By Shaylee Souza,
Sun Devil Athletics Media Relations Student Assistant
His high school coach called him a mixture of Superman and Pete Rose because of his astounding diving plays in the outfield and his persistence. He would throw more pitches during his warm up than most pitchers would throw in a whole ball game. He left it all on the field and was never discouraged by a missed ball. He told himself to get the next one.
And he did.
January 30, 2016, was officially dubbed “Kole Calhoun Day” in Buckeye, Ariz., Calhoun’s hometown. This honor not only illustrated Calhoun’s popularity in his hometown but also embodied his role as “everyone’s” player.
The legacy of Kole Calhoun has impacted almost everyone in his life, from his high school coaches and teammates, to college coaches and even people he’s never met.
He moved to Buckeye, a town of more than 6,500, for his freshman year of high school. That small town was where a young Calhoun blossomed as a player.
The relatively short, red-headed kid quickly made a name for himself. His talent and leadership ability earned him a spot on the baseball, football and soccer teams, where he earned multiple All-State selections in baseball and football.
Ultimately undrafted out of high school, Calhoun moved on to Yavapai College, about two hours north of Buckeye, where he dominated as both a pitcher and outfielder. His personality and confidence swiftly won over his coaches at the junior college.
“That’s a kid living his dream and having a great time,” Sky Smeltzer, Calhoun’s head coach at Yavapai, said. “He always played hard: summer time, spring time; he never took this game for granted.”
Talk of his performance in junior college eventually made its way to Tim Esmay, who was an assistant coach with the Sun Devil Baseball program at the time. Calhoun was ecstatic when he was offered a spot on the Sun Devil Baseball team.
“Right when I got a call to go down and take a visit and got to sit and talk to coach [Pat] Murphy I was pretty much already hooked,” Calhoun said. “He really didn’t have to do much to convince me.”
It was a dream come true to play for Arizona State. Both his grandfather and father were Sun Devil fans, along with his wife and her family.
Calhoun quickly adjusted from a small junior college to a Division 1 Pac-10 school and portrayed himself as a clutch hitter. In his first visit to the College World Series during his junior year, fans nicknamed him the “Mayor of Omaha” just three days into the tournament.
This name was rightfully earned, as one of Calhoun’s many feats during the tournament was hitting a grand slam, making him one of only four Sun Devils to do so at Rosenblatt Stadium.
“It was a surreal experience to get the opportunity to go out and play, and play well, win a few games and go to the semifinals,” Calhoun said. “It’s something that as a college kid, you’re never going to forget.”
As the 2010 season winded down to an end, Calhoun went out with a bang. He homered in seven of his final eight at-bats at Packard Stadium and was later drafted in the eighth round of the Major League Baseball Draft by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
Calhoun made his major league debut with the Angels less than two years after being drafted. He earned a starting position in right field for the 2014 season and, following his tried and true formula of quickly advancing, was named a finalist for the Rawlings Gold Glove Award. Although he didn’t win that season, the resiliency he showed throughout his career shined again the next year: he won. He attributed his successes to the lessons he learned while playing for ASU.
“It was a place that taught us that who you are when nobody’s watching is the person that people want,” Calhoun said. “That idea of working hard to go out and reach your goals is something that was instilled in us as baseball players, and that’s why that program is so successful.”