B-Mac’s Birthday

Today marks the day the world received Brian McCann!  On February 20th 1984, Brian was born in Athens Georgia into a baseball family.  His father, Howard, was the baseball coach at Marshall University and his older brother, Brad, had already began playing.  His dad had built a batting cage in the backyard for his boys to practice in and Brian took full advantage of this.

August 13, 2012; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Braves catcher

(16) fields a ground ball in the fifth inning against the San Diego Padres at Turner field. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports

While in high school, he was a four time all-state player and had signed to play at the University of Alabama.  But when the 2002 MLB draft came and Brian was selected in the second round by his childhood favorite team the Atlanta Braves, he choose to forgo college and enter the Braves system.

McCann spent only three full seasons and another half in 2005 with the Braves minor league system.  He was brought up mid-season 2005 as a fill in catcher and didn’t look back.  He burst into the spotlight when he hit a home run off Roger Clemens in his first playoff game.  With the stats he put up and his leadership behind the plate, in 2006 he was named the Atlanta Braves everyday catcher.

Since then, he is a six-time All-Star and a five-time Silver Slugger Award winner.

So from everyone at Tomahawk Take, Happy 29th Birthday Brian McCann!