Cougar pitcher Tanner Bushue was selected by the Houston Astros in the 2nd round of the 2009 Major League
Amateur Draft and was the 69th player taken overall.
Interestingly enough, just one short year ago Tanner was recovering from a knee injury suffered a third of
the way through the 2008 high school spring season which also caused him to miss out on an opportunity to play during
the summer months with the Southern Illinois Bullets, a team comprised of mostly high profile prospects from throughout the
state.
Even when the fall high school season started, there was uncertainty as to the health of his knee. But as the
season unfolded, Tanner continued to show progress and by season's end had worked himself back into top form, evidenced
by his complete game performances going down the stretch.
Word had gotten out about Tanner's success and progress among the professional scouting ranks
and they began showing up in large numbers for his last two starts during the conference tournament. He then put himself on
the national map when he was invited to participate in a Perfect Game sponsored tournament held in Jupiter, Florida and lit
up the radar guns with his 90+ MPH fastball.
During the winter months, Tanner entertained in-home visits from nearly half of the 30 major league teams
as the area scouts wanted to get a more in-depth view of what he was about. He was subjected to several different kinds of
phycological and personality tests and was interviewed about his personal views and thoughts on the prospects of professional
baseball.
As the spring season was about to get underway, the phone lines began to burn up with calls about
when and where he was going to be pitching. At his first appearance on the mound there were over twenty professional
scouts in attendance, and as the season progressed and with each subsequent outing they kept showing up in droves.
By season's end, there were not only the area scouts at the games, but there were national crosscheckers,
scouting directors, and assistant general managers flying in from all over the country to see for themselves what he had to
offer.
The defining moment for Tanner may have come during the Regional championship game against Woodlawn when
twenty six scouts and big league brass were in attendance. His fastball was clocked at an all-time high of 93 MPH along
with his usual display of poise and confidence during a heated and closely played contest.
Another important piece of the puzzle may have come after the season finally ended when he was invited to
Houston to participate in their annual pre-draft workout. Not only did he get to pitch in front of the Astros' important decision-making
people, he got to meet with them and converse on a more personal level.
The big day finally arrived on June 9 and many of Tanner's family and friends gathered at his home in anticipation
of seeing his name called by one of the several teams he had been in close contact with throughout the season. After patiently
waiting for over two hours during the selection process of round one picks, his turn finally came. A call from the Astros'
area scout quickly confirmed that he had been chosen and from that point on, everyone in attendance joined Tanner in celebrating
his amazing accomplishment.
