Dad had a front-row seat for AquaSox player’s college career

Published 7:00 pm Wednesday, August 3, 2016

EVERETT — Perhaps no sport brings fathers and sons together like the game of baseball.

Many fathers coach their sons during their formative years before turning their offspring over to high school and travel ball coaches and taking a seat in the stands.

But when you are the head coach of a Division I program, you can actually end up missing most of your son’s high school career.

That was the case for Rob Walton. His son, Donnie, now plays middle infield for the Everett AquaSox, who open up a five-game homestand Thursday at Everett Memorial Stadium against the Hillsboro Hops.

“He’d come by and take ground balls and take some BP, but as games and things like that I didn’t get to see him play a ton due to my job,” said Rob Walton, who spent nine years as the head coach at Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma. “But I did get to see him play in some of those Perfect Game (showcase) events in Atlanta and he played pretty well. I knew then he had a chance to be a pretty good player.”

Rob spent 14 years in total at Oral Roberts. Though his older son, Davis, preferred football and went on to play on the University of Tulsa’s offensive line, Donnie was a “yard rat” who preferred the baseball diamond.

“I was always at the ORU field constantly,” Donnie Walton said. “Tulsa is a very quiet town. It’s quiet and has a lot of nice people so yeah, we loved it there. It was really good for our family and they have a really good baseball history.”

It seemed natural that Donnie would eventually play for his father at Oral Roberts following a standout career at Tulsa’s Bishop Kelley High School, where he was an All-State performer and led the team to a Class 5A state title as a junior.

But a funny thing happened in 2012. Rob Walton was hired to be the pitching coach at Oklahoma State where he had pitched in four consecutive College World Series from 1983-86.

“Having an opportunity to go back and see if we can get it rolling (again) was something that is kind of a once-in-a-lifetime deal,” Rob said. “It’s very unique and so I thought it was going to be a very good opportunity and a nice challenge to take on, and so far it’s worked out great.”

When Donnie decided to join his father, Rob was given a front-row seat to all of Donnie’s contests.

You might be wondering how, exactly, a former college pitcher, who went on to spend four years in the Baltimore Orioles organization, produced a switch-hitting middle infielder for a son.

“He wasn’t going to be a real big guy, but he was always athletic and he was always instinctive,” Rob said. “It ended up being a good fit, because I thought his body type would either fit there in the middle of the field or even behind the plate.”

The Cowboys advanced to the NCAA Tournament each of the Waltons’ first three years in Stillwater and even played host to a Super Regional in 2014. Donnie immediately blossomed into an All-Big 12 performer, initially at second base then at shortstop. He was taken by the the Milwaukee Brewers in the 23rd round of the draft, but that wasn’t high enough to dissuade him from remaining in school.

So Donnie became a Cape Cod League All-Star last summer and returned for this spring his senior year to chase one final goal with his old man: OSU’s first CWS appearance since 1999.

Father and son achieved it in their final chance as the Cowboys advanced to Omaha and won their first two games before falling twice to Arizona in the semifinal round.

“A lot of kids don’t get to say they went to Omaha with their father, especially being on the same team and wearing the same uniform,” Donnie said after joining the AquaSox in early July. “I couldn’t be more blessed and more lucky to share that opportunity with my dad.”

As a result of the team’s trip to Omaha, Walton didn’t join the AquaSox until July 8. But he got off to a strong start and was named to the Northwest League All-Star team that beat the Pioneer League All-Stars 11-5 on Tuesday in Ogden, Utah.

Walton, who finished 2-for-2 in the All-Star Game, is hitting .293/.411/.427 with three home runs, 11 RBI and an .838 OPS while playing both shortstop and second for the AquaSox.

“I don’t try to change much (at the plate),” he said. “I try to keep my same approach that I had in college and stick with it. I think the biggest thing is try not to do too much and play my game and not try to be something I’m not.”

Walton is listed at 5-10 and 184 pounds, but has displayed a knack for getting on base and even hitting for some power.

“He’s not the flashiest guy, the strongest guy or whatever, he just does things that help you win games, and even in pro ball that’s really important,” Rob said. “Guys that sit between the superstars that make the lineup turn over. I think he’s kind of that player who gives you that quality at-bat, finds a way to get on base and finds a way to get guys over.”

Dad would know. Though he missed many of Donnie’s games growing up, no one has seen more of them the past four years than him.

For the latest AquaSox news follow Jesse Geleynse on Twitter @jessegeleynse.