Beeson changes uniforms, again<br>A look at the graduates baseball history and future

Beeson

Beeson began his Little League career as a member of the Bandits tee ball team. He was a Cardinal in the Minors, and an Oriole and a Yankee in the Majors. He was a member of the Pirates and the Yankees in the 13-15 year old leagues.

As a Little Leaguer, Beeson was the most feared hitter in the league. He was one of the few batters capable of slamming the ball out of the park with regularity.

Named the Enchantment Region Baseball Player of the Year in both his junior and senior seasons, Beeson has not been a stranger to winning awards and honors. He was a first team All State 3A Player in his junior and senior years and a second team All State player in his sophomore year. He was a member of the All Arizona Team in his senior year.

Beeson hit .506 for the Bulldogs during the past season with eight home runs and 47 runs batted in. He also led the team in doubles with 11 and tied for the lead in triples with four. In the field, he committed only three errors in 43 chances for a .930 fielding percentage.

Winslow High School coach Artie Griffith took an interest in Beeson even when he was a Little Leaguer according to mother Carla Beeson. She cites Griffith as one of the many people who have helped Michael to grow and improve as a baseball player. She said that Michael hesitates to name people who have helped along the way for fear of leaving someone out. She did mention that his father, Mike Beeson, has coached him since his tee ball days and taken an active interest in his son. She said that Mike still plays softball. The only other person she mentioned by name was Charles McLaws, who has done much to bring Michael to the attention of people who can get him seen by the right people and more opportunities to show his talents.

Winslow High School and the Winslow Little League program have produced a number of talented players. Some have gone on to play at the next level (college) and had some success. The world of professional baseball is not an easy place to make your mark. Doing so is much closer to the reach of Michael Beeson than it is to most. He will still need all of his skills and a lot of luck, too, to see this dream come true.

Michael should know, though, that he has a lot of fans in Winslow who is rooting for him to succeed. We saw what he could do as a Bandit in tee ball through his years as a Bulldog. We will be watching him as a Vaquero and, hopefully, at a major college, through a few minor league stops and at the “big show”.

Whether there is a major league uniform in Michael’s future or not, though, we will remember the sentiments of his grandmother Frieda Beeson. She said that it doesn’t really matter how Michael does as a baseball player. “What matters is that he is a good man.”

Given that attitude, we can safely declare that Michael Beeson is a winner in the game of life as well as baseball.

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