An A for his effort
In the span of three weeks, Nathan Patterson went from a fan at a baseball game to an MLB hopeful with a minor league contract.
On July 15, Patterson and his brother, Christian, attended a Rockies game when they decided to try the speed-pitch challenge at Coors Field. When Nathan started clocking in at around 96 mph, Christian began recording.
The video, posted on Twitter, was retweeted more than 500 times and viewed by over 200,000 people. It brought Patterson renewed attention from the Athletics, who had been keeping track of him since last August, when he similarly hit 96 mph as a fan at a minor league game.
On Thursday, the 23year-old, who played high school ball, but did not play in college, signed a minor league contract with Oakland. His recent viral status was the fruit of a dream he had been working toward for a long time, recently by playing in a men’s league.
“Words cannot describe this feeling and I cannot thank everyone enough who has been part of this journey so far!,” he wrote on Instagram alongside a picture of him inking his deal. “This story is not over. It is not the beginning. I am writing the next chapters and excited for this journey! Time to focus even more, work even harder, and it all starts with your mindset. Go after your dreams and make them a reality!”
Patterson had been continuing to work and train toward a potential contract, but his eye-catching performance in a ballpark event sealed the deal.