Photo by Ed Delany

Earlier this year, Mets General Manager Sandy Alderson intimated both that Tim Tebow will one day play at the Major League level and Tebow could begin the season with Double-A Binghamton. Well, the second of Alderson’s predictions have come true as the New York Mets have announced Tebow will be a Rumble Pony.

In his first full season in professional baseball, Tebow split time between Mets Single-A affiliates Columbia and St. Lucie. Overall, Tebow would hit .226/.309/.347 with eight homers and 52 RBI.  While there are many skeptics regarding his baseball playing ability, there are those who would say this was quite an impressive stat line for a player who had not played organized baseball in over a decade.

Regardless of what analysts believe, both Columbia and St. Lucie must have been thrilled to have him on the roster because both franchises set attendance records. That may be in large part due to Tebow’s popularity, the curiosity over his ability to play baseball, and his being home in SEC country.  With him now out of SEC country, it will also be interesting to see if the same media scrutiny and large crowds follow the former Heisman Trophy winner.

It will also be interesting to see how much Tebow plays.  His Spring got off to a late start due to injury, and he should be on a roster with better and healthier prospects than he was in 2018.  Overall, his ability to get onto the field and how well he plays when he does get on the field may very well dictate whether Sandy’s prediction that Tebow will one day pay in the majors will also ring true.