GREEN BAY — As of Tuesday afternoon, the Green Bay Rockers are tied for first place in the Great Lakes West conference and they have a lot of talent up and down the roster.
One of them, is one of the best prospects in the upcoming MLB Draft on July 9. He’s 6-foot-7 and 240 lbs and he's only 17 years old out of Downers Grove North high school in Illinois.
‘A lot of guys kind of take me under their wing and kind of help me out, teach me things as well as play for a great coaching staff and have an opportunity to come out everyday and get better,” Wolkow has said of his time with the Rockers so far.
Nicknamed “Aaron George" for his large size that resembles Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, you wouldn’t be able to tell George Wolkow is 17 years old.
“Coming from high school and being able to play everyday and start to build a routine and come out to the field and compete with some pretty high level college players, I think it’s been an amazing opportunity for me,” he said.
The outfielder who also plays a little third base, reclassified up a year. He’s technically supposed to be heading into his senior year of high school, but he graduated a year early.
“I think that speaks for it all,” Wolkow said. “Seeing the sacrifices I’ve made in doing so and graduating a year early and the things I’ve been missing out on to chase my dreams and start my career a year early, I think that shows my work ethic.”
Now, he's either heading to play college ball for South Carolina or to the pros. He recently returned from the MLB draft combine that took place last week in Arizona at Chase Field and is ranked MLB.com's No. 68 prospect in the draft. He’s one of the youngest if not the youngest player in the draft.
“I love putting myself in some of those uncomfortable situations and trying to get better and so going out and competing with the best players is really just a great opportunity to not only learn from them and get better, but also showcase some of the talents that I have and go out there and put on a show.”
It's hard not to see his massive potential. Despite his size, he the athletic outfielder wants to be known for more than just being a power hitter. Wolkow is using this time with the Rockers to improve at the plate Because the pitchers he’s seeing here are much better than the ones he saw in high school.
“ I think the pitch ability of guys is just a lot different,” Wolkow said. “In high school they may have a curveball or a changeup, but they don’t know how to sequence those, as well as the control over the stuff might not be as good. Coming up here and the guy might throw 85 and have a great breaking ball and know how to pitch. I would say that’s the biggest difference.”
Grateful for every moment and being rated highly headed into the draft, he’s working tirelessly to achieve his dreams that go far beyond being drafted.
“The goal is to be a Hall of Famer at the end of the day, the goal is not to get drafted. Being drafted is just part of that process and is the start to my pro career. Having that opportunity itself it’s what kids dream for, it’s what I’ve dreamt for since I was kid.”
