The route Drew Sutton took before playing baseball at the highest level possible was anything but conventional.

But the road he traveled has led the former North Side High School baseball star to the Carl Perkins Center for induction into the Jackson-Madison County Sports Hall of Fame at 6:30 p.m., Thursday.

“The only offer I received from a Division I school was Murray State, but I wasn’t ready to play at that level,” Sutton said. “I decided to go to a junior college so I could grow and I would be able to play so many more games which would help me develop.”

Sutton played two years at Texas College in Texarkana, Texas, before signing with Baylor University.

“To be better, you had to play against better players, and at Baylor, a lot of guys I played against went on to play in the Major Leagues,” Sutton said. “I told myself I could play with these guys.”

Sutton, a 2001 graduate of North Side High School made his Major League Baseball debut with the Cincinnati Reds, July 2, 2009.

He completed his Major League career hitting .256 with 72 base hits, four home runs and 37 RBI in 281 at bats.

Sutton also played for the Cleveland Indians, Boston Red Sox, Tampa Bay Rays and Pittsburgh Pirates.

With the Pirates, Sutton enjoyed his most memorable moment when he hit a walk-off home run against the team that selected him in the 15th round of the 2004 MLB Draft – the Houston Astros.

Sutton’s home run – July 3, 2012 – was the final touch to an 8-7 win.

“It’s going to be exciting being around the people who had a lot to do with my development,” Sutton said. “Coach (Randy) Harrell at North Side and Coach (Andy) Rushing at Union University – and I get to share it with my wife, Staci, and my family.
“There is such an aura of going into a hall of fame.”

Sutton makes his home in Prosper, Texas, and he and Staci are the parents of two sons.

The Suttons own Jersey Mike’s Sub Shops in Plano and Allen, Texas.

David Thomas, Twitter – @DavidThomasWNWS
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