Who knew that Baseball could have a Cinderella story. That is what is happening with Atlanta Braves catcher, #24, Evan Gattis. Gattis has the baseball build at 6 feet 4 inches and 230 lbs. ...but his talent and God-given muscles were almost thrown away. He picked up the nickname El Oso Blanco (the nickname means "The White Bear")while playing in the Venezuelan winter league. His story seems like it could not be true.
Things started well for Gattis. Right out of high school, he was signed to play at Texas A&M. Then, the fall........ as anxiety over the thought of big time college baseball begin to engulf his baseball dreams. To cope with the fear and the anger rooted in the pain that came when Gattis' parents divorced when he was 8 years old, he falls into drug and alcohol dependency. Thankfully, he gets placed into rehab. At rehab, he made a discovery. "When he got out of rehab, they said, 'You don't have a drug problem. You have a depression problem. You have an anger issue.'" said Jo Gattis, the catcher's father. "That was kind of reassuring because I didn't think he had a drug problem."
Baseball provided a positive outlet....and he reenters the game. Next, while at junior college, he hurts his knee, loses his love for baseball, and decides to quit the game he used to love. Gattis squanders four years wandering around the west doing odd jobs such as being a janitor, ski lift operator, and Yellowstone Park employee. He finds some healing by seeking for the meaning of life. Finally, Gattis love for baseball reignites. ..and he is ready to play again. .. Even at an age when most people are done with college, Gattis learned he was still eligible to play ball. In 2010, he enrolled at the University of Texas of the Permian Basin. There he is able to perform as if he had never left. After batting over .400, he was drafted by the Braves in the 23rd round in 2010. Three years later (2013) he makes the Opening Day roster. In his major league debut, while his father is interviewed on TV, he hits a home run off a former Cy Young Award winner, Roy Halladay. Unbelievably, the ball lands in the hands of a guy from . ...(drum roll)......Texas A&M. He currently is batting .391 with 3 home runs and 6 RBI's. I am not sure what we are going to do with Brian McCann as he is due back, possibly replacing Gattis in the 4th spot. While Gattis is a rookie, he’s unfortunately already 26 years of age.. . I don't know what the future years hold for him. but I am rooting for him!
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