William Patrick Watkins (Born September 2, 1972 in Raleigh, North Carolina

Raleigh, North Carolina

Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...

) is a former Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball

Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...

 player who played outfield for the Cincinnati Reds

Cincinnati Reds

The Cincinnati Reds are a Major League Baseball team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the National League Central Division. The club was established in 1882 as a charter member of the American Association and joined the National League in 1890....

 and Colorado Rockies

Colorado Rockies

The Colorado Rockies are a Major League Baseball team based in Denver, Colorado. Established in 1991, they started play in 1993 and are in the West Division of the National League. The team is named after the Rocky Mountains...

.

Early life

Watkins had planned on playing football

American football

American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...

 at Duke

Duke University

Duke University is a private research university located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present day town of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco industrialist James B...

 after high school, and had even talked to their coach, Steve Spurrier

Steve Spurrier

Stephen Orr Spurrier is an American college football coach and player. Spurrier is the current head coach of the University of South Carolina's Gamecocks football team. He is also a former professional player and coach...

, about playing under him. However, when Spurrier left to coach at the University of Florida

University of Florida

The University of Florida is an American public land-grant, sea-grant, and space-grant research university located on a campus in Gainesville, Florida. The university traces its historical origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its present Gainesville campus since September 1906...

 and the coach who replaced him was not interested, Watkins had to change his plan. He went to East Carolina University

East Carolina University

East Carolina University is a public, coeducational, engaged doctoral/research university located in Greenville, North Carolina, United States. Named East Carolina University by statute and commonly known as ECU or East Carolina, the university is the largest institution of higher learning in...

 to play baseball after his high school coach recommended him to the baseball coach there. At ECU Watkins was an All-American and was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in the 1st round (32nd pick) of the 1993 Major League Baseball Draft

1993 Major League Baseball Draft

-First round selections:The following are the first round picks in the 1993 Major League Baseball draft.-Compensation picks:-Other notable players:*Scott Rolen was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the 2nd round of the 1993 amateur draft....

.http://www.bonesville.net/Articles/RonCherubini/PirateTimeMachine/2002/022302_Pat_Watkins.htm

Major league career

Watkins made his major league debut on September 9, against the Chicago Cubs

Chicago Cubs

The Chicago Cubs are a professional baseball team located in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of Major League Baseball's National League. They are one of two Major League clubs based in Chicago . The Cubs are also one of the two remaining charter members of the National...

. Watkins played parts of two more seasons in the majors, with the Reds and with the Rockies.

External links

• http://www.bonesville.net/Articles/RonCherubini/PirateTimeMachine/2002/022302_Pat_Watkins.htm Pat Watkins: Keeping Life in Perspective