By Cory Valentine

Recently, I sat down with current Detroit Tigers prospect Jason King to talk about his experience as a college recruit, MLB prospect, and current minor leaguer.

In 2007, King earned Division I players of the year honors for the state of Ohio as a senior. King was drafted in the 4^th round out of Kansas State this past spring, and is currently down in Lakeland, Florida, rehabbing his knee in preparation for Spring Training.

Throughout his baseball career, Jason has battled through several obstacles on his road to becoming a professional baseball player. Today, I am including the first part of our discussion. Tomorrow, we will be back with part II.

PBR: What advice would you give to a high school freshman interested in playing baseball at the collegiate level?

King: “I think that if you are a starter your senior year in high school there is a college that will let you at least attempt to play. That may be a JUCO or D3 freshman team but I think you can find a chance. If you are talking about high level D1 in a power conference such as the SEC, ACC, and BIGXII, then be prepared to make a ton of sacrifices, and when you think you are sacrificing enough, sacrifice more!”

PBR: Looking back on your experiences, how important was it for you to attend showcases and play travel baseball?

King: “Every showcase I attended I received a scholarship offer from. If you think these guys will see you at your high school games your wrong.”

PBR: What other schools besides Kansas State were you considering?  

King:” Ohio State, Virginia Tech, Kentucky”

PBR: After attending a recent PBR event as a current professional player, looking back would you have attended PBR events? What were your thoughts about the event?

King: “I think that the PBR events are really going to change the game with recruiting in Ohio. Not only are kids coming from all over the state but they are getting exposed to all the in state schools at one time. I would have absolutely attended as many of these events as I could. When I went through it, I would have had to gone to 5 individual schools showcases to get the exposure you get at one PBR event."

PBR: What were the biggest factors in making your decision where to play college baseball? 

King: “A school that was going to challenge me on the field and in the classroom. I felt if I had bigger opportunities I had to accept them as a challenge. Choosing to attend Kansas State and playing in the BIGXII was the best baseball decision I ever made. Once I started getting opportunities to leave Ohio, I knew I would never stay in state.”

Part II will be posted on Friday ...