High School Water Polo MVP Sam Abbott Drafted by Chicago White Sox

Photo Courtesy: commons.wikimedia

When most high schoolers are taking an exam in their AP Government class, they get anxious or stressed. Sam Abbott gets drafted.

On June 13, Curtis High School water polo player Sam Abbott got drafted in the eighth round by the Chicago White Sox:

8 (237): @whitesox select Curtis HS 1B Sam Abbott. https://t.co/g04l02xhF4 #MLBDraft

— MLB Draft Tracker (@MLBDraftTracker) June 13, 2017

He was in school taking a test at the time, which is representative of his journey to the MLB draft- nonchalant and unexpected. Abbott, a three-sport athlete at CHS in University Place, Washington swims and plays water polo and baseball.

In fact, Abbott has already signed his letter of intent to play water polo on a partial scholarship at Long Beach State University. Additionally, he led Curtis High to back-to-back state water polo titles and is a three-time State MVP for club polo.

He also earned runner-up honors in the 100 free at the 4A Washington State Championships. Abbott’s best times from this high school season are as follows:

50 Free – 21.22

100 Free – 46.03

200 Free – 1:45.70

And this is his secondary sport. While his teachers and coaches tribute his speed in the pool to his smart and dedicated work ethic, Abbott credits some of his success to his mother who swam for the then-Soviet Union in the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow.

“I’m proud of my mom and I want to follow in her footsteps,” Abbott said.

But it should be noted that while Abbott’s mother was swimming, his father was playing baseball. In the spring, when Abbott hits the baseball diamond instead of the pool, the talent he may have inherited from his father comes out to play.

Robbie Cummings, a scout for the Chicago White Sox, saw Abbott hit home runs in his last two games of the CHS season and admired the senior’s swing the most. Like his swimming, his coaches said he is a powerful player.

Abbott batted .438 (21-for-61) with eight doubles, two home runs and 18 RBIs for Curtis this year.

After this, Abbott was invited to Guaranteed Rate Field in Chicago on June 4 to practice with some other potential draftees for the White Sox. According to The News Tribune, he hit one right over the right fence on his second received pitch.

At the camp, he conversed with, and impressed, baseball legends Jim Thome and Nomar Garciaparra.

“He was a really cool dude,” Abbott said of Thome. “We just talked baseball and I introduced myself. It was cool to meet someone in the top 10 in baseball history for home runs (612).”

Abbott described the last few months of high school as a whirlwind experience, where he definitely did not see himself focusing on baseball after graduation.

“The thing that really interested some scouts is what’s going to happen when he concentrates on one thing. He’s an honor student who played three sports. Their plan is to put him with the best hitting instructors, fielding instructors, weight-lifting trainers and basically take him from there,” said Jeff Abbott, Sam’s father.

The first high school player selected from Washington, MLB.com estimates Abbott’s value at $161,600.

The News Tribune contributed to this post.

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Thomas A. Small

6 years ago

Congratulations