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FAMILY AFFAIR
Turner's Off To State
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Siblings Megan and Michael Turner of the Champion HS softball and baseball teams will be playing in state semi finals.
Champion’s Turner family has a big week ahead with Michael in Columbus and Megan in Akron
By Brian Dzenis
MASSILLON
Brian Turner has gone from carrying two buckets to watching two state tournaments.
The former New York Yankees farmhand has raised two Kent State commits that are key cogs in Champion’s Columbus-bound baseball and Akron-bound softball teams — Michael Turner and Megan Turner.
Brian has been working with his kids on their hitting for years, carrying one bucket of softballs and one for baseballs. There isn’t a Turner recipe for hitting success, just put the work in.
“It’s kind of like a lifestyle for us. Everyday is softball and baseball,” Megan, a junior shortstop for the Golden Flashes said. “We dedicate a lot of time to this sport and obviously it’s helped our teams get to the state semifinals.
“We enjoy putting time into it,” she said.
Brian played the majority of his eight seasons in the minor leagues with the Yankees while also having shorter stints in the New York Mets and the Minnesota Twins’ systems. The former first baseman never went higher than Double-A, but did get to play alongside the likes of Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera and Jorge Posada. He was drafted out of Orwell’s Grand Valley High School in the 40th round, appearing on 11 teams before returning to Northeast Ohio.
“My family is still here, that’s why I came back,” Brian said. “It’s where I was raised and where I wanted to be.
“My wife [Christy], she’s from North Carolina, so I don’t know if she would agree with that,” he said.
The advent of travel ball and winter workouts have made Michael and Megan into more developed players than Brian. He and his wife often travel separately to get their children to their respective teams.
“Michael is a better player that I was,” Brian said. “I had a little more power, but he has a little more hand-eye coordination than I did and he has a better arm.
“Overall the game has gotten a lot better because we’ve worked so hard and the game wasn’t like that back then.
“I came from a small town in Orwell. The only summer ball I played was 15 games in Little League. We hit indoors in the winter and it’s almost a year-round process,” he said.
The three of them are all right-handed, but Brian was a left-hander batter and thrower. Megan bats and throws right, while Michael bats left and throws right. He’s at a loss to explain how he picked that up.
“I always ask that question because my dad was a lefty-lefty,” Michael said. “He said when I was a kid, I picked up the bat lefty and he just went with it.”
The brother and sister didn’t plan on continuing to be Golden Flashes at the collegiate level together, but Megan warmed to the idea.
“I had a lot of offers, but it kind of influenced me that Michael was going to Kent,” Megan said. “We’ve been going to school together for our entire lives and I’ll feel better knowing he’s by my side.”
Brian will be able to easily attend both state semifinal games as they take place on Thursday and Friday. But it’ll take some driving to make it from Huntington Park — the baseball team would play at 10 a.m. — in Columbus to Akron Firestone Stadium — a 4 p.m. softball start — on Saturday.
It’s a good problem to have.
“It’s like a dream. I’m just so proud of what they’ve done and it isn’t just them, but both teams,” Brian said. “This is the result of years and years of hard work from a lot of parents and a lot of good people.
“I just get to be a part of it because my kids are the right age.”