FTB Spotlight – Everett Hurst

High School – Sebring High School

Grad year – 2017

FTB – He is entering his 4th season with FTB

 

I was talking to a recruiting coordinator a couple years back about what his personal preference was when he was watching high school arms.  We talked for a while about body, arm action, arm slot, athleticism, etc.  At the end of the conversation the recruiting coordinator got passionate about 2 things: He wanted a guy that loved to throw and he wanted a guy whose heart was larger than his tools.  He likened a guy that loved to throw to a hitter that had bad intentions.  You have to love your craft, and love going hard at it.  He also touched on the tools comment saying; Of course I want a guy that has great velo and off speed and all that stuff, but his heart still has to outweigh having great stuff.  FTB has been lucky to have a lot of pitchers that have fit this description.  As we get closer to the high school season it means summer is right around the corner.  We think we have multiple guys that fit this description, but the throw, heart, and tools description certainly fits Everett Hurst. 

 

If you see Everett Hurst walking around the field in the summer, you can see a kid that just loves life.  He is bouncing around just waiting for his chance to compete.  He turns from happy-go-lucky to an intense competitor as soon as he takes the ball.  Then you can see how much he loves throwing his 88-91 MPH fastball that has armside run and sink towards the dish.  He fills up the zone with three pitches and can have such a fiery personality while doing it.  A defender playing behind him, can feed off the energy. It is easy to see the plus stuff, but the heart is the difference maker. 

 

As I finished my conversation with the recruiting coordinator I took a lot of what he said and added some things that I personally look for while recruiting for FTB.  I want everything that the recruiter talked about, plus I want a guy that loves his team.  When Everett is long gone from FTB and playing on much bigger stages, I will remember how much he loved his teammates and how much he loves FTB.  He is a constant on social media.  Developing relationships and congratulating his teammates when they accomplish something.  He is also a recruiting guru that wants to compete with the best in the entire country.  Everett checks a lot of boxes that will make him successful for a long time to come.

 

Love to throw, Heart, tools, teammate, and FTB! Everett continues to check boxes!