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CB Devon Torrence (official thread)

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When spring practice ends, it will be interesting to see whether Ohio State cornerback Devon Torrence follows his heart or his head.

Torrence loves baseball, which is why he has spent summers playing in the low minors in the Houston Astros system. But the junior is suddenly challenging for a starting spot with the Buckeyes, and it's clear that coach Jim Tressel believes Torrence has a chance to play a lot in the fall.

Tressel won't tell Torrence that he can't play baseball, but he has said they will discuss the options in May. It seems likely Torrence will be told that if he misses football work to play baseball in the summer, it could affect his chances of starting in the fall.
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The Columbus Dispatch : Bob Hunter commentary: Rumblings
 
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TORRENCE DECISION

There is a good chance Canton South graduate Devon Torrence will start at cornerback for Ohio State this fall. Head Coach Jim Tressel has made it relatively clear to Torrence he should look closely at whether he continues his two-sport career.

Torrence has played in the Astros minor league system the last two summers, but he has struggled at the plate. Houston paid a hefty signing bonus ? $123,500 ? to the 16th-round pick, but the Astros knew they would be sharing him with Ohio State. That?s at least triple what a normal 16th-round selection gets.

?We said we were going to sit down and talk about that after the spring, and I told him if he hits .125 again, they?re not going to want him to play,? Tressel told reporters after a recent spring practice. ?It will be interesting. I?m not sure. ... I think he wants to stay in the now, and he doesn?t want to worry about that one bit. He wants to focus on spring practice and the spring quarter academically, and then sit down and say, ?OK, what?s the best thing for me??

?He went down, for instance, on spring break and did some hitting, but that?s fine, because we didn?t have any football to work on and no school to work on. We said we were probably going to decide that in May. It?s up to him ? if he?d like to (play baseball) that?s great, that was our agreement. And if he?d rather not, then he?s going to have to take that up with the Astros.?

Torrence has struck out 101 times in 205 at-bats. He does have a chance to become the starting cornerback at a school that has a reputation for turning out some pretty good NFL defensive backs.
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Todd Porter: What's next for Spielman? - Canton, OH - CantonRep.com
 
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Does anybody know if Torrence would have to pay back some of his bonus if he didn't report to the Astro's this year.

To Diddy that is the key.

If he has to come out of pocket, I would expect him to play baseball.
 
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cdiddy said:
Does anybody know if Torrence would have to pay back some of his bonus if he didn't report to the Astro's this year.
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I seem to remember that he owed the Astro's at least two summers. This upcoming summer is his third. My understanding is that his obligation has been fufilled. But I could be wrong, I am sure you can find the answer somewhere in this thread.
 
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cdiddy70;1460644; said:
Does anybody know if Torrence would have to pay back some of his bonus if he didn't report to the Astro's this year.

To Diddy that is the key.
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In the most pleasant way, allow me to mention that referring to oneself in the third person hasn't worked out well for some other posters in the past.
 
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I'd think that the route to the highest level of a professional sport is much, much easier if Devon were to start at CB for Ohio State rather than work his way up through the minor league baseball system.

No brainer here, IMO.
 
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emu;1460830; said:
I'd think that the route to the highest level of a professional sport is much, much easier if Devon were to start at CB for Ohio State rather than work his way up through the minor league baseball system.

No brainer here, IMO.
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On the flip side, the guaranteed contracts in baseball are often much more lucrative than the NFL.
 
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MuckFich06;1460887; said:
On the flip side, the guaranteed contracts in baseball are often much more lucrative than the NFL.
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If you have a chance to leave tOSU as a starting corner and head for the NFL draft. Chances are you'll be making a solid amount more then somebody who's batting a .125 in the minor's.
 
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On whether cornerback Devon Torrence is going to play minor-league baseball for a third summer, or stay in Columbus for workouts:

"The last time I saw him, he wasn't sure which he was going to do. I told him playing baseball wouldn't hurt him. I think (cornerbacks) coach (Taver) Johnson and the secondary coaches, they'd love to see him in here working out. I asked them, `Are you going to skip your vacation and be in here watching him?' and the answer is no.

"So either place he is, he's fine. Devon Torrence is going to be a good player."

I spoke with Torrence two weeks ago, and he said he was still trying to figure things out. His agent and a Houston Astros scout both have said they have no idea what Torrence is going to do, calling him "the mystery man."

The bottom line is it sounds like Tressel is not trying to pressure him to stay here for the summer, and the kid loves baseball deep down, so he may give it another try. We should know within the week, as finals finished up Friday and Torrence certainly would be on his way to his baseball team by now.
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Tressel: Berry's immediate future unclear (Blogging the Buckeyes)
 
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Torrence hopes football yields more hits

The player a Houston Astros scout called "the mystery man" recently has apparently decided to stick with football.

I say apparently because Ohio State cornerback Devon Torrence has been elusive lately, to say the least, even to the Astros, the organization that drafted him in the summer of 2007.

An Ohio State spokesperson said she saw Torrence on campus Sunday night, and assumed that meant he was staying in Columbus this summer. Summer quarter classes began today.

Torrence, an outfielder from Canton, spent parts of the past two summers playing for the class-A Greeneville, Tenn., Astros. Frankly, he was miserable at baseball, hitting just .150 combined over those short seasons, striking out 101 times in 206 at-bats.

This spring, his baseball agent, Joe Speed, was frustrated and annoyed when I contacted him about Torrence, telling me Torrence had failed to return numerous phone calls. He had no idea what Torrence's plans were.

I spoke briefly to Torrence at that point. He told me he still wasn't sure what he was doing, that he still had to talk to some people. We agreed that I would check back with him in a week or so.

Repeated messages to him since then have not been returned.

Meanwhile, I reached the Astros scout that signed him -- Nick Venuto -- who sounded just like Speed, frustrated and clueless as to what Torrence planned to do. Venuto called him "the mystery man" and pretty much had washed his hands of the whole deal.

So the bottom line is Torrence appears to have chosen football over baseball, which probably is the right move, considering he already is a junior, and he is pushing Andre Amos for a starting cornerback job. Missing workouts might have allowed Amos to solidify the spot.

But it also seems Torrence didn't handle the situation very well. Is it a big deal? Nope, pretty typical for a conflicted young man who in my opinion, loves the game of baseball and is having a hard time dealing with giving it up.
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Torrence hopes football yields more hits (Blogging the Buckeyes)
 
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Taosman;1486815; said:
It's a money decision. He isn't going to make much playing baseball and his chance in the NFL is tremendously better. He "gets it". :oh:
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If he has decided to not play baseball this summer, it could help solidify tOSU at corner this fall. Hopefully it works out well for both the Buckeyes and Devon.

:io:
 
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