Baseball is the national pastime for a reason, and each pocket of the country has its own unique connection to the sport. To celebrate the 250th anniversary of this nation, we’re taking you on a summer road trip across the U.S. with Baseball in America, presented by Booking.com, 50 stories from all 50 states. Follow along here.
When Cory Hahn was little, he watched the iconic baseball movie “The Natural” and immediately identified with Robert Reford’s character Roy Hobbs. So much so that he would walk around the house carrying a bat, insisting his parents call him Roy.
Hahn dreamed, just as the fictional slugger did, of walking down the street and having people say, “There goes the best player there ever was.”
And there are some who saw him who might tell you that at 18 years old, Hahn was on the right track.
“He was one of the best players I’ve ever seen,” two-time MVP Bryce Harper said. “It was unbelievable watching him play.”
The future was definitely bright for Hahn, who had won multiple player of the year honors in California and played on the gold medal-winning 18U Team USA squad at the Pan-Am Junior Championships in 2009 with future Major League stars like Harper and Manny Machado.
“He was a grinder,” Machado remembered. “He would’ve been a definite All-Star-caliber outfielder. Plus defense, plus speed, plus hitting. He could just do it all.”
But dreams of Major League stardom were washed away in an instant in February 2011 when Hahn, in just the third game of his freshman year at Arizona State, collided awkwardly with the second baseman on a stolen base attempt, broke his C5 vertebrae and was left a quadriplegic from the resulting spinal cord injury.
Waking to hear the surgeon tell him that he would never walk again is what Hahn calls the lowest low.
“They just give you a very long list of things you can’t do,” Hahn recalled.
It took only a few seconds to process that before Hahn knew the mindset with which he was moving forward.
“I used that as pure motivation right away,” Hahn said. “I’m going to grind every single day to heal as much as I can and live a fulfilling life like I deserve.”
Hahn spent nine days in ICU, then another ninety days in a rehab facility.
“I didn’t spend a single day alone,” Hahn said.
His ASU teammates came to visit. Then-Rangers star Josh Hamilton – Hahn’s favorite player – talked ball and prayed with him. D-backs president Derrick Hall and World Series hero Luis Gonzalez stopped by too.
Hall had never met Hahn but was compelled to show his support as a member of the Arizona baseball family.
“Cory had just come in [to the hospital room] after multiple surgeries,” Hall recalled. “He’s face down, and when we came in with his parents the first thing he asked was, ‘Did we win?’ That tells you everything you need to know. He wasn’t, ‘Woe is me.’ He was just thinking about his team.”
That first impression never left Hall or the D-backs. They paid attention as Hahn fulfilled his promise to grind every day. They watched carefully as he learned how to do simple tasks again, then recovered enough to go back to school. Hahn rejoined the ASU baseball team as student-coach and graduated on time with a degree in Business Management and Communications.
In 2013, the D-backs selected Hahn in the 34th round of the MLB Draft, a nod to his ASU uniform number of 34. Hahn and his family shed some tears when they found out.
“It was really an emotional time,” Hahn said. “It was an amazing feeling knowing that a team felt that I could still impact them.”
As confident as they were, it’s unlikely that the D-backs knew just how impactful Hahn would be. The knowledge that he carries and the work ethic he displays have catapulted Hahn from the amateur scouting ranks to his current role as Director of Pro Scouting. His unique perspective mirrors his experiences in and out of the game.
“You can’t always control outcomes, but you can control how you approach it,” Hahn explained.
The high point of this journey so far was helping the D-backs reach the 2023 World Series. A major factor in their upset win over the Phillies in the NLCS was credited to the work of the scouting department that Hahn now oversees.
Nowadays, instead of dreaming of being Roy Hobbs, the 34-year-old Hahn has big dreams off the field.
“I have high aspirations,” Hahn said. “My ultimate goal is to be a general manager and win a World Series.”
Hall is among those who believe that day is coming.
“I think it’s a strong possibility, just knowing him and how hard he works, how committed he is to the game and how much knowledge he has about it.” the D-backs president said. “Sitting in those scouting meetings, you see the respect people have for him. He’s remarkable. He motivates us each and every day.”
For those who remember Hahn as a teenage phenom, it wasn’t hard to imagine his drive and determination in his current role.
“He was always bringing light into the clubhouse, bringing light to the people around him, always positive,” Machado said. “It’s hard to keep that positive mindset, so for him to have done that all this time, that just tells you who he is.”
While maintaining his drive as a front office executive, Hahn has not forgotten the circumstances that led him here.
In 2018, he and Washington Nationals pitcher and former ASU teammate Trevor Williams started Project 34, a foundation dedicated to improving the lives of people who have suffered spinal cord injuries.
“We’re bringing to light the spinal cord injury community and showcasing amazing stories and individuals,” Hahn said. “All these individuals need is support. If you give them the tools and the opportunity, they’re going to charge forward. I’m living proof of that.”
-- With additional reporting from AJ Cassavell and Paul Casella