Bode Joyner '21 Recruiting Profile

My name is Bode Joyner and I am currently a senior at St. Bernard's Academy in Eureka, California. I started playing baseball when I was 7 years old and knew it would be in my life forever, even at such a young age. My dad played baseball through college when he was young and has always been my inspiration and top motivator. Playing baseball has taught me a lot throughout the years, not just about the game, but about as myself and real world situations. Baseball is a mental game, sometimes it stressful and overwhelming, but other times it's like clock work. When things are stressful and overwhelming, just like during a a tied ball game in the bottom of the 9th inning, it's important to remember to take a deep breath and focus on the now. That's all you can do: focus on the now, don't worry about the past or the future. My academic goals for the rest of high school and for college are to hit the books hard and focus on the end goal, which is a successful career in the field of study that I chose. In the summer of 2018 I broke my left wrist sliding into home plate. I had to sit out the rest of the summer season, while I watched my teammates from the dugout. I kept on focusing on the past and how I should've slid into home a little differently or rounded 3rd base a little better. I was in my head about the future too because I couldn't stop thinking about how I could be behind in skill and experience and how this could effect my future baseball career. Instead of focusing on what I should've done differently or what was going to happen in the future I focused on getting better and healing in the now, so I could come back stronger and ready to bounce back. While breaking my wrist and missing out on a summer season with my teammates wasn't ideal, I am thankful for healing and the lessons that it taught me that I will always keep close to my heart.