Grant Desme is answering a higher calling.
As a top prospect for the Oakland Athletics, the outfielder might’ve gotten the call every minor-leaguer wants this spring.
Instead, Desme, 23, announced Friday he was leaving baseball to enter the priesthood, walking away after a breakout season in which he became MVP of the Arizona Fall League.
“I love the game, but I aspire to higher things,” he said. “I know I have no regrets.”
The A’s picked Desme in the second round of the 2007 amateur draft, and he was the only player in the entire minors with 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases last season.
He said A’s general manager Billy Beane “was understanding and supportive,” but the decision “sort of knocked him off his horse.”
“It’s about a 10-year process,” Desme said of the priesthood. In a way, he added, it’s like “re-entering the minor leagues.”
