Michael Harris II shares heartfelt story of fulfilling his Braves dream

Having made his major league debut for the Atlanta Braves in May 2022, Michael Harris II has been extremely influential for the 2021 World Series winners, both offensively and defensively.

Growing up in Decatur, about a thirty-minute drive from Atlanta, Harris was a huge Braves fan. He is now living out his childhood dream by playing for the team day in and day out.

In a clip uploaded by MLB's official handle on X, the outfielder spoke about his baseball journey and how he managed to end up getting drafted by his dream team.

"I had Braves everything as a kid, T-Shirt's, jerseys, bobbleheads. I figured out I had a future in baseball around my sophomore year, that's when I started getting colleges looking at me, [and I started] talking to pro scouts. I committed to Texas Tech University." Michael Harris II said

"Being drafted to the Braves in the third round kind of changed it for me. First home game as a Brave feels like a dream. I still feel like I'm living a dream right now, whenever I go out there. I got somebody behind me, and somebody rooting for me, so I don't feel alone when I'm out on the field here." Harris II added

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Braves insider sees Michael Harris II maturing into an MVP contender in the near future

Despite the NL boasting plenty of fantastic players such as Shohei Ohtani, Francisco Lindor, and Juan Soto, Braves insider Jake Mastroianni sees Michael Harris II also competing for the prestigious NL MVP award in the near future, as long as he continues to work on his game.

"It's really not a lot he (Michael Harris II) has to do to get to that next level, in my opinion. Being a better base stealer, being more selective at the plate, and just staying healthy. If Michael Harris can do that, and I think he can do that." Mastroianni said, via 'Locked On Braves'. [25:02]

"[Michael can be] Somebody that's going to get some MVP votes if he doesn't ultimately win one because Shohei Ohtani is going to exist, and by the way, is [also] going to pitch. Ronald Acuna, his own teammate, is [also] going to be back and threatening for that MVP as well." Mastroianni added

With the Braves perennially challenging for both the NL East and the World Series, fans will be hoping Michael Harris II can reach that elite level soon.

About the author

Raghav Mehta is a baseball journalist at Sportskeeda awaiting results for a Bachelor's in Journalism from Delhi University. He enjoys highlighting the key battles between players at different stages of the game and analyzing the decisive moments upon which they hinge.

One of Raghav's favorite moments, which underscores this, was the Shohei Ohtani vs. Mike Trout clash in the 2023 WBC, where two of baseball's best players faced off against each other in the 9th inning. With the score 3-2 to Japan, Shohei eventually got the strikeout, which was absolute cinema.

Raghav is a Baltimore Orioles fan and is enjoying watching such an exciting young team compete at the top in a very competitive division.

Raghav has loved watching sports for as long as he can remember and realized he was pretty decent at writing his thoughts down at around the age of 14. Combining the two meant he had something he would enjoy doing every day, and he had identified that well before going to college.

Aside from work, Raghav enjoys playing sports, working out and watching movies.

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Edited by Siddharth Sikdar