Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Commentary: Six-year ride has paid off for Houston

IN THE SOUTH all roads lead to Atlanta. But for all the traveling Tyler Houston has done this decade in the southern portion of the United States, he had no guarantee he would ever actually reach the region's largest city, let alone make the roster of the Atlanta Braves.

From Sumter to Macon to Durham to Greenville to Richmond ... Houston hit all of the dusty stops en route to working his way up through the Braves' minor-league system to the parent club.

There was no assurance he would ever see Atlanta. The Braves had chosen him out of Valley High School with the second overall pick in the June 1989 amateur draft, paid him a sizable signing bonus and dispatched him on his tour of the deep South. Six seasons later and out of options, the 25-year-old Houston made the Braves this spring.

Was he relieved? To answer that one, ask yourself this one: Are cows mad?

"It feels great," he said during a phone conversation Tuesday from Los Angeles, where the Braves are in the midst of a three-game series with the Dodgers. "This is what everybody plays for. I'm glad to get here, but I always had confidence in my abilities and I always thought I'd make it. And I did."

A left-handed hitting catcher by trade, Houston added to his usefulness in recent years by learning to play left field and first base. That versatility was important as he won a spring-training battle with fellow rookie Tony Graffanino for the final roster spot with the defending world champions.

"That makes it an extra big thrill," he said of playing for the talent-laden and TV-blessed champs. Did Houston strike it rich, or what? He's on the Braves, making $109,000 this season, playing for a championship team that's on national television virtually every day, plus he has a teammate in fellow Las Vegan Greg Maddux who can help him learn about life in the National League.

It's as if the long wait and the back-road bus rides were worth it.

But major-league players have to face an occasional tough question or two, and the one for Houston had to do with his being out of options. Had the Braves not kept him, he would have become a free agent. Considering the team's investment in him -- and the fact Graffanino had one option remaining -- did he feel the option situation worked to his advantage in making the club?

"I don't think so," he said. "I feel I earned the spot. Put it this way: If I wasn't out of options, the Braves still would have needed someone like me. And I think if they had released me, I would have been picked up by some other team and I'd have still been in the majors this season."

It took Houston only one at-bat to return his first dividend. Up in a pinch-hitting role, he doubled on the very first pitch he swung at in the major leagues.

"It was on my mind that I'd swing as soon as I saw a strike," Houston said, his anticipation, no doubt, stoked by the bright lights and the big city. Having finally arrived in Atlanta's Fulton County Stadium, he wanted to make sure those in the crowd knew his long journey had a chance of paying off for them, too.

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