Pitching into the spotlight

Agassi said his parents never pushed him into tennis, baseball or any other sport because they didn't want to repeat their childhood and teenage years, which were totally consumed by tennis. Instead, he had a relatively normal upbringing and naturally gravitated toward the baseball diamond.

The lanky 6-foot-3 Agassi has had his share of setbacks during his baseball career. He needed Tommy John elbow surgery after his first game in 2019, which caused him to miss his junior season in high school. Then in 2020, his team played just a handful of games before COVID-19 shut down sports for the year.

"It almost worked as a blessing in disguise," Agassi said. "I got almost two years to rehab my Tommy John, came back strong and then started my college career at USC."

His three seasons with the Trojans were a little up-and-down. He had a solid year as a sophomore with a 3-2 record and a 4.34 ERA, but after a coaching change, he regressed as a junior with a 9.70 ERA.

He found his footing again in MLB's draft league last summer with a 2.96 ERA and 28 strikeouts over 27 1/3 innings. Now he's hoping to latch on to an MLB organization once the WBC qualifiers are over. His stint with Team Germany — which will likely include a bullpen role — is another chance for him to showcase his mid-90s fastball.

"It felt good to find some things that work for me," Agassi said. "Stick to a plan and get one percent better every day."

Agassi doesn't mind that people often ask about his parents or why he doesn't play tennis. His mom won 22 Grand Slam titles while his dad won eight Grand Slams and one of the younger Agassi's first childhood memories is hugging his dad on the court after he got a big win late in his career.

While neither parent may be a baseball expert, he said they're both supportive of his baseball career and will be in the crowd this week as he pitches for mom's home country with Team Deutschland across his chest.

"As a kid, you're kind of oblivious to the world," Agassi said. "It felt completely normal to me. I got a lot of knowledge and lessons learned from them. Picked up a lot of things and it's been a blessing."

Agencies via Xinhua