Tyler Baxter signs his letter of intent to continue his baseball career at Columbia State. (Submitted photo)
By CHRIS SIERS
csiers@bedfordcountypost.com
For Forrest Rocket senior Tyler Baxter, a simple visit to Columbia State Community College confirmed in his mind where he was supposed to end up after graduating high school.
He recently signed his letter of intent to continue his baseball career with the Chargers next year.
“The recruiting process went well. I took some visits to other schools, but in the end, Columbia State was the best fit for me. They saw me play last year against Spring Hill and then they reached out shortly after and kept great contact all summer,” Baxter said.
Baxter has made a living as a middle infielder for the Rockets and has been a staple in the Forrest lineup for the past three years, highlighted by trips to the Class 2A state tournament during his freshman and sophomore years.
While primarily a middle infielder, his versatility in the field offers the flexibility to play multiple positions, which in turn could help him get on the field sooner at the college level.
“I play middle infield, but also play a little bit of everything. Most likely, I will play middle infield, but I will play anywhere to get on the field,” he said.
During his official visit to the campus in October, the welcoming environment by the team solidified his choice of where he wanted to play college baseball.
“I went on a visit the very first of October and it went really well. I got to tour the campus and practice with the team and had a really great talk with coach Desi Ammons. It really just felt like home. Everyone I met treated me like I was supposed to be there,” Baxter said.
Baxter’s signing marks the end of a long career of playing ball, going back to when he first learned how to walk.
“I started playing baseball when I was four-years-old and haven’t stopped since. I’ve started throwing or hitting a ball as soon as I could walk,” he said.
Of all the memories piled up during his career, Baxter said his favorite was the run the Rockets put together to make it to the Class 2A state tournament during the 2023 season.
“My favorite baseball memory would have to be the state tournament my sophomore year. We made a great run and hope to do it again this year,” he said.
During that run, Forrest rallied from down a game in the best-of-three state sectional series at Sequatchie County to win the final two games to punch their ticket to the state tournament.
Baxter hopes to pursue a degree in business management.
“I plan to study business and then start my own one day,” he said.
