Aaron Bray was the 27th round draft pick for the Astros in last June's amateur draft. He was also the winner of the Astros County Adopt-a-Player contest. Each week, Aaron will write a column for Astros County detailing his off-season. Check the sidebar for archives.
Astro Fans, Hope all is well. I don't know if many of you are following the playoffs, but there are some wild finishes. Playoff baseball is the best time of the year. My roommate just got done reading to me about Manny taking a shower while the game was going on last night as it looked like the Dodgers had a chance to win. If Manny is involved in the story you know you will get a good laugh out of it. School is going well, before I know it the semester will be over and I will be heading to Florida. Which I cannot wait for.
What was your experience showing up in Greeneville on your first day? What was your transition from "drafted player" to "professional baseball player" like?
I showed up to Greeneville the day before our due date. I went over to the stadium and did not see anyone. I went to our hotel that we were living in and checked in, met two players and then went to my room. I sat in the room all day, watched a storm come right through Greeneville through the window. Around 11 o'clock I turned in and 30 minutes later I was up again, and my roommate (Ryan Humphrey, 15th Round) had arrived. He moved in, then I went back to sleep. I was still excited and nervous at the same time about what the next day would bring.
Well, when I got drafted it was more of a mentality of, "Man, I just got drafted. Not many people get to experience that." The transition went from dream to reality. In the first couple of days when we were there we had meetings with front office personnel. That's when you find out how cut throat this business is. Being drafted is forever, but playing professional baseball as a career is not for everyone.
Hope you all have a great week!!!
Aaron Bray
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
