By Tori La Rue | [email protected]

Surrounded by friends, family and coaches, Crosby Bringhurst signed a letter of intent in the Taylorsville High School main office on Nov. 9 to play baseball at University of Kentucky. 

After rounding up offers from the University of Utah, University of the Pacific, University of New Mexico, University of Arizona, Arizona State University and University of Kentucky, Bringhurst said he selected Kentucky because of the coaches and the opportunity to play in the Southeastern Conference. 

“I wanted to play against the best competition, and the best competition that I could think of is to play in the SEC,” he said. 

Bringhurst, a right-handed pitcher who can crank baseballs over home plate at upwards of 90 mph, is ranked No. 28 in the state and just over No. 4,000 in the nation, according to MaxPreps high school sports media company. 

He is the first from the Taylorsville baseball program to sign a letter this year—something that’s not uncommon for the Warriors, who usually have one to three players a year go on to play at the college level. Most Taylorsville players end up playing at the U of U, BYU or UVU, so head coach Jake Brown said it was exciting to see Crosby venture to the SEC. 

“You know, every time this happens, it is kind of like the first time,” Brown said of watching Crosby sign his letter of intent. “I was lucky enough to be a college athlete, so I know kind of the struggles and the feeling of accomplishment that goes with it, so I am really excited for Crosby in that respect.”

Brown, school representatives and Bringhurst’s team, family and friends watched as he signed his letter of intent. They cheered for him and celebrated by eating sugar cookies decorated with the UK insignia. 

“It’s been an amazing trip,” Bringhurst’s father, Lance Bringhurst said. “The big thing is that I’ve seen him improve and grow as a player and as a person in leadership and different things like that since he’s been involved in the sport.” 

While Crosby Bringhurst “always wanted to be the best” that he could be, he said playing at the collegiate level is a fairly new dream. 

“I started playing at 8 years old, but I never really thought I was the best at baseball until I got to high school,” he said, adding that his experiences with the Warriors helped him realize that he has a shot at college and maybe even professional baseball. 

He attributed his improvement over the years to his dedication to practice and training. In the baseball offseason, he’s in the weight room lifting or suiting up for the THS basketball team. While he loves both sports, he said he’s better at baseball and is not overly concerned with focusing on the one sport in college. 

The Warrior baseball season begins in February, and Brown said Crosby Bringhurst is sure to be a “centerpiece” that could lead them to region and state championships.

“I would say his No.  1 strength is he is extremely competitive,” Brown said. “He is a kid that is willing to do whatever it takes to improve and to win. I think that serves him very well in an athletic environment.” 

He even influences the younger players on the high school teams and local little league teams, Brown said. 

“The example he shows is going to have a lasting impact on our program for years to come,” Brown said. “Our younger players want to be more like him.” 

Crosby Bringhurst said his overarching piece of advice to young or new players is to focus on one goal at a time instead of setting unrealistic expectations for improvement. That’s what he’s done, and everything’s worked out OK, he said. 

“When I get out there (to UK), I just want to stick to what I know is true,” he said. “I just want to keep going with how I do things because it has been working for me so far.”