Ga. Tech coach Hall thrilled to see son drafted
High schooler selected by hometown Braves, but he'll go to college
ATLANTA -- Throughout his highly successful career, Georgia Tech head baseball coach Danny Hall has seen many of his players drafted. But none of these occasions elicited the emotions he felt when his son Carter Hall was selected by hometown Braves on Wednesday, in the 34th round of the 2015 Draft.
"I'll be honest, I started to tear up when I found out," Hall said. "I think to have it happen with the hometown team makes it even more special. Carter feels the same way. He was excited. Obviously, he's going to go to school, but he was excited to be drafted and be drafted by the Braves. Now, I'm excited about the chance to coach him."
Carter Hall, a shortstop from suburban Atlanta's Wesleyan High School, will decline the chance to begin playing professionally and instead honor his commitment to play for his father at Georgia Tech. But this was still an exciting development for the 18-year-old, who has always been a Braves fan.
"Hopefully [being drafted] gives him even more motivation to keep getting better," Hall said. "It's fun to see the guys you coached get drafted, but it's special when it's your own son."
The elder Hall learned of this selection as he was driving to watch his youngest son Collin play a baseball game early Wednesday evening. The two Hall boys won a state championship together as teammates at Wesleyan this year.
"This is kind of like the icing on the cake," Hall said. "[Carter] got to play with his brother and win a state championship. Now, he has been drafted by the Braves. It's kind of like the perfect storm."