Throwback Thursday: Remember When Garth Brooks Gave Baseball a Swing?
Though noble to reach for his dreams, we think Brooks should stick with country music.
Baseball is widely known across the country as “America’s pastime.” Garth Brooks took this phrase to heart in 1999 when he was in the midst of a break from the road and signed on for spring training with the San Diego Padres.
Eighteen years ago today (March 2), Brooks stepped up to the plate during a spring training scrimmage at the San Diego Padres’ camp in Peoria, Arizona. He struck out.
Despite his best effort, Brooks was not offered a contract with the Padres that season and found himself a rookie free agent. In 2000, Brooks signed with the New York Mets. Unfortunately after having a .000% batting average after 17 tries, they released him from the roster.
But two unsuccessful seasons wouldn’t bring the country legend down. In 2004, Brooks tried one more time for a career in the MLB, this time signing with the Kansas City Royals. Although during this season he made his way on base with a hit, he couldn’t score a spot on the team.
Brooks’ attempts at baseball success weren’t a complete waste though. He used his stint in the minors as an opportunity to promote his Teammates for Kids foundation where athletes donate to charities based on their game performance.
Though noble to reach for his dreams, we think Brooks should stick with country music. He recently celebrated selling 5 million tickets to his current tour…that’s a home run if you ask us!
