Adell: Proudest baseball moment, pulling on USA Premier12 jersey

Jordon Scott Adell, better known as Jo, was one of the brightest stars of the WBSC Premier12 2019. He finished the tournament with a .394 batting average, 3 home runs and 5 RBIs. His OPS was an astounding 1.126: .697 slugging percentage and .429 on-base percentage.

But despite the numerous accolades he received for his hitting, one of the best experiences-of-a-lifetime he had from the Premier12 was when he first put on the USA National Team jersey.

"One of the most special moments you have as a kid is when you’ve earned a spot to play on your first team," wrote Adell as he chronicles his baseball journey for The Undefeated. "I have to admit having chills the moment I saw the jersey for my current team when I walked up to my locker room stall last month in Arizona. The letters across the front read: USA. The number below it: 22."

Adell, who just missed out on the Premier12 All-World Team, is a so-called top prospect. After graduating from the Ballard High School in Louisville, Kentucky, in 2017, he was picked by the Los Angeles Angels with the 10th overall selection in the Amateur Draft 2017. Adell accepted a US$4.3 million dollar bonus and signed his first professional contract.

His playing career has been on the fast track since then. He played in the All-Star Futures Game 2018 and he was a non-roster invitee at MLB Spring Training 2019. Adell started the season on the Class A advanced roster and finished it playing 27 games at the Triple-A level.

A scouting report, compiled at the end of September 2019, described Adell this way: "Adell can hit the ectoplasm out of the baseball just as well as he can ghost around the basepaths or in the outfield."

Despite Adell's heroics, USA finished fourth in the WBSC Premier12 2019. They failed to qualify for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics but will have another chance in the eight-team Americas Qualifier, to be played from 22 to 26 March in Arizona.