Four Long Beach athletes made their first step towards the future as they signed college letters of intent on Wednesday, Nov.14. The players all trained with the Major League Baseball Urban Youth Academy, a new program started by the MLB to assist the players in getting noticed by scouts.
Baseball players Jordan Hinshaw and Jamal Grimes of Long Beach Polytechnic High School and Ray Hanson and Zach Wilson of Wilson High School were among the seven academy participants who signed on Wednesday.
“We got started late last year, so we were basically just trying to help kids get over the hump,” said Darrell Miller, the academy’s executive director on the MLB website. “We were able to get them maximum exposure, through a lot of the programs, through a lot of the scouting opportunities, a lot of the showcases and traveling with our team. These are guys that we believe we were able to directly influence or enhance their scholarship opportunities.”
Now, after receiving offers from colleges in California and neighboring states, Hanson and Wilson have signed on to play for Arizona State University while Hinshaw and Grimes both decided to attend California State Polytechnic University, Pomona.
