Undrafted free agent middle infielders aren’t supposed to reach AA let alone make it to the majors. Twenty-seven year old career minor leaguers not on the 40 man roster are supposed to read the writing on the wall. It’s written in bold when that player is twice passed over during the Rule 5 Draft. They’re not supposed to get called up to the majors in August to help a team in a pennant race.

No one told that to T.J. Rivera who has continued to work hard at the plate and on the field to do everything he can do not just to stick around in the minors, but also to try to make it to the majors.

As a 22-year old out of Troy University, Rivera hit .301/.349/.383 with eight doubles, one homer, and 19 RBI in rookie ball. Over the next five years, he would steadily improve as a hitter. The end result was him hitting .347/.389/.512 with 26 doubles, one triple, 11 homers, and 80 RBI for AAA Las Vegas.

It was good enough for him to rack up the accolades this year. He was named to the Pacific Coast League All-Star Game. He has been twice named the Pacific Coast League Offensive Player of the Week including being the winner the past week. He was the Pacific Coast League’s May Offensive Player of the Month.

Still, it wasn’t enough for him to get called-up. The Mets started the year with Eric Campbell as the last player on the bench. When he faltered, the Mets turned to Ty Kelly not once, not twice, but three times. The Mets continued to go to Kelly despite the fact that he is just hitting .194/.265/.290. Still Rivera didn’t let it get him down with him saying, “I really try to stay positive. I had already been through the process before and wasn’t taken. So it doesn’t really affect me too much.” (Adam Rubin, ESPN.com).

Instead of packing it in and realizing his dream was never going to come true, Rivera tried to figure out what we could do to help convince the Mets to call him up to the majors. Rivera’s solution was to learn left field saying, “I’m trying to get as many reps as I can out there during batting practice. On an off-day or something like that, when I get the opportunity to take some fly balls in left, I take advantage of that.”

Left field was the latest position Rivera has learned. He was a second baseman and a third baseman in college. He learned shortstop and first base at the minor league level. With him now also being able to play left field, he can now play competently at five different positions. Between his hitting and his ability to play almost anywhere on the field, he has done everything he could do to prove to the Mets that he deserves to get called up to the majors.

Well now, his time has finally come. Despite the long odds and other players with less production getting promoted over him time and again, Rivera is going to become a major league player today, a New York Met. The Bronx native gets his start in Flushing. He fought hard for this opportunity, and he earned this chance. It’s not just a feel good story, but it is also a story about never giving up and believing in yourself, a story about perseverance. It’s a triumph.

Congratulations T.J. Rivera. You earned it.