Drafted: 2012 3rd Round
Position: Pitcher
Hometown: Rosenberg, Texas
High School: Lamar Consolidated
College: Arizona State University[/one_half_last] [divider style=’full’]
About Brady Rodgers…
Brady Rodgers was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 39th round of the 2009 Major League Baseball draft out of Lamar Consolidated High School in Rosenberg, Texas. He did not sign and played college baseball at Arizona State University. He ended his college career with a 2.39 earned run average (ERA) which was the second lowest in school history behind Floyd Bannister.
The Houston Astros selected Rodgers in the third round of the 2012 MLB draft. He made his professional debut with the Tri-City ValleyCats. He pitched most of 2013 with the Lancaster JetHawks but also made one start for the Double-A Corpus Christi Hooks and Triple-A Oklahoma City RedHawks. Rodgers spent 2014 with Corpus Christi and made one start with Oklahoma City. In 2015 and 2016, he played for the Triple-A Fresno Grizzlies. Rodgers won the 2016 Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Year Award. Rodgers was promoted to the major leagues for the first time on September 2, 2016.
On Recruitment…
[pullquote align=”normal”]Well, my story’s a little different because I wanted to go to Arizona State. Being from Texas with schools like Texas, Texas A&M, TCU, Baylor, and everybody always asks me, “Why did you choose Arizona State?” It was because ASU was always in the College Bowl series. But a lot of schools out there like to stay on the west coast and don’t really come to Texas as much. A common myth I hear is, “Don’t waste your money on camps.” My sophomore year of high school, as a Christmas gift, my parents sent me to a baseball camp at Arizona State and that’s where they saw me pitch. I threw a couple bullpens, and they said, “Hey, come back. We want to see you again.” When I went back they offered me a scholarship. So if it wasn’t for that baseball camp I never would have been seen by such a prestigious program like Arizona State. So when I hear people say, “Don’t waste money on camps,” I think that’s really what led me to where I am today. [/pullquote]On The Baseball Mindset…
[pullquote align=”normal”]You know the biggest thing is to always stay positive. I’ve really learned that in professional ball, it’s a long season. On the minor leagues side, you’re playing 140 games, on the big league side you’re playing 162 games, so if you continue to be negative, like as a pitcher, if you have a few bad outings in a row, and you continue to be negative towards yourself, it’s going to make 140 games seem like 300 games. You just gotta continue to stay positive, and try to work on every little thing. If you have a bad outing, try to figure out what the positives in that outing were and just build off of that. [/pullquote]On Working With Program 15…
[pullquote align=”normal”]With Program 15 we work on not just physical ability, but also on staying mentally strong. If you screw up a pitch, like if I threw a slider that I didn’t want to happen, it’s okay. I’m going to throw it again until I get it right. One of the big things here is we set a goal and then we continue to work until we reach that goal, then we move on to something else, and that’s a big part of taking big steps forward.It’s a great thing to be seen. Just being able to work with other professional baseball players, and we all have the same goal, and that’s to make it to the big leagues. So having all these guys here really pushes us all. Everybody just wants to beat everybody. We’re really competitive out here, and we just have a good time. I think that’s great exposure for all of us.
Jeremy saw me at my best in high school and in college. My first few years in pro ball, I didn’t feel like myself, something was off. Coming here really helped me take that step forward. Is it a coincidence that the first offseason I spent with Program 15 I ended up making it to the big leagues that next year? I don’t think so. Working with Jeremy really helped me to take a huge leap forward and make my dream of getting to the big leagues come true.
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