Deion Sanders says he skipped school as a child to 'hustle' baseballs and broken bats

When Deion Sanders was successful the 3rd grade, helium says helium would often skip schoolhouse successful bid to marque a speedy subordinate by scavenging section shot games for sellable scraps.

The Colorado caput shot manager and NFL Hall of Famer told reporters astatine a quality league connected Tuesday astir his puerility escapades with shot collectibles erstwhile helium noted a newsman wearing a Kansas City Royals hat. 

"I was hustling balls successful the 3rd grade. I utilized to skip school, bring my small sock. I utilized to bushed everybody moving erstwhile they deed the location tally balls, and I utilized to get the balls and I utilized to merchantability them during the game. That was my hustle. I utilized to ever marque definite to bring my teacher the champion ball." Sanders said.

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Colorado caput manager Deion Sanders speaks during the Big 12 NCAA assemblage shot media days successful Las Vegas, Wednesday, July 10, 2024. (AP Photo/Lucas Peltier)

Sanders was calved and raised successful Fort Meyers, Florida, by his parent Connie Sanders and her hubby Willie Knight. Sanders besides began playing shot astir that clip erstwhile helium was 8 years old, but that didn't halt his entrepreneurship. Sanders specifically chose to stitchery the collectibles from Royals outpouring grooming games successful Fort Myers. 

Sanders said Royals large George Brett and Amos Otis were his biggest relation models backmost then.

"I would beryllium close determination erstwhile they would travel retired of the nine location and I would get their autographs, and I would beg for cracked bats. Cracked bats was similar 10 bucks oregon $15," Sanders said. "A bully location tally shot successful [batting practice] was similar $3.50."

Sanders said helium would adjacent assistance cleanable retired batting cages and got to support immoderate of the balls helium cleaned up to instrumentality location and sell. 

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Jul 10, 2024; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Colorado Buffaloes caput manager Deion Sanders speaks to the media during the Big 12 Media Days astatine Allegiant Stadium. (Candice Ward-USA TODAY Sports)

"That was my hustle," Sanders repeated. 

Then, aft an illustrious precocious schoolhouse vocation arsenic a shot and shot subordinate for North Fort Meyers High School, Sanders was drafted by the Royals. However, proposal from the precocious Royals manager Dick Howser helped him marque the determination to diminution that connection and play shot astatine Florida State. 

"He was the 1 that said, ‘I perceive you’re a beauteous bully shot player. I would spell to college, and we’ll draught you again,'" Sanders recounted. "That’s wherefore I went and played football, due to the fact that they offered maine a important magnitude of money."

Sanders went connected to go a two-time unanimous All-American astatine Florida State, the 5th wide prime successful the 1989 NFL Draft, and made 8 Pro Bowls portion winning 2 Super Bowls en-route to induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame successful 2011. 

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Deion Sanders walks the tract during warmups earlier Colorado's crippled against Oregon. (Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK)

But Sanders besides fulfilled his imagination of playing Major League Baseball arsenic well. Sanders had a nine-year, part-time shot career, playing near and halfway tract successful 641 games with 4 teams. But helium ne'er ended up playing for the Royals, and ended up playing for the New York Yankees, Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds and San Francisco Giants. Sanders finished his MLB vocation with a .263 batting mean with 39 vocation location runs, 168 RBI and 186 stolen bases. 

He doesn't request to merchantability shot scraps anymore, arsenic his nett worthy is estimated to beryllium $45 cardinal arsenic of 2024.

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