Former BE star promoted to Braves Class A squad
Some people might call it a long ride.
But for Daniel Brooks, it was an odyssey – part of an adventurous journey and part spiritual quest.
The former Bishop England High School and College of Charleston baseball star, received word on June 8 that he had been promoted by the Atlanta Braves organization to Class A North Augusta. The Braves were scheduled to play the Minnesota Twins’ FCL entry in Fort Meyers, Florida, that night when Brooks got the call.
That meant a 10-hour car ride from the Sunshine State to Augusta, Georgia, for Brooks and Caitlin, his wife of eight months. After that Brooks jumped on the team bus and traveled another four hours to Myrtle Beach as he and his GreenJackets teammates were scheduled to play the Pelicans in a Carolina League game.
It wasn’t so much a case of planes, trains, and automobiles. But Brooks reached another mile-marker on his way to becoming a major leaguer.
Brooks was running on fumes by the time he had reached his native state. But the adrenaline rush, well that was full throttle.
“It was definitely a fun drive – but long,” said Brooks, who was an All-State selection in baseball and basketball at BE. “I was definitely running on adrenaline, but also just sharing this journey with my wife. She is the best, as we were laughing, and talking the entire way up there.
“I was definitely excited,” Brooks added, “I started the year in rehab with a minor injury so it feels good to be out there and to be healthy. It’s definitely an exciting step, but you have to take everything with gratitude and a grain of salt, because in the grand scheme of things the ultimate goal is the big leagues obviously, but it’s still an exciting step there.”
The good news is that Brooks is well on his way to full recovery from elbow woes and Tommy John surgery he underwent while he was a member of the College of Charleston baseball team.
He made his professional debut two days after his journey and was in command against the Pelicans with a 93-mph fastball and an 85-mph slider. Seventy-three percent of his pitches were strikes.
Brooks, who is a reliever, pitched 1.2 innings against the Pelicans and allowed only one hit while striking out three.
He wasn’t through pounding the Pelicans with heat. On June 13, Brooks recorded his first professional save in a 4-3 GreenJackets victory over the Pelicans in front of 4,063 fans at Pelican Park. The right-hander didn’t allow a hit in 1.2 innings and struck out two.
Augusta will play the RiverDogs in Charleston from June 23-28 at Joe Riley Park, a venue Brooks pitched in during his college days.
“I think it will be fun to pitch there,” Brooks said. “I haven’t thought about it much, but I know it will definitely be unique. It’s my hometown, it’s where I grew up.
“I had the pleasure of playing baseball there as well with (Chad) Holbrook and (Will) Dorton,” Brooks added. “My career hasn’t gone how I’ve drawn it up, but it’s always special when you get to play where you grew up.”