Top 10 Baseball Players Who Started Their Careers in Greenville

Having grown up in Greenville, I have been lucky enough to have seen games a Meadowbrook Park, Greenville Braves Stadium and Flour Field. Baseball has been part of Greenville summers for generations and to not have a season this year seems makes the pandemic seem even more difficult to navigate.

While I don’t remember much about Meadowbrook, I do remember asking my dad to buy a foul ball from the kids selling one’s they’d chased down. He told me that was crazy, we’ll get our own ball. Needless to say, we went home without a ball. From that first game, I count myself fortunate to have seen a number of the players on this list and was able to enjoy countless games with friends and family … and we ended up getting quite a few balls after all.

While there are some great names on this list, I can’t help but think of the hundreds of players that passed through Greenville as they chased their dreams for big league stardom and never made it. But that’s the whole point of minor league baseball. It exist to provide a platform for aspiring players to test their skills and pursue a dream that seems so close but for a Class A ballplayer, is incredibly far away.

My list starts with the Greenville Mets but I have to give respect to Shoeless Joe

Shoeless Joe Jackson Stats | Baseball-Reference.com

Career: 54 HR, .356 BA (3rd), 792 RBI, OF, WhiteSox/Naps/… 1908-1920, b:L/t:R, 2x H Leader, born in SC 1887, died 1951, Shoeless Joe

Here are my top 10 players in Greenville baseball history. Your list may differ but with no action on the field, I felt it was a good time to think of better seasons. Let’s all hope that this pandemic subsides and that next summer the crack of the bat returns to the Upstate.

Greenville Mets

Two great pitchers jump out as we look at the Greenville Mets’ alumni including Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan.

Nolan Ryan: Ryan won 17 games, lost only two, and struck out 272 batters in 183 innings pitched in 1966
Jerry Koosman

Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan recalls Greenville season

Nolan Ryan, to be inducted in local hall of fame, fondly recalls his season in Greenville.

Players, coaches reminisce about Meadowbrook Park

40 years after Meadowbrook Park burned down, former players and coaches talked to The Greenville News about Meadowbrook Park.

Greenville Red Sox

Dwight Evans: a mainstay for the Boston Redsox during the 1970’s

Greenville Braves

Tom Glavine All Star starting pitcher and Baseball Hall of Fame inductee in 2014
Chipper Jones All Star third baseman and Baseball Hall of Fame inductee in 2018
Andruw Jones, All Star outfielder, won 10 consecutive Rawlings Gold Glove Awards 1998-2007
Adam Wainwright : This one I did not know. Wainwright was a top Braves prospect in 2003 but traded to the Cardinals in a package for JD Drew

Greenville Drive

Jackie Bradley Jr. (2011) While only in Greenville for a short stint, the USC alumni remains a fan favorite and is enjoying a great career with the Red Sox.
Xander Bogaerts (2011) In 72 games, Bogaerts hit .260 and belted 16 home runs on his way to the major league team.
Mookie Betts Hit .296 for the Drive and is now an All-Star

Just Missed the Top 10

David Justice, All Star outfielder. 1990 National League Rookie of the Year.

Christian Vázquez (2010-11) In 2 season with the Drive, Vázquez blossomed into a power hitting catcher with 18 homeruns in his second season with the team. Vázquez is now the starting catcher for the Boston Red Sox.

Rafael Devers (2015), who took the open third base job at 19 and hit .288

John Smoltz : had to include a guy who is in the hall of fame and is responsible for one of the biggest crowds ever at Fluor Field in a Sunday start in 2009. Unfortunately, by the time Smoltz go to Greenville, his best days were way behind him.

Notable Greenville Opponents You May Recognize

Bo Jackson: Saw him make a throw from right field corner to third base against Greenville Braves
Michael Jordan – 1994
Bryce Harper : was 19 when he played against the Drive