When we woke up this morning, instead of the baseball equivalent of the birds chirping and the sun shining, Mets fans got the baseball equivalent of someone punching you in the back of the head, with the news that the Mets signed Tim Tebow to a minor league contract.
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The Mets signed former NFL quarterback Tim Tebow to a minor league contract Thursday.
He started training three months ago at a baseball school in Arizona run by former big league catcher Chad Moeller. But how can anyone take Tebow’s baseball career seriously if he’s treating it like some sort of second job? We understand he’s 29 years old. After years of putting his charm, looks, and athletic background to use on television, he is returning to professional sports in NY. Yes, Florida, the state where Tebow is known as a legend for his Heisman-winning performance with the Gators while in college.
Alderson went on to tell us that Mets pitcher Seth Lugo was a 34th round draft pick in 2011, and rookie infielder T.J. Rivera was undrafted.
He put out some feelers, released a couple of videos, got some baseball people to vouch for him and then got all but two teams to show up for media-spectacle showcase at USC.
And, the athlete’s website (which links to TDAutographs) is selling not only memorabilia from Tebow’s storied college career – and less storied National Football League one – it is also selling signed autograph baseball bats. “There wasn’t a season that went by that it wasn’t something that I thought about”.
“[Then Eagles coach] Chip Kelly called in the middle of baseball training and, to me, that wasn’t just any opportunity”.
Tebow, a former Heisman Trophy victor, announced last month that he was interested in returning to baseball, attempting an athletic comeback in a sport he has not played since 2005. If Tebow thinks that he can be successful without matching his peers’ level of commitment, he’s going to get embarrassed.
My problem is that Tebow isn’t fully committing himself to this endeavor.
OK, Tim Tebow’s attempt at a baseball career actually is starting to look like a publicity stunt now. “We are extremely intrigued by the potential Tim has”.
I would like to give Tebow the benefit of the doubt here.
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Alderson: “I voiced a little skepticism about (Tebow) at the outset. but after due diligence and scouting on my part, and others, we felt it was a great opportunity for him and the Mets”.
