PALM BAY, Fla. -- A Brevard County teen is hoping to one day make headlines like one-handed linebacker Shaquem Griffin did for making it to the NFL.
- Brevard teen with 1 hand wants to be pro baseball player
- Hopes to make it onto Eastern Florida State College team
- Austin Thurman inspired by linebacker Shaquem Griffin
Austin Thurman, 17, who has one arm, is the youngest of five siblings and is getting ready for college, hoping to be on the fast track toward becoming a professional baseball player.
"I’m in the top five on our team,” Austin said.
Austin is currently a baseball player for the Brevard Heat but is hoping that after he goes to Eastern Florida State College next spring, he will make it to their baseball team.
“I’m just like a regular baseball player -- I go out, train, practice and go to the game, get focused and play as best as I can,” he said.
Before becoming a baseball player for the Brevard Heat, Austin learned a valuable lesson from his mother when he was just 5 years old.
“A boy he’s never met before told him, 'You can’t hit. You've only got one hand...' Just go do it and show him that he’s wrong,” said Austin's mom, Melanie.
Since then, he's proved a lot of people wrong on the field, and he's treated just like everybody else.
According to Austin, he's just a regular athlete, working hard and training almost every day to get noticed.
Austin says he's more inspired and energized to become a professional athlete after following the success story of one-handed linebacker Shaquem Griffin making it to the NFL.
Austin has eight years of experience as a center-fielder, occasional first-baseman and pitcher.
Being part of a top team in the major leagues, like the Miami Marlins, Tampa Bay Rays or Boston Red Sox, is Austin's lifelong goal.