Many people nowadays think it's funny to picture Donald Trump as the next president of the United States. But what about as a professional baseball player for the Philadelphia Phillies?
That's right. Trump, who was a standout player for his high school team at the New York Military Academy, was scouted by the Phillies back in the 1960s. The frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination was recently featured in the latest issue of The Rolling Stone and the journalist, Paul Solotaroff, happened to get in contact with one of Trump's former teachers.
"He was good-hit and good-field," former instructor and baseball coach Col. Ted Dobias said. "We had scouts from the Phillies to watch him, but he wanted to go to college and make real money."
Well, it seems as if he took the right career path for that, considering the richest MLB contract belongs to Miami Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton, who signed a 13-year, $325 million deal last year. Trump's net worth is an estimated $4 billion, according to Forbes.
Dobias also said Trump was scouted by the Boston Red Sox in an interview with the Daily Mail.
Also, baseball is a team sport, so Trump may have not cut it in the MLB unless he was one of the best players in the league.
"He thought he was Mr. America and the world revolved around him," Dobias added.
While this may come as a surprise to many, Trump actually spoke about his high school days and his love for baseball in an interview years back.
"When I was 17, I loved sports," Trump told MTV back in 2010. "I was always a good athlete. I played football, baseball, soccer. I wrestled. I think the thing I liked the best was baseball.
"I was captain of the baseball team. I was supposed to be a professional baseball player. Fortunately, I decided to go into real estate instead. I played first base and I also played catcher. I was a good hitter. I just had a good time."
Instead, Trump went on to attend Fordham University in the Bronx before transferring to the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
