Feb. 14--Taking after his father, Notre Dame receiver Torii Hunter Jr. has joined the Irish's baseball team for the upcoming season, the school announced Friday.
Hunter, the son of Twins outfielder Torii Hunter, has not played competitive baseball since his junior year of high school.
Hunter suffered a broken femur in his senior year of high school and has solely focused on football so far during his time at Notre Dame. Last season, Hunter had seven catches for 65 yards and a touchdown.
"Growing up, I played a lot of baseball because of who my dad is," Hunter told the school's official website. "I wanted to continue it after high school even though I received a football scholarship."
Hunter will be an outfielder for coach Mik Aoki's squad and he will continue to attend football workouts throughout the spring.
"We want to make sure he can contribute effectively in both sports," football coach Brian Kelly said. "If he can do that, let's go help both teams."
Hunter follows in the footsteps of multiple Irish two-sport athletes. White Sox pitcher Jeff Samardzija, Lions receiver Golden Tate and former Notre Dame quarterback Evan Sharpley played football and baseball.
Current Irish forward Pat Connaughton played both basketball and baseball and was recently drafted by the Orioles while continuing to play basketball for Notre Dame.
chine@tribpub.com
