It’s early June 2014 and the MLB Draft is beginning. The stress surrounding the hype of the draft is sinking in. You have done everything in your power to set yourself up for these few days. Playing for the University of South Carolina Gamecocks, setting the record for the highest fielding percentage by a Gamecock catcher with a career .994, named the 2013-14 USC Co-Male Student Athlete of the Year, playing in 60 games with 58 starts as a Gamecock, and landing a coveted No. 1 spot on ESPN’s SportsCenter’s Top 10 Plays of the Day alongside shortstop Jordan Gore’s walk-off homer...everything in your career has led up to this moment.

At just 21 years-old, Greiner is picked up by the Detroit Tigers in Round 3 of the 2014 MLB draft as the overall No. 99 pick. In an instant, all of his hard work and dedication met his biggest goal in life.             

But what happened as soon as he hung up the phone with his agent and Detroit? In which ways did his life instantly alter? I got to find out.

The Odyssey: Set the scene for me on Draft Day. What were you doing? Who were you with? 

Grayson Greiner: We were over at my grandparents’ house, they live in Columbia and I kind of have a big family in the Columbia area so I had a lot of my aunts and uncles and friends there. And I kind of had an idea that I would be going early that day because there’s three days of the draft…and I had an idea I’d go Round 3 or 4. So we all went there to watch it and a couple picks went by and then my agent sent me a text saying it was looking like it’ll be either Detroit or Oakland. And so it was kind of nerve-wracking, not knowing when or who would take me. And then about two picks before Detroit, my agent texted me saying Detroit was taking me, so I kind of knew before the rest of my family knew, but I didn’t tell or say anything. When it happened it was really cool, it was a big weight off my shoulders. It’s a really nerve-wracking day, honestly. I wouldn’t want to put anyone through it, it was very nerve-wracking. I was glad to get it over with and get started. It was really cool to get to spend that day with my family. My grandparents have been involved with my whole career and my parents have supported me my whole career, so it was really cool day for me.   

TO: What was running through your head as Round 3 of the draft begins? 

Greiner: Just hoping I go as soon as possible. Every pick that goes by, it’s more nerve-wracking. I kind of had an idea, which is one of the benefits of having an agent. I knew it was probably going to be Detroit or Oakland. Detroit had the 99th pick and Oakland had the 101st pick, so they were right near each other. I was just really hoping it was going to be one of those two teams in the third round and I was very lucky that Detroit took me with the 99th pick. 

TO: And then four rounds later in the draft, Joey Pankake gets drafted by Detroit. What was that first conversation with him like, with you two being such close friends and teammates?

Greiner: (Laughs) I don’t remember the exact phone call or text that we sent each other, but it was really funny. He was like, you got to be kidding me that this happened, because we were roommates in college and then we both got picked in the top ten rounds by the same team. We got a lot of texts and phone calls about that too because everyone knew we were the closest of friends. The odds of us getting selected by one of thirty teams was just crazy. It was really cool that Joey and I got picked by the same team. 

TO: What happened the second you put your phone down after speaking with Detroit? 

Greiner: It was just a celebration. I thanked my mom and dad for everything they’ve done for me to get me to that point. I kind of had to setup a schedule because I had to fly down to Florida within the next couple days to sign my contract with Detroit, so it was kind of a hectic couple days, not a whole lot of downtime. I kind of just celebrated that day.      

TO: Who did you call right after? 

Greiner: I thanked Coach Holbrook and Coach Tanner. The next day after the draft we had a draft party at my parents’ friend’s house where there were probably 100 or so people that came over there and we ate and just hung out there. I got to thank a lot of people there and got to see a lot of people I haven’t seen in a while. Coach Tanner and Coach Holbrook came there and congratulated me and I got to thank them for everything there. At the end of the draft, I just had a lot of texts and phone calls from everyone. It was a really cool day. 

TO: When you woke up the next morning, did it even feel real? Has it even sunk in yet?

Greiner: It was kind of a surreal feeling. You wait your whole life for this and then you put yourself in that position and it finally happens... it’s a pretty surreal feeling that it happened. But I kind of prepared my whole life and trained my whole life for that, so it was a rewarding feeling knowing that all my hard work got me a chance to fulfill my dream in pro baseball.     

TO: What was the first thing you had to do? Did you have to make travel arrangements to go to Florida or Detroit? How did you figure out where to get started? 

Greiner: Detroit did all that for me. They set up a flight and had people waiting to pick me up at the airport and take me to the facility and everything. My agent took care of the contract part of the negotiation. He handled all that. And when I got there, the contract was ready, and I signed it.   

TO: At what point did you have to start figuring out living arrangements or travel plans?

Greiner: We went down to Florida. They had dorms in Florida for all the players because that’s where the training is. So me and Joey roomed down there for a couple days before we were assigned to a team. Joey got assigned to Connecticut and I got assigned to Westminster. When you get to your team, they have host families, so they kind of set that up for you. You just get with a host family and that’s who you live with.   

TO: What was your first meeting or interaction with the Tigers like? 

Greiner: The day of the draft the Tigers scout in my area called me and congratulated me and filled me in on what the next few days would bring. The first time meeting the office was probably in Florida when I signed my contract. That was kind of the first official day that I’m official, officially a member of the Detroit Tigers.   

TO: What were you thinking during all that? 

Greiner: Just how excited I was to be a member of the organization. And how excited I was to get started. I didn’t have a whole lot of questions, I was just doing whatever they asked met to do and just told them I was ready to get started.   

TO: What are some of the biggest adjustments that you’re anticipating or that have already popped up? 

Greiner: I’ve lived in Columbia my whole life and being away from everyone I’ve gotten close to here and being away from my family and closest friends, that’ll be a big adjustment. When you’re in pro ball you’re kind of on your own and kind of set your own agenda, so I kind of got a little bit of a taste of that when I was playing up in Grand Rapids this summer. You’re kind of on your own and you got to motivate yourself everyday. The biggest adjustment is just being away from family back in Columbia, S.C. because that’s where I’ve been my whole life.   

TO: Are you ready for all of this? Is it now just pure excitement or perhaps a bit of excitement and nervousness? 

Greiner: I’m excited. It’s a hard process to get to the big leagues, obviously. Just because you get drafted doesn’t mean you’re going to make it to the big leagues; you go through minor leagues. But I’m excited for the challenge right now. I’ve played baseball my whole life and have wanted to do this my whole life, so I’m living a dream right now. You can’t really beat waking up everyday and going to play baseball. I’m excited. Now I’m in offseason, so I’m enjoying offseason as well. I’m ready to get back to work. When February comes around I’ll be ready.   

TO: Has it hit you yet? That all of this is real? 

Greiner: It’s pretty much set in. Around the draft it was kind of surreal, but once I got back out there and started playing, it was pretty normal. It’s just baseball. That’s my job now, so that’s how I approach it. I go to work everyday at my job.