Tanner Rust: Here, There, and Everywhere

From a very early age, Tanner Rust was brought up with not just a love of baseball, but of one player in particular.

"My dad's favorite player growing up was Mickey Mantle," Rust recalled. "My dad and his friends would always tell me stories about him, and so I grew up loving Mickey Mantle."

On Lakeside's sandlot fields, Rust and his father would spend hours leaning how to emulate the greatest switch-hitter to ever play the game. Rust, a natural righty, spent hours learning to hit from the left side, gradually improving until his freshman year of high school, when his coach gave him approval to become a full-time switch hitter.

Rust, however, did not confine himself to playing only baseball. Like Mantle, he used baseball's long off-seasons to concentrate on another sport - football. "Playing one sport gave me a nice little break from the other," Rust. "Towards the end of football season, you'd be looking forward to baseball, and towards the end of baseball season, you'd be back to looking forward to football."

In two seasons as the starting quarterback for El Capitan High School in Lakeside, Rust threw for 5,884 yards and 60 TDs. His baseball statistics were equally impressive - his senior season, he hit .410, collecting 43 hits, including 5 home runs.

Rust received offers from many Division 1 schools. San Diego State and San Jose State wanted him as a football player. Powerhouses UCLA and Cal State-Fullerton saw him as a baseball player. But Rust remained conflicted. "Out of high school, I didn't really know which sport I wanted to play," Rust said. "I needed to find a school that would allow me to pursue both opportunities."

New Mexico State University gave him that opportunity, allowing him to play both sports and make his own decision on which he wanted to play. "When they told me I could make my own decision," Rust said, "it was a done deal for me." Rust's football career at New Mexico State had its share of highlights, including getting the chance to oppose future NFL quarterback Kellen Moore and Boise State.

But after two years of football, Rust made the decision to focus on baseball. "While everyone else was using their offseason to train for baseball, I had to worry about football, and couldn't use the time to get better," Rust said. "I knew it was time to make a decision."

After deciding to "focus 100 percent" on baseball, Rust spent his summers honing his craft in the Alaskan Baseball League, an experience he enjoyed immensely. "Not many people can say they have even been to Alaska, and to play baseball up there is amazing," Rust said. "The sun never sets there in the summer, so sometimes, you'll start games at midnight, and you'll still be playing under the sun."

The renewed focus on baseball, and the preparation in Alaska, paid off for Rust. In his final year at New Mexico State, Rust hit .375 with 7 home runs, earning First-Team All-WAC honors. Signed by the Orioles as an undrafted free agent in June of this year, Rust has proven to be an incredibly versatile piece for the IronBirds. Though he played catcher in both high school and college, Rust has moved all around the diamond as a pro, seeing time at first base, in the outfield, and at designated hitter. He also got his first start at third base on Wednesday night.

"I like being able to play a lot of positions," Rust said. "It opens up doors for me, and it lets me help the ball club in a lot of different ways."

In addition to seeing a great deal of success on the field for the IronBirds, Rust has experienced personal success here in Aberdeen as well. He took advantage of a rain delay to propose to his girlfriend right here at Ripken Stadium. "I knew she was visiting me, so I got the ring, got it shipped here, and proposed to her in one of the Sky Boxes at Ripken Stadium," Rust said. "I knew she was the girl I wanted to be with, and I couldn't be happier."

For Rust, it was yet another dream come true.