But don’t think Ewing, a 2023 Springboro High School graduate who turned down a baseball scholarship to attend University of Alabama, is satisfied as a professional baseball player.
“My goal never was to be a college baseball player,” Ewing said during a phone interview from the Mets spring training facility in Florida. “This is about getting my feet wet and getting used to the pro environment. I want to get to the bigs.”
That means playing for the Mets one day at Citi Field. And the sooner the better.
So instead of being a junior at Alabama, Ewing has played 2 1/2 seasons of professional baseball.
In 221 games, Ewing, known as a contact hitter with blazing speed, is hitting .283 with 13 homers, 107 RBIs and 84 stolen bases.
On Aug. 10, his 21st birthday, Ewing was promoted to Class AA and played 28 games with the Binghamton Rumble Ponies. The first pitch he saw with the Rumble Ponies, he lined to right field for a hit and finished with a .339 batting average.
The Rumble Ponies defeated the Erie SeaWolves, 8-2, in Game 3 of the Eastern League Championship Series last month at UPMC Park.
With the victory, Binghamton won its fourth Eastern League championship in franchise history and its first since 2014. Binghamton also won the Eastern League title in 1992, 1994, and 2014.
“That was a lot of fun,” he said about winning a minor league championship. “It’s not all about development and advancing your skills. Winning is important.”
In the minors, all players — your teammates and your opponents — share the identical dream: being a Major Leaguer. That creates extreme competition among players, Ewing said.
“We all have the same focus, the same goal,” he said. “They want to take your job so their dream happens and your dream ends. That’s the harsh reality.”
So Ewing, who plays both outfield and second base, is spending the off-season lifting weights in hopes of becoming a stronger player.
“The off-season is when the real season starts,” he said. “I’m getting ready and I hope the work in the off-season pays off.”
He hasn’t set a goal where he wants to start the 2026 season in the Mets organization. He just wants to be the “best player and force the team’s impact at the big leagues” next season, he said.
His father, Joe, used to toss him baseballs in the back yard. That was his introduction to baseball, the sport he hopes to make his profession.
Early on, when Joe handed his son a bat, he made him swing left handed, though he does everything else right handed. Left-handed hitters are more desirable, his father said.
It didn’t take long for Joe to realize his son was special at the plate.
“He has God given talent in that swing,” he said.
By the time A.J. was 10, he was playing on national select traveling baseball teams. His father said his son always was “one of the best players on the field” regardless of the talent level.
Some of that is talent, but there’s plenty of determination, too. A.J. looks forward to practicing as much as playing, his father
“He’s chasing a dream with every bit of energy he has,” said his father, a Springboro chiropractor.
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