Tim Tebow promoted to Advanced A baseball league in St. Lucie, Florida

Despite unimpressive statistics, New York Mets promote Tim Tebow of football fame to the Advanced A Baseball League in St. Lucie, Fla.

The 29-year-old is working hard to improve his game as he thinks back to his stellar years on the baseball field 

By Arnie Leshin

He was batting .222 with three home runs, 23 RBI, a .311 on-base percentage, and a .340 slugging percentage with 69 strikeouts and 23 walks in 212 at-bats for the Columbia Fireflies — numbers that usually do not lead to a promotion.

But this is Tim Tebow. He appreciates the New York Mets for giving him a shot at professional baseball and they appreciate his desire, attitude and willingness to put forth the genuine effort to improve his game.

But there are others reasons why the parent club has promoted the former Heisman Trophy winner, the quarterback who led University of Florida to two national championships, and who last played a National Football League game before the New York Jets released him.

One is his popularity. He’s easy to like. Ask the other 24 Fireflies players who call him “Just one of the guys,” plus he puts people in the seats. At home or away, Tebow brought in record crowds in this low-A minor league.

Despite his unimpressive statistics, everything else about him is positive. So Mets’ general manager Sandy Alderson announced the move prior to Sunday afternoon’s game in San Francisco.

“We’re moving Tim to the Advanced A League in St. Lucie,” Alderson said. “Now it’s not like he’s tearing up the league, but at the same time all of the indications are positive in terms of various things we look at — chase rates and exit velocity. The bottom line is the average isn’t there, but he’s improving.”

Alderson added that it’s clearly a step up and he certainly thinks Tebow can handle it.

Now 29, Tebow is overjoyed with the move. It’s Florida and he’s happy to be back in the Sunshine State, where he still has family, friends and many, many supporters in Gator colors. And where he was both All-State in football and baseball.

“I obviously love Florida, so this is real nice,” Tebow said, “but the goal and focus is improving as a baseball player, and I thank the Mets for sticking with me.”

In the Columbia clubhouse, Tebow certainly looked comfortable despite being a decade older than several of his teammates.

Said team president John Katz: “At the end of the day he’s just one of the guys, he really is. He wants to succeed. He puts in the work and hopefully, he’ll have continued success at a higher level.”

That’s Aldertson’s wish, too, as Tebow continues a journey that he hopes ends at Citi Field in New York.

“I wouldn’t say he has excelled at Columbia,” said Aldertson,, “but at the same time, what he’s done there given all the circumstances, justified the promotion.”

Alderson signed the 6-foot-5 Tebow back in September and he then spent some time in the Florida Instructional League and Arizona Fall League to large turnouts.

Back in his high school days, the talented Tebow was undecided on pursuing baseball or football. He chose football, was among the best in the country as a Gator quarterback, and then played two seasons with the Denver Broncos and led them to a playoff victory in overtime over the Pittsburgh Steelers before joining the Jets in 2012.

He did have that one impressive season with Denver in a season where Hall of Fame quarterback Payton Manning was injured. He guided the team into the playoffs via a win over the Jets, made things interesting and as he ran the show, but the Broncos had other ideas.

After the Jets released him, he spent time in training camps with the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles in 2013 and 2015, respectively, but he never played in the regular season for either club.

The consensus was usually that Tebow was not a pro-type quarterback, that he could scramble and break tackles, but did not have a strong arm. But he did not want to play another position, left the field to become a television commentator, and next came his desire to return to baseball.

He was special on the baseball diamond. He was a 4-year starter in high school, and in his senior year he batted .455, drove across 68 runs, hit 13 home runs and played several positions as the state’s Player of the Year. He thought of also playing baseball at Florida, but it was rejected. It was football and nothing else, said those that run the athletic department.

He’s religious, practices what he preaches, and that’s another reason why the Mets are giving him support. No money problems. He has plenty of it, is known for supporting several charities, but the bottom line is it’s tough to keep such a determined athlete from the field of play, so it’s not play for pay.

Not bad, released by the Jets, but now a Met.