From first-round pick in MLB Draft to independent ball, Dogs’ Keon Barnum rebuilds his game

Keon Barnum at the plate for the Chicago Dogs.

It was June 4, 2012, and Keon Barnum was riding a high that only a select few get to experience.

This euphoric state was brought on by the sound of his name being called in the first round of the Major League Baseball Draft by the White Sox.

“A couple of people started to leave,” Barnum said. “I got picked late in the first round with the 48th pick. I just kept thinking, ‘Man, am I going to get picked?’ When they called my name, everyone went crazy.”

As it all was happening, his closest friends and family celebrated at the local Beef O’Brady’s in his hometown of Tampa, Florida. He didn’t know it at the time, but it wouldn’t be until six years later that he’d hit his first home run in Chicago.

Barnum was declared the No. 1 first baseman in the country by Perfect Game his senior year of high school. Despite having committed to the University of Miami, Barnum decided to take the nearly $1 million signing bonus and become a professional at 18.

Bristol, Virginia, a sleepy town with a population of fewer than 18,000 people, would be the first stop on his first journey through the minors.

“It was a crazy little town,” Barnum said. “It was totally different than back home. At first, I was kind of scared because I was fresh out of high school.”

Keon Barnum signs autographs for fans following a game at Impact Field in Rosemont.

From Virginia, he went to Winston-Salem, North Carolina and then to Birmingham, Alabama, making the journey from Class A to Class AA.

From the hastened pace of the game to the long bus rides and a schedule that had him playing almost every day, the jump from high school to professional baseball proved to be a tough one for Barnum.

He struggled with finding his rhythm and maintaining a balance between being coachable and confident.

“I wish I would have done things the way I wanted to do them,” Barnum said. “But also let the coaches tweak little things that needed to be tweaked. Most of all, I wish I would have done what’s comfortable for me.”

After six years in the White Sox’ minor-league system, never making it higher than Class AA, Barnum wasn’t re-signed. It was disappointing but not surprising after his playing time dipped in his final season with the Barons. He had already prepared his mind for the next step in his career.

“That’s the part that helps you grow up as a man,” Barnum said. “I just faced it. I wasn’t going to let that stop me from going after my dream.”

Two months after not being resigned by the White Sox Barnum signed with another team in Chicago: the independent Dogs. It wasn’t how he envisioned making his debut in this city, but it was another opportunity and that’s all he needed.

Six weeks into his first season playing in the American Association of Independent Baseball he can already see a difference in his game. He’s batting .289 and is tied for second in the league in home runs with nine.

“Being so young and being so successful in high school, people forget that there’s going to be some ups and downs in a young player’s career,” Dogs hitting coach D.J. Boston said. “I think this probably just humbled him a little bit more. I’m just trying to keep him focused on getting out of here and back to where he needs to be.”

Keon Barnum waits for his pitch at the plate for the Chicago Dogs.

The word bust was thrown around during his time in the minors, but Barnum thinks about it differently. To him, independent baseball isn’t a step back, its an opportunity to reestablish the qualities of his game that made him a first-round pick.

“Moving forward, I’m just focused on being myself,” Barnum said. “Being comfortable and being confident.”