Auburn Baseball in the Big Leagues: MLB Spring Training Begins

Mar 1, 2015; Dunedin, FL, USA; Toronto Blue Jays third baseman

Josh Donaldson

(20) during spring training workouts at

Bobby Mattick

Training Center. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

It’s time for Spring Training in Major League Baseball, and several former Auburn baseball players like Josh Donaldson and Tim Hudson are set to begin another pro season.

Last season was a big one for former Auburn baseball players. Three Tigers from the 2014 squad were selected in the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, and two of them – pitcher Trey Cochran-Gill and third baseman Damek Tomscha began their professional careers, as did Dillon Ortman and Blake Austin, who both signed as undrafted free agents.

Those three combined with 19 others already in pro baseball and four playing in the Major Leagues gives Auburn a large presence in the game.

Among the highlights, Josh Donaldson was selected to the American League All-Star team and ranked in the top ten in the AL in home runs, slugging percentage, walks and RBI. Also, veteran pitcher Tim Hudson won his first World Series with the San Francisco Giants.

And best of all, former Auburn first baseman Frank Thomas was inducted to the Baseball Hall of Fame, becoming not only the first Tiger to be enshrined, but also the first to play in the SEC.

“Under your guidance at Auburn University, I became a man,” Thomas said in his induction speech, which thanked former Auburn head football coach Pat Dye, baseball coach Hal Baird and Thomas’ football position coach and current athletic director Jay Jacobs. “You guys pushed me to new heights and instilled toughness and a will to win that I never knew existed.”

As the calendar turned from 2014 to 2015, and again from February to March, it’s now time for Spring Training. Donaldson, Hudson and four other former Auburn baseball players are in Major League camps with a chance to begin the year in the big leagues.

The rest of the group is also in either Florida or Arizona with their Major League organizations for a month of workouts and exhibition games in order to make an impression on the decision-makers and to prepare for the long minor league season ahead.

Next: Josh Donaldson