MOBILE, Ala. – Former University of South Alabama baseball standout Adam Heisler has signed a free agent deal with the Chicago White Sox, and will begin his professional career with the Bristol Sox of the Appalachian League.
Heisler will join former Jag Brent Tanner at Bristol, which serves as one of the White Sox’s rookie teams, and will be activated prior to Thursday’s game.
But the road the Mobile, Ala., native took to earn his shot at professional baseball wasn’t the easy route.
Following his senior year at South Alabama in 2010, in which he batted .326 with 10 doubles, two triples, four home runs, 41 RBI and led the Sun Belt Conference with 31 stolen bases, Heisler went undrafted. During his senior campaign he dealt with plantar fasciitis (fash-e-EYE-tiss), which causes inflammation of the plantar fascia ligament. Heisler battled through the injury and missed just four games that season.
Added to that was the fact that his throwing shoulder required surgery after his final season at USA. The 2010 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft came and went that June without Heisler receiving a call, so he took the next immediate step and attended tryouts for different clubs but never received any offers.
“I think it was because they all knew my shoulder was going to require surgery,” he said of teams’ hesitancy at the time. “Whenever I would go to a tryout, I really couldn’t throw because my shoulder wasn’t up to where it had been. So I think that was kind of a knock against me.”
But he continued to train and rehab his surgically-repaired shoulder in Mobile until he received a call from the Lake Erie Crushers, an independent organization in the Frontier League, where he was set to team up with former Jaguar Joel Collins. But Heisler was released from Lake Erie after two-and-a-half weeks into the preseason. However, he remained steadfast in his goal of playing professional baseball, and returned home to continue his training regimen.
“I came back and trained at home and continued doing my rehab program,” Heisler said. “It was funny because I sat down with my girlfriend, and she was telling me that I needed to try to play. She was actually the one looking for tryouts for me to go to. I went to tryouts with the Braves, White Sox and the Kansas City Royals, and the White Sox organization is the only one I heard back from.”
At a June tryout held by the White Sox and current scout and former Jaguar Warren Hughes in Birmingham, Ala., Heisler proved he was healthy once again. He ran a 6.41-second 60-yard dash, the fastest at the tryout, and made throws from the outfield effortlessly.
“He [Hughes] saw that I was healthy again, and that I threw from the outfield and my arm was back to where it was before I had the shoulder surgery on my labrum,” Heisler stated. “I hit pretty good and they said they would put my name at the top of the list for outfielders, and if somebody happened to go down that I would get a call from someone in the organization. And Monday afternoon I got a call from Warren and he said, ‘If you’re ready to go play, we just had an outfielder get hurt.’ They needed a fourth outfielder up here because they only had three, so I packed up my stuff and headed up this way.
“I feel like I am 100 percent now. My legs are rested, and my arm is almost a year out of surgery so it feels great. I’m just trying to give it all I’ve got and just man up and play the rest of the season as hard as I can, then go home and get in top shape all over again.”
In his two seasons (2009-10) at South Alabama, Heisler batted .358 with 24 doubles, three triples, seven homers, 84 RBI and 47 stolen bases. He posted a career OPS of .895, which includes a .423 on-base percentage.
“I was totally surprised when Adam wasn’t drafted his senior year,” former South Alabama head coach Steve Kittrell said. “I know he had some injuries, but he has a lot of tools to go a long way in professional baseball if he can put it together. He can bunt, has tremendous speed and he has some pop in his bat. He is also a very good young man off the field, and a team player.”
As a junior, Heisler led South Alabama with a .394 batting average and .446 on-base percentage en route to earning second-team all-SBC honors.
“Adam had to battle through some injuries during his senior year, but he certainly showed everyone what he was capable of doing his junior year when he was healthy by batting over .390, stealing 30 bags and playing the game hard and the right way,” USA assistant coach Alan Luckie said. “I was extremely surprised with the fact that he didn’t get drafted following his senior year after having such a stellar junior year, but to his credit he has continued to stay in the game and workout. There have been some ups and downs in this process, but the bottom line is he stayed determined and focused on his goals and I couldn’t be happier that he’s finally getting the opportunity that I think he’s deserved for two years.
“He is a great kid and has an extreme understanding and knowledge of the game - well beyond his years. But to display the work ethic and drive to keep battling through all of these ups and downs to get this opportunity is impressive.”
Bristol will open a three-game series with the Princeton Rays Thursday at 6 p.m. (CT).
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
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