Brock Bond: Former Tiger Gone Giant
February 20, 2013; Scottsdale, AZ, USA; San Francisco Giants infielder Brock Bond (22) poses for a picture during photo day at Scottsdale Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Tuesday, February 26th was a huge day for the Giants’ young middle infielder, Brock Bond, who blasted a two run bomb against the Los Angeles Dodgers, trimming the lead to 8-6 in the 9th.
The St. Louis raised kid checks in at 5’11”, 185 lbs, and is a product of the University of Missouri Tiger’s baseball program. He attended Lindbergh High School in South St. Louis County where he earned All-State honors on the baseball and football fields, including being named the St. Louis Suburban Journal’s Athlete of the Year.
Bond attended the University of Arkansas where he started 20 games before transferring to Mizzou. As a Tiger, Bond played in 57 games during which he led the team in batting average at .338, and was second with 21 multi-hit games, an on-base percentage of .435, 45 runs and 68 hits. There was a stint in his time with the Tigers that he had an 8 game hitting streak.
Drafted by the San Fransisco giants in 2007, Bond spent time in all the leagues between Rookie up to AAA. Despite criticism that he lacked throwing power needed to crack the MLB, he’s been compared to David Eckstein for also having great speed and range, and for being such a great lead-off threat for the opposition.
Bond had an insanely strong 2012 season with the Giant’s AAA team, the Fresno Grizzlies; a Pacific Coast League competitor. In 106 games played, Bond earned a hit 112 times out of a possible 337 plate appearances. He posted a .332 average on the year, had a staggering on base percentage of .422, scored 59 times and drove in 31 RBI’s. Needless to say, the Giants took notice of the rising star and so far for 2013, has a strong start with today’s clutch display of the boom-stick.
The Giants are the returning World Champions. For Bonds, joining the ranks of players who have been there and done it would give him the opportunity we all dreamed of as kids. It’s great to hear the success stories of the local players like Howard, Freese and now Bond. Being from such a great sports town in St. Louis, Bond should look forward for that first trip back to STL where he will undoubtedly be welcomed back via the thunderous noise that is Cardinal Nation. Hopefully welcoming him back at Busch Stadium means it’s October all over again.