Baseball dreams realized: Tim Tebow signs with New York Mets

By Adam Silverstein
September 8, 2016
Baseball dreams realized: Tim Tebow signs with New York Mets
Football

Image Credit: AP

Most things Tim Tebow does these days turn into a bit of a circus in large part to the massive media attention surrounding him, but the former Florida Gators quarterback still appears to have received a legitimate opportunity to become a professional baseball player.

After drawing mixed reviews in his “private” workout for 46 scouts from 28 MLB teams last week — displaying power but also inconsistent discipline at the plate and lacking skills in the outfield — Tebow signed a minor-league contract with the New York Mets on Wednesday.

Tebow, who currently works as a college football analyst for ESPN and SEC Network, will begin working on his baseball career next fall when the Mets assign him to their instructional league.

For those unaware, an instructional league is exactly what it sounds like — a place for raw players in need of skill development to gain experience and hone their baseball skills before competing in a high level of minor league baseball.

Tebow, who hits and throws lefty (of course), checks in at 6-foot-3 and 255 pounds with 7.3 percent body fat. He was clocked by scouts in attendance as an average major-leaguer in terms of his speed, though scouts obviously fawned over his body and athleticism, believing he has what it takes physically to play in the big leagues.

Most who watched him believed he deserved a shot in baseball and there were obviously multiple teams competing for his services. Tebow ultimately chose New York, which will put him in an orange-and-blue uniform for the third time in his career.

If you’re expecting to see Tebow in MLB anytime soon, temper those thoughts. He would likely need at least two years of instruction and minor-league work before even having the opportunity to be called up — and he would have to pass every test and succeed beyond expectations for that to happen.

Still, Tebow is getting his chance and that’s really all he can ask for at this time.

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