Back in 2004 I was following a local kid pitching at Allen High and making the Youth Team USA roster, pitching in international competitions against kids from Cuba, etc. He was all-state as a sophomore and junior and headed for a good draft spot. At the beginning of his senior year he blew out his elbow and underwent Tommy John surgery. I remember the sick feeling I had when I heard about it. Then I lost track of Shawn Tolleson.
It turns out that he had an offer from Baylor, which they honored. He recovered from the surgery, pitched 3 years for Baylor, got drafted in a low round by the Dodgers, and made his way through their system, making the majors in 2012. In 2013, his back went bad and more surgery followed. The Dodgers waived him, and this spring he got a call from the Rangers. Shawn Tolleson is now pitching on an almost nightly basis in the bigs, carrying some pretty solid numbers, throwing 93-94 for the worst team in the AL, living with his wife in Allen. It all seemed highly unlikely back in 2004. Pretty cool.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/t/tollesh01.shtml
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