Article: In His Own Words: Twins OF Prospect Jacob Pearson

[Seth Stohs]

20-year-old Twins outfield prospect Jacob Pearson shares his story. He discusses the draft and his early career, but he also lets us inside and shares part of his life away from the game of baseball. Photography is a big passion for the outfielder from Louisiana.

 

I've always enjoyed following minor league baseball players as they improve and work their way up the organizational ladder, sometimes all the way to the big leagues. But, beyond that, I thoroughly enjoy getting to know the minor league baseball players as people.

 

Baseball is such a huge part of their lives. It has always been something they love and they are really good at, but it is also their job. It is their career. But they all have interests beyond the game, and it's fun to learn about that. What are their other passions.For today, Twins outfield prospect Jacob Pearson took time to let us get to know him a little bit more. He is a solid prospect, a former third-round draft pick who spent about half of the 2019 season with the Cedar Rapids Kernels. Below, he penned some thoughts on his young career, but also about some of the things that he is very passionate about in his life.

 

Look back at the Get To Know Jacob Pearson article we did last offseason after he was acquired from the Angels organization.

 

With that, I turn the writing over to Jacob Pearson. Thank you Jacob for sharing a bit of your life and your story with Twins fans!

 

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Many know me as a professional baseball player, but I am going to tell much more about me as a person and what I do inside and outside of baseball.

 

LIFE OF BASEBALL

 

Now this is what most people know about me, but I will share a couple stories of how my draft day and my first and second year of professional baseball went.

 

Draft day was about as normal as draft day could go. I had no idea where I would go, or who would take me. The Twins were one of the first teams to call, followed by the Angels. The Angels ended up taking me before the Twins could, but everything works out how it is suppose to. Following my first year I was traded to the Twins.

 

Now back track a bit, my first year was stunning to me. It was a whole other ball game at this level. I struggled and before I knew it, my first year was finished. I couldn’t grasp how fast it had gone by, but I knew I had some work to do in my first offseason.

I showed up to Spring Training 2018 with the Twins following the trade. I was prepared to have a solid year. I was held down in extended spring training to work on my craft before making my way to Cedar Rapids to play with the Kernels. Full-Season ball is amazing, but I had no idea how to prepare as the season went on. The days started going by really fast again and before I knew it, I was headed into my second offseason following yet another rough year. Now all was not so bad, but it didn’t meet my expectations by a long shot. So this past offseason I worked on my craft harder and harder and figured out a way to approach the 2019 season. I am really excited for baseball to start again

 

LIFE OUTSIDE OF BASEBALL

 

For starters, I am currently engaged to my beautiful fiancé, Faith Guice. We will be getting married in November 2019. As a couple, we spend as much time as we can in the offseason hanging out with family, friends, and each other. Some activities include movie dates, traveling, and dominoes. Being home for several months at a time allows us to do almost anything we want. We spend Sunday mornings in Mt. Ararat Baptist Church. And if we ever have free time, Netflix fills the void.

 

Jacob Pearson photo of his fiance

 

My hobbies include hunting, fishing, and photography. Deer hunting will always be my favorite form of hunting because I have been doing it since I can remember, and I enjoy the peace of the outdoors. Over the last few years, I have picked up duck hunting, and I have found that to be very enjoyable. Going out to a blind at 5am with your buddies; there’s nothing better. Fishing is a hobby I take up during the season. Because it is not hunting season, summers allow me to be outside fishing and soaking up the sun. Hunting and fishing both bring excitement to me because there is the “what if” question. What if I see a big deer? What if I catch a large fish?

 

Now photography needs its own paragraph because this is more than a hobby. I am very passionate about taking pictures and capturing the beauty of the earth. I started in photography in 2016 with a little camera from a pawn shop that my dad had bought me. Since then I have created my own business, taking pictures of people and their beauty. Now I mainly focus on astrophotography; capturing the beauty of the cosmos. A lot goes into taking pictures like this; the conditions have to be almost perfect. Luckily, I live in a place where the Milky Way is visible most of the time. A link to my Instagram and website will be listed below if you want to look further into this hobby of mine!

 

Follow Jacob Pearson on Instagram.

Follow Pearson Photos on Instagram.

Follow Jacob Pearson on Twitter.

 

Check out the Pearson Photos website (be sure to look in the Gallery. Here is a sampling:

 

 

 

 

Click here to view the article

[nater79a]

Interesting.   As Jacob said in the post, the Twins were quite interested in him leading up to the 2017 MLB draft.    Blayne Enlow was taken with the first pick of the 3rd round and then the Angels snapped up Pearson nine picks later.  With the first pick in the 4th round the Twins grabbed Charlie Barnes.  I still like the Barnes pick, but one wonders whether the Twins would have taken Pearson at 4-1 if he was still there.   It's possible, I guess, since they didn't hesitate to trade for him when they had the chance.

[nater79a]

Solid pictures of the cosmos, by the way!  

I especially like the one of the Milky Way hovering over the corn field.

[bighat]

Dude's got some photo skills. Would love to learn how to get those long-exposure photos of the Milky Way, I need to up my game!

[bdodge22]

Incredible pictures!

[Squirrel]

I'm glad these guys have an outlet other than baseball. He is a talented young man.

[rdehring]

Yes, incredible pictures.  If he reads this, was wondering if he has seen any of the artwork by Andreas Nottebohm.  Several of his photos could be Nottebohm paintings.  Expect he would find Andreas' life interesting.

 

Sounds like another good kid who the organization can be proud of.  Always fun learning more about them.  Thanks Seth.

[ashbury]

If he'd spend more time in the weightroom and less in the darkroom he might have a better chance for success.

 

_{^{/ yes, I am old - darkrooms? Also, in case anyone would be misled:}}

[diehardtwinsfan]

impressive photos. 

 

Seems like an all around good kid. Good luck!

[nater79a]

 

If he'd spend more time in the weightroom and less in the darkroom he might have a better chance for success.

 

_{^{/ yes, I am old - darkrooms? Also, in case anyone would be misled:}}

 

Maybe his darkroom doubles as a weight room!

 

Although, getting the barbells back on the rack in the dark might be a little tricky...

[caninatl04]

Thanks for the article, but I would have preferred a line or two about his 2018 stats, and maybe where he’ll start in ‘19.

[MMMordabito]

 

Thanks for the article, but I would have preferred a line or two about his 2018 stats, and maybe where he’ll start in ‘19.

 

2018 stats are easily accessible.

 

TD usually has roster projection pieces during ST.

 

It doesn't have to be one or the other.  These types of articles show that the players are more than proverbial tags on a feed lot (i.e. "The Farm").

Yeah, he's a baseball player that we all hope will have a good year and increase his value as - here we go - an asset, but he's also a young man in love with a good looking young lady and a photography passion that he was willing to share with his fans.

[Richie the Rally Goat]

It’s always great to get the humanity behind the machine. Good luck to Jacob on the field, behind the camera, and with his bride to be.

[jkcarew]

Barely 20 years old in A ball and put up wRC+ of 97...don’t beat yourself up too much, kid! Good luck and enjoy the ride as much as you can!

[Seth Stohs]

 

Thanks for the article, but I would have preferred a line or two about his 2018 stats, and maybe where he’ll start in ‘19.

 

OK, he hit .237 with 12 doubles, three triples and seven homers in just 78 games in Cedar Rapids. He will start the season in Cedar Rapids with an opportunity to move up to Ft. Myers around midseason if all goes well. 

[Seth Stohs]

 

Barely 20 years old in A ball and put up wRC+ of 97...don’t beat yourself up too much, kid! Good luck and enjoy the ride as much as you can!

 

That was my thought too... Pretty solid showing. I honestly expected him to stay in EST and play in Elizabethton in 2018, so getting 78 games in Cedar Rapids, a year after high school, is pretty impressive. Showed a good approach at the plate and good speed and good power too... Remember that many of the pitchers in the league are 22-23-24 years old. Just 17 of his 312 plate appearances were against pitchers that were younger than him. 

[jrod23]

Great read Seth.  Uniquely done.  I like it.

[tarheeltwinsfan]

Nice article about a nice young man. Good luck to him in all he does.