At age 26, Iowa Cubs center fielder Jacob Hannemann knows he's an older prospect coming off an injury, but that doesn't mean he regrets taking two years off to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
"I'm very grateful for my mission and grateful that I chose to go," Hannemann told the Des Moines Register. "I'm happy with my choice."
Hannemann, who played football and baseball at Brigham Young University, was recently featured by the Des Moines Register, where he discussed his mission and its impact on his professional baseball career.
Hannemann, an all-around athlete at Lone Peak High School, was drafted at 19 by the Kansas City Royals and offered a $250,000 signing bonus but turned it down to accept a mission call, he recounted in the article.
As a missionary, Hannemann found joy in helping others and serving the Lord, he said.
"Just (letting people know) that their Savior or God loves them," Hannemann said in the article. "That it's all right to make mistakes, but we just keep on battling and try to move forward and get better each and every day."
After his mission Hannemann enrolled at BYU. He redshirted for the 2012 football season and excelled on the baseball field during the 2013 season, earning West Coast Conference Freshman of the Year honors. The Chicago Cubs picked him in the draft that year and four seasons later Hannemann is playing for the Iowa Cubs, only one step away from playing Major League Baseball, the article said.
Despite recent injuries and some inconsistent play, Hannemann feels blessed with success on the baseball field for sacrificing two years to serve a mission, he said.
Read the entire article here.