Fresh off an appearance at the College World Series, Whitney Young High School alum Brendan Summerhill has a chance to be just the second Chicago Public Schools player taken in the first round of the MLB draft since 1989.
The MLB Draft starts Sunday night with the first through third rounds, and Brendan is getting ready for one of the biggest days of his life. The Whitney Young alum is projected to be a first-round pick.
“It’s exciting. Obviously, just trying to stay present. I try to keep reminding myself this week, no matter what happens, 4-year-old Brendan is super super proud, and he would think the person here standing today is the coolest guy ever. So that’s kind of what I’ve been thinking, and it’s going to be exciting, and it’s a family accomplishment for sure,” he said.
As Summerhill continues to put in the work, he has a pretty good guide when it comes to beginning his professional baseball career. His older brother, Colin, plays minor league baseball as a member of the Angels organization.
“Total mentor; I definitely have always kind of looked up to him, and now that he’s going through what I’m about to go through, it’s really helpful to have someone give you the lay of the land and almost a blueprint. Obviously it’s different team to team, but he’s been so communicative with what to expect,” Brendan said.
You can probably credit at least some of Brendan’s competitiveness to growing up with Colin as well.
“Always with everything we did. Even mini-hooping in our bedroom, we’d play like it’s Game 7 of the NBA finals. It’s always been competitive,” Brendan said.
Brendan just got to compete in one of the coolest sporting events at the amateur level. His Arizona Wildcats team made it to this year’s College World Series.
“That was unreal. It seems like almost a fever dream; like, wow, we got to do that. Looking back and reflecting, it’s probably going to be some of the coolest baseball I play in my whole life,” he said.
Brendan basically went straight from Omaha in mid-June to the MLB combine a few days later, with little time off before the draft, and then the start of his pro baseball career shortly after.
“Enjoying family time for sure, because that’s been few and far between with being in Arizona and then Omaha, and enjoying this last couple days I’m unemployed, really,” he said.
He’s excited to see what team decides to employ him.
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