Last Tuesday, Bruce and Betty Turner of Rocky Mount got some very exciting news.
Sitting with their family in St. Louis, watching the Major League Baseball Draft, they heard MLB commissioner Bud Selig say, “With the ninth pick of the 2009 MLB Draft, the Detroit Tigers select Jacob Turner.”
Even though it had been rumored for weeks, when they heard their grandson had been drafted, they could finally celebrate.
“The television room just errupted with cheers and hugs,” Betty Turner said.
Many in the media had predicted the Tigers would take Jacob with the No. 9 pick, but it wasn’t a certainty, Betty said.
“It would change daily,” she said. “Until you hear it actually happen, you can’t take it to the bank.”
Jacob is a 6-foot-5 hard-throwing pitcher from Westminster Christian Academy in St. Louis. His fastball can reach the upper-90s and he also throws a good curveball and a changeup. He’s the kind of prospect to which the Tigers will likely offer a multi-million dollar contract to bring onboard.
They’ll be tempted to offer a lot of money, because at the moment, Jacob still might decide to go to college.
With a scholarship offer from the University of North Carolina and a likely contract offer from the Detroit Tigers, he has a big decision to make.
Bruce and Betty don’t know which direction he’ll go, but they trust he’ll make the best decision for himself.
“He’s got two options,” Betty said. “It’s just something he’ll have to make a decision about.”
Either way, it’ll be the next step in a long journey.
“It’s just been an awesome ride,” Betty said. “He started out as our sweet little guy, and now he’s our 6-foot-5 big guy.”
Rocky Mount, Mo. —
