. It’s just something that had to happen to me. That’s my story.”

Meachem has been across the HBCU setting since he was a toddler. His dad and mom attended North Carolina Central and went to the homecoming occasions. He’s a right-handed pitcher, however idolized Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen. In truth, McCutchen is the rationale Meachem determined to develop his hair out. He has discovered the affect illustration in baseball can have on younger followers. He noticed how the sport impacted his teammates at North Carolina A&T.

“A lot of guys are hungry and have gone through adversity throughout their whole baseball career,” Meachem mentioned. “So a number of guys play with a chip on [their] shoulder [is what’s] particular about our program.

“It’s really important because in the future [there will be] a lot more minorities in the game,” Meachem mentioned. “MLB providing these resources is going to increase [the participation for] those players. You’ll see a lot more minority talent in the league sooner or later.”

Content Source: www.mlb.com