Derek Bivins '17 Recruiting Profile

My Name is a Derek Bivins and I will be graduating in the class of 2017 from Knob Noster High School (Knob Noster, Missouri). I’ve been playing baseball since I was 3 years old when my parents signed me up for T-ball. Over the last 14 years I’ve played T-ball, recreation ball, USSSA travel ball, American Legion Jr/Sr ball and Varsity HS ball. Over the past 3 years I’ve averaged 90 ball games each year starting in the spring with our high school team, playing Legion ball in the summer months and finishing in October playing competitive fall ball. I’ve been the starting first baseman on the Knob Noster High School varsity team since I was a freshman. Some of my achievements include being recognized as all-conference 2d team, all-conference 1^st team, all-district 1^st team, as well as academic all-conference.

The game of baseball has brought more to me than the opportunity to play the game that I love. It has taught me life lessons that I can apply in everyday situations. One of the most important lessons I’ve learned is that if you work hard at something, it will pay off. I use this on the field, as well as in my academic studies. I can honestly say that my hard work in both areas has paid off and brought me opportunities that will provide me with choices as I finish high school. I have the opportunity to play baseball at the next level because I’ve put the time in to improve my game, yet I am humble enough to realize that I have more work to do. Academically, I have opportunities to go to just about any school that I choose to because I’ve worked hard and applied myself, as evidenced with my GPA and ACT/SAT scores.

Baseball has also taught me the importance to get involved and volunteer. Three years ago I decided to give back to my community through the game of baseball. Two other high school varsity team mates and I went back to our roots where we began to play ball and started to coach a team of 5 and 6 year old boys. This has been rewarding for me because I get to see them improve their game and watch them grow as a team and work together. It also gave me a better understanding of what some of my coaches told me over the years. I’ve been told several times that I’m a “coachable kid’, I now understand what they meant by this.