Colton Mercer has played baseball as long as he can remember. Long before tee ball, he was in his yard with a stick and a rubber ball before he moved on to tee ball and the rest is history. This past Monday, Colton Mercer signed to continue his baseball-playing days with Florida State University.
Mercer signed on to play for the Seminoles as a left-handed pitcher, something he’s been doing since he was nine years old. Mercer began pitching in rec ball before moving on to be a part of the Grand Ridge Indians baseball team where he played a pivotal role for three years. From there, he became a fixture on the Sneads Pirates baseball team, anchoring a starting job on the mound year after year.
While at Sneads, when he wasn’t on the mound, Mercer says he played a little bit of first and some outfield.
Mercer said he originally committed to New Orleans University but opted to decommit. North Alabama was interested but he opted to not go to a visit there. Mercer said he did not visit any junior
colleges.
When asked what his favorite thing about pitching was, Mercer was quick on the draw, “Strike three.”
Colton is the son of Adam and Jessica Mercer and has one younger brother, Caden Mercer. Colton says Caden plays both baseball and football and laughingly says when asked if Caden pitches, “You can call it that but he’s more of a homerun hitter. He’s going to have a bat in his hand.”
About his attraction to FSU, Colton is quick to say, “The coaching staff and Coach Martin was a good pitching man and it’s like really a family-based kind of thing and it’s really close to home so it was easy to decide.”
Head baseball coach Andy Shelton has nothing but praise for Mercer, “Colton is very much a team player. He wants to see everyone succeed. Has a chance to put up some serious stats on the mound, very good defensive first baseman and will swing the bat in the middle of our lineup this season. But as good of a baseball player as he is, he is an even better person.”
Mercer plans a major in structural engineering.
Mercer concluded with thanking those who helped him be where he is today, “It’s gotta be God first because he has blessed me so much and I feel so very thankful. And it’s gotta be Mom and Dad because they have like really put me first and just sacrificed so much so I can play a silly game.”
Congratulations to Colton Mercer on his commitment to FSU from the staff and publisher of the Jackson County Times.
