Baseball

Minor League baseball player Braden Bishop using platform to raise money for 4MOM charity

By Jason Romano Feb 13, 2018
Mariners prospect Braden Bishop from 2017. (Photo Courtesy: Braden Bishop/Instagram @bradenbishop1)

Baseball is back.

Sort of.

Pitchers and catchers report today for many teams, and by the end of the week, all teams will have their full rosters in play as spring training 2018 begins.

Braden Bishop is a prospect in the Seattle Mariners organization. He was selected in the third round of the 2015 MLB Amateur Draft and is one of the team’s top young players. As he heads into spring training 2018, Bishop isn’t just competing for a major league roster spot, he’s also looking to raise awareness and funds for a charity near and dear to his heart.

https://twitter.com/bradenbishop7/status/961308179660292096

Bishop started the 4MOM foundation after his mother, Suzy, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2014. He has been involved in fundraising with the charity during his time in college at the University of Washington and through his first three minor league baseball seasons, where he reached AA Arkansas in 2017.

“I always wanted to help out, whether it was a teammate’s mom who had breast cancer or one of my best friends’ through high school, his cousin had pediatric cancer, so I got involved with that,” Bishop, told MLB.com. “I felt like I was called to serve in whatever capacity, but I always felt like I didn’t want to force helping, especially for these causes.”

On February 7, Bishop tweeted that he was going to donate money to Alzheimer’s for every hit he gets in spring training.

But it didn’t end there.

Athletes, coaches and fans from around the league and beyond have tweeted about donating a dollar amount for every hit or strikeout recorded during Spring Training to Bishop’s 4MOM charity.

https://twitter.com/tpike10/status/962481786621227012

https://twitter.com/SHAWESOME24/status/962419029574111233

Bishop will report to Mariners spring training 2018 on February 19 in Peoria, Arizona. His first chance for game action will come Friday February 23 when Seattle opens up Cactus League action against San Diego. Here’s hoping he gets a bunch of extra-base hits.

You can watch more on Bishop’s story and why he plays 4MOM below. 

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– Astros Jose Altuve says his success comes from putting God first

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