Ashton King was a standout multi-sport athlete at Christiansburg in both baseball and track. Last fall, he continued his track career at Liberty. Now he is headed back to the diamond.
A former Christiansburg multi-sport athlete is leaving the track to return to the other sport that he excelled in. Ashton King was named the Conference 32 baseball player of year during his senior season, batting .553 with 21 RBIs. He initially signed with Liberty University to run track, but baseball continued to call his name.
Now he will play baseball and wear his last name on his jersey at King University in Bristol, Tennessee.
“I dealt with some injuries at Liberty, and I hurt my hamstring during the fall. On top of that I just missed playing baseball and the day to day things that came along with it,” he said Thursday.
For the past six months, King, the player, has been doing a lot of lifting, throwing and getting back into the ins and outs of baseball. He spent four months in Seattle working with Driveline Baseball, whose founder Kyle Boddy believes in a data driven approach to training athletes.
“I love his philosophy, and I have continued to implement the same program that I was doing in Seattle since I’ve been home,” he said.
He said that KU was just a good fit for him.
“I have committed to King on a baseball scholarship as an outfielder and left-handed pitcher. It made the most sense for me because the staff is great, I love the campus/area, and they have the major that I want,” he said.
The change also made the most sense for his career as he would not have been eligible next season at a D1 program due to NCAA transfer rules.
KU finished last season at 19-27 and is a member of the NCAA Division II Conference Carolinas.
Former Christiansburg player Nick Carroll and a teammate of King’s is currently a member of the KU baseball team. The team graduated 12 seniors this past season and will be looking to reload its roster.
Past college, Ashton King has not made or even considered any future plans, but he will travel back to Seattle this winter to work more with Kyle Boddy.
