Former Cy Young winner gives surprise assessment of Tebow's baseball career
New York Mets prospect Tim Tebow may not exactly have torn it up in his first year-plus of professional baseball, but his efforts have caught the notice of a former Cy Young Award-winning pitcher.
As The Wildcard told readers Wednesday, Tebow is set to start the year with the Double-A Binghamton Rumble Ponies, who kick off the 2018 regular season on Thursday night.
The former Heisman Trophy winner-turned-baseball player has dealt with his fair share of critics, especially after he went 1-for-18 in spring training with the major league club. But there are also many who respect him for pursuing his passion, even in the face of naysayers and endless negativity.
One such person is Rumble Ponies pitching coach Frank Viola, a three-time All-Star who won the 1988 American League Cy Young Award with the Minnesota Twins.
Viola noted that Tebow is facing a “monstrous challenge,” according to The Press & Sun Bulletin.
“I took 10 years off from hitting from high school to when I got traded from the American League to the National League,” Viola stated. “That’s like starting all over again.”
But Tebow is facing that challenge head-on, the pitching coach added, and all his hard work is paying off.
“What he’s doing and the strides I’ve seen him make from last year to this year, that’s impressive. Kudos to the kid for working his butt off,” Viola said. “He doesn’t have to do this, but he chose to do it and he’s working as hard as anyone, if not harder. It’s a great story but very difficult.”
Viola continued, pointing out that when one is away from baseball for a significant time — like Tebow was during his college and professional football career — it’s difficult to get back in a groove. What’s important, he indicated, is that Tebow is making a real effort to get better.
“There’s so much instinctual stuff from baseball that you learn as a kid all the way up. When you take a hiatus like he did, it’s hard. He’s 30 years old, but he’s still trying to learn,” Viola said.
Viola was far from the only one in the Rumble Ponies organization to praise Tebow. The team’s owner and manager have also been impressed by what they’ve seen from the outfield prospect.
“He’s a great individual,” said Rumble Ponies owner John Hughes. “Everything you hear about him is true. Larger than life, just a great guy to hang out with. I don’t want to diminish it and say he’s just your average person, but he’s just your average Joe. You can sit around with him and just hang out with him.”
Manager Luis Rojas, meanwhile, thinks Tebow has the potential to be a good power hitter with a great eye at the plate. He even believes Tebow is “one of the guys” with enough talent to make it to the majors.
“I think he’s got great strike zone discipline. He’s a guy that works the zone, works the count, battles at bat. His power display has been unbelievable,” Rojas said. “I think he’s a guy that can hit for power. His raw power is above average.”
Tebow should get significant playing time once the Rumble Ponies kick off their season on Thursday. Rojas said he will be part of a four- or five-man rotation in the outfield, and he’ll also get some at-bats as a designated hitter.
“I can’t wait to start on Thursday night,” Tebow said Tuesday at his introductory news conference for the Rumble Ponies. “I’m really looking forward to it. I’m having a lot of fun playing this game.”
On the first pitch he saw Thursday, Tebow hit a three-run home run.
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