ATLANTA – Clint Frazier didn't think anything could distract him from his anticipation of being a possible top-five pick in Major League Baseball's first-year player draft on Thursday.
That was before John Smoltz managed to surprise the Loganville High School outfielder.
Smoltz, the former Cy Young winner turned broadcaster, visited Frazier Tuesday under the guise of interviewing him for a story to preview the draft. Instead, Smoltz surprised Frazier with the Gatorade national player of the year award.
Smoltz, who always took great delight in pulling off pranks during his two decades with the Braves, was proud to report Frazier was completely caught off guard.
Frazier says the well-timed addition to his resume only two days before the draft "just adds to the feeling I'm going to go through on Thursday."