1, 2, 3 … 4? Hackenberg brothers are sports legacy
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Adam Hackenberg just isn’t a family title for White Sox supporters, with the catcher participating in his first huge league Spring Training ranked because the membership’s No. 30 prospect by MLB Pipeline.
But the Hackenberg title actually holds cachet within the sports activities world.
“I would put this family’s resume up against anybody’s,” mentioned Christian Hackenberg, the oldest of 4 brothers. “It’s probably a very small group of people that have had this type of success.”
Christian is perhaps probably the most well-known of the group. As a standout quarterback for Penn State from 2013-15, he threw for 8,457 yards and 48 touchdowns earlier than being chosen by the New York Jets within the second spherical of the 2016 NFL Draft.
Brandon is subsequent on the Hackenberg record as knowledgeable soccer participant for Orlando City B within the MLS Next Pro League. Drue, the youngest of the Hackenberg brothers, went 10-2 with a 3.30 ERA over 17 video games (16 begins) as a freshman for Virginia Tech in 2022.
“I hope we draft him,” a smiling Adam mentioned of Drue. “He’s a stud. It’s always nice having somebody on the baseball side of it.”
Let’s not neglect Adam, who was taken by the White Sox out of Clemson within the 18th spherical of the 2021 MLB Draft. The 23-year-old hit .223 with eight house runs and 31 RBIs over stops at High-A Winston-Salem after which as a part of Project Birmingham in ’22.
Adam already is a strong catch-and-throw man with uncooked energy, though nonetheless early in his improvement. He caught 88 common season video games final season, whereas additionally enjoying one other 16 video games for the Glendale Desert Dogs within the Arizona Fall League, that means he caught extra video games in ‘22 than three years mixed at Clemson.
“So, that’s a lot, but I made it through healthy and felt good about it,” Adam mentioned. “The last month was tough. Those workouts got rough toward the end, but you gotta do them to stay healthy.”
This Hackenberg athletic lineage began with their dad and mom, Erick and Nikki, with Erick enjoying quarterback in highschool and faculty, and Nikki being a collegiate volleyball participant. They preached to their sons how actions converse louder than phrases, manifesting itself in Christian, the oldest, often difficult his brothers.
If Christian was enjoying in a pickup basketball recreation, he would pull Adam, who was 4 years youthful, with him. Adam listened and watched nicely, even when he wasn’t probably the most talkative, based on Christian.
“He may not seem that interested, and then he’ll surprise you three months later and ask you about something you did or why you did that or how to make you better,” Christian mentioned. “He requested for a freaking weight sled, like a harnessed weight sled, for Christmas when he was 8 or 9 years outdated. He was simply wired actually completely different.
“My parents are big on us leading by example. If they asked something, I tried to tell them why and then I pushed them every time I could.”
Work put in by Christian, who’s now teaching highschool soccer in New Jersey whereas working for a tech firm and doing a little media, made it simple for the remainder of the Hackenbergs, based on Adam. They watched him rise up for six a.m. exercises and it simply grew to become what they did as a household.
“Our parents sort of laid that foundation in us, having a good work ethic,” Adam mentioned. “Everything else takes care of itself. Controlling what you may management.
“From the day that I started playing sports, it was just like, ‘What’s Christian doing? Let me do that and I’ll be OK.’ He obviously has taught me a lot. Every time I call him it’s, ‘If you ever need to talk about the game or life, managing off the field stuff while you are in this business, I’m always here.’”
Now, it’s the youthful Hackenberg brother’s probability to take heart stage.
“I had my path, and I had my things, and being able to impress that on them and have a second chance through them, to see them succeed and do everything they want to do, is great,” Christian mentioned. “Then simply the proud huge brother facet.
“Seeing them chug along and continue to do well, and continue to grow. And for the most part have very positive experiences up until this point is super cool.”
