Originally Posted by
Hockey Guy
Did you play with him or cross paths with him during his troubles in the Tampa Rays organization?
I knew Josh when he was 16. We used to travel a bit together to different tournaments and such. Well I remember him being the most socially awkward kid I had ever seen. His mother, (never saw his father) was just an absolute asshole. He was allowed to play baseball, and that is it. He wasn't allowed to socialize with other kids after the games, he wasn't allowed to go to team dinners, just normal teenager stuff was completely off limits. His mother at the time, and I swear to this, knew she had a gold mine in her grasps. Which yes she did, but holding him back back all those years from being a kid, backfired on her and crushed him for many years.
When he first got to be on his own he really didn't know how to act. all he wanted to do was fit in and we really all know his story from there.
When we were 15 or 16, I really can't remember exactly what age we were because I don't know if it was the summer or fall. Anyways, our coach brought he and I to a major league tryout. It was a simple open tryout for college players, but we didn't know this. We drove 30 minutes from our hotel to go to this, and we were both excited, so we lied and said we went to some small division 3 college. We could pass as college players as he was about 6'1, and I about 6'.
Well about 20 minutes into the tryout, after doing our times in the 60 yard dash, it was Josh's turn to hit. You were guaranteed 2 bunts, and ten swings. Well Josh put on a fucking hitting display. Homer after homer after homer. I think he ended up hitting 30 pitches, at least 25 of them went out of the park.
Long story short, Josh was hands down the best player there. He was so much better than everyone, and it wasn't even close. After the tryout the 2 scouts on hand came running to talk to him. They start asking questions about him and of course he was like a mute. Our coach stepped in and of course explained to them that he was only a highschool sophmore.
Josh was really a man child back then, but what people really don't know if he was actually a pitcher too. In his senior year of highschool he could pitch 95mph+ off the mound, and a couple of times reached 100.
He was and still is just an amazing talent. I wonder how great he would of been if he didn't get into all the bullshit.