Daniel Norris ESPN article

[burlingtonbandit]

Didn't see this posted anywhere, I debated opening a new thread for just one article but damn this is one great read about Norris. Also being the front page story on the main ESPN page is kinda big... I kinda feel bad for the guy when he is going to have to pay for a Rookie Dinner considering the guy probably hasn't spent as much money in the last 10 years as he is going to have to pay for the dinner.

 

He has been here at Wal-Mart for long enough that some store employees have given him a nickname -- "Van Man" -- and begun to question where he's from and what he might be doing. A few have felt so badly for him that they've approached the van with prayers and crumpled bills, assuming he must be homeless. They wonder: Is he a runaway teen? A destitute surfer? A new-age wanderer lost on some spiritual quest?

 

The truth is even stranger: The Van Man has a consistent 92-mile-an-hour fastball, a $2 million signing bonus, a deal with Nike and a growing fan club, yet he has decided the best way to prepare for the grind of a 162-game season is to live here, in the back of a 1978 Westfalia camper he purchased for $10,000. The van is his escape from the pressures of the major leagues, his way of dropping off the grid before a season in which his every movement will be measured, catalogued and analyzed.

 

http://espn.go.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/12420393/top-blue-jays-prospect-daniel-norris-lives-own-code

[NorthOf49]

Another feature about Daniel Norris lol. He is just the best.

[flafson]

Another feature about Daniel Norris lol. He is just the best.

 

It's a really long one too, almost felt like reading a book.

[NorthOf49]

"Why don't you just, like, go get something normal to eat," says another young pitcher, Marcus Stroman, reminding Norris that the team provides free coffee inside. "Don't you think this is kind of crazy?"

 

"Not to me," Norris says. "To me this is the way that makes sense."

 

rofl

[burlingtonbandit]

Credit to the writer. He got some great stuff from Norris even if he isn't like most athletes who are reluctant to open up. Truly a fantastic read and its hard not to root for the guy after reading the article.

[burlingtonbandit]

rofl

 

This part is even more amazing. Guy works a crap summer job with 2 million in his bank account.

 

Before the Blue Jays understood his convictions, Norris felt like the team had trouble making sense of his unpredictable life -- coaches, teammates and executives asking him questions that indicated a measure of unease. Why, with seven figures in the bank, did he take an offseason job working 40 hours a week at an outdoor outfitter in his hometown of Johnson City, Tennessee? Would it do permanent damage to his back muscles to spend his first minor league season sharing an apartment with two teammates in Florida and sleeping only in a hammock?

[HERPDERP]

Didn't Good Morning America say he had a 100-mph fastball? funny to see the ranges people give him.

[HERPDERP]

This part is even more amazing. Guy works a crap summer job with 2 million in his bank account.

 

In an ideal world, Daniel Norris will become as good as Madison Bumgarner but will be so humble that he'll sign a ridiculously cheap contract like 6 years $25 million.

[The Cats Ass]

Is Daniel Norris even real?

[Laika]

Norris and Stroman are going to carry this team to both the playoffs and media relevance south of the border.

[burlingtonbandit]

In an ideal world, Daniel Norris will become as good as Madison Bumgarner but will be so humble that he'll sign a ridiculously cheap contract like 6 years $25 million.

 

Doubt that happens. He got a $2 Million signing bonus out of HS and his agent will obviously be trying to get him the best deal he can get. Perhaps the Blue Jays can get a small discount.

[burlingtonbandit]

Norris and Stroman are going to carry this team to both the playoffs and media relevance south of the border.

 

Best part is you couldn't find 2 people any more different while they are both around the same age.

 

Stroman: Short black kid who has a ton of confidence and is extremely flashy who likes to party in the city and is from Long Island NY

 

Norris: Quiet white guy from Tennessee who likes nature and camping while barely spending money

[The Cats Ass]

Norris and Stroman are going to carry this team to both the playoffs and media relevance south of the border.

 

I'm kinda scared that Norris is going to go on a trip some offseason to find his soul or something like that. And on that trip he'll decide he wants to spend the rest of his time on earth in some 3rd world country just hanging out and talking to his van. I can see this happening right after he wins his first CY Young.

[Stangstag]

All of these articles just make me think he's an idiot.

[spats]

I love this guy. I met him at the Mattick complex last year and he is the most humble and polite kid in the system...will be looking for his van off the Hwy 60 causeway between Tampa and Clearwater in the next few weeks.

[HERPDERP]

All of these articles just make me think he's an idiot.

 

He's just a hardcore hipster.

[Stangstag]

He's just a hardcore hipster.

 

Haha yeah pretty much. I hate people like that

[jays76]

Clearly he was massively influenced by Into the wild & Chris McCandless in general.

[Stangstag]

He's the good kind of hipster though. Not the annoying douchebag trendster hipster like Stoeten.

 

True. I guess im just annoyed because we get a new article about Norris and his f***ing van every week.

 

I get it, Norris lives in a van. Why do we have to keep talking about it week after week.

[burlingtonbandit]

I find that annoying too. For a guy assuming to be modest and humble, it makes him seem the opposite.

 

More to be annoyed at the reporters that constantly ask him about it. The guy is too nice to turn these guys down thats why there are so many stories about it. Norris really doesn't seem like the guy who is looking for attention.

[NorthOf49]

I don't think he seeks out the media though. People are just interested in writing about his story. Everyone who talks about him says he's very good-natured and I'm wont to believe them.

[StroShow]

More to be annoyed at the reporters that constantly ask him about it. The guy is too nice to turn these guys down thats why there are so many stories about it. Norris really doesn't seem like the guy who is looking for attention.

 

Yeah I doubt he's reaching out to share his story. More like agencies targeting him because it's click bait for not only Jays fans or baseball fans but just a general populace. People eat this s*** up.

[burlingtonbandit]

I do wonder what his teammates think though. Im sure theres guys on the team who are on him for being a rookie and being on ESPN etc... Especially after reading Dirk Hayhurst's books you can tell guys won't be happy about it because he's not a traditional "Big Leaguer"

[StroShow]

I do wonder what his teammates think though. Im sure theres guys on the team who are on him for being a rookie and being on ESPN etc... Especially after reading Dirk Hayhurst's books you can tell guys won't be happy about it because he's not a traditional "Big Leaguer"

 

Well that's also why he chose to shave the beard. He didn't want the spotlight to be on him during spring training.

[The Cats Ass]

[Praxis]

I completely get where this guy is coming from in one sense; he doesn't want the spotlight, even though he acknowledges that it exists and he inevitably has to be in it right now. He sounds like a guy that just wants to be left the f*** alone and be free whenever he can be - I can respect that.

[Angrioter]

I completely get where this guy is coming from in one sense; he doesn't want the spotlight, even though he acknowledges that it exists and he inevitably has to be in it right now. He sounds like a guy that just wants to be left the f*** alone and be free whenever he can be - I can respect that.

 

............or he has never seen a pussy wet and he want a few of them now than he's over 21 year old.

[imsorry4beatinU]

^Clearly a guy not out for attention..........................

 

^Clearly a guy who needs to stop flapping. Your wrist is just tired and you want it to stop...Go ask Ang and get a donkey

[Angrioter]

That was random or was it because you have flapping on the brain.

 

Ang's Donkey's are out of my price range...

 

New cyber-amigo discount. Better call Ang!!

[Governator]

Great read, it's hard not to love the guy. Dude pays himself $800/m to keep grounded and I think if he was seeking attention he would have got it last year when he did the same thing, no?