Sokol Chooses Medicine Over Baseball

Over the past weekend, Troy Young wrote an intriguing article on former Mayo star Justin Sokol. The right handed flame-thrower turned down a $100,000 signing bonus a couple years back to go to college. That didn't shock many people. Despite the big number, college is never a bad route to go. He would develop as a person as well as a player, then see where baseball took him. After going to Iowa Central Community College, a solid ju-co program, Sokol accepted a scholarship to Texas A&M. That was the opportunity of a lifetime.

At A&M, baseball is huge. Everyone can play, scouts crawl around like those Japanese beetles, and the crowds really get into the games. In the three-game series I played at College Station, I had more fun than any other place. The fans make it one of the most entertaining stadiums in the nation. Despite all that, Sokol has said he probably won't be playing any more baseball. And that shocked some people.

I know Justin fairly well. We had a chance to play ball together for a season with the Royals. But the way I got to know him best was probably during a Northwoods League game. Sokol was playing for Thunder Bay and I was sitting in the deck down the third baseline. Sokol jogged past on the way to the bullpen, and on the way back, I flagged him down to say hi. What I thought would be a brief hello turned into a three inning discussion. Several of his teammates were giving him some good natured ribbing, as ball players tend to do, but Sokol didn't seem to care at all. He let it all roll off his back. It was then that I realized Justin was his own person and would make choices that he felt were best for him. His latest decision is a perfect example.

Who turns down a chance to pitch for one of the best teams in the Big 12, even the nation? Who turns down six-figures? Who has a legitimate chance to climb the ladder in one of the three biggest sports in the country, and decides against it? One of two kinds of people. Either someone without a clue, or someone who knows what he wants. Sokol is the latter.

Having just joined my wife for her graduation from Mayo Medical School, I might have a better understanding than some people of why the medical field is so alluring to Sokol. For those who are talented enough to become doctors--and that group certainly excludes me--there is a life of hard work and amazing rewards in store. Sokol, who says he wants to serve in a third-world country, will have no shortage of either. And best of all, he's making his own choice.