Minnesota Blizzard Baseball

Two-sport stars are not easy to find and finding players who can excel at an elite level in two sports is an even harder catch.  Athletes such as Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders are not a common sight.

The Minnesota Blizzard’s Wyatt O’Bey is displaying his expertise both on the baseball field and as a nationally-ranked skier. 

“It’s hard to choose from both sports that I love,” O’Bey said.  “Eventually I’ll have to pick between the two sports but I am not ready to do that yet.  I want to do both as long as I can.”

His love for skiing began at the young age of six when his dad took him skiing for the first time. 

Shortly after, he began to race competitively and quickly began to see good results.

“After I won my first race I was hooked.”

But after the snow melts and the sun starts to shine, O’Bey turns his focus to baseball.  A sophomore at Ashland (Wis.) High School, he shines as the starting second baseman for the Blizzard Elite16u team.

Looking for a way to accelerate his development on the field, he started looking for a club program that has helped players reach higher levels of baseball.  Through online research, O’Bey came across the Blizzard.

“I decided to tryout and the rest is history,” O’Bey said.

In six fall league games O’Bey hit a robust .417 while reaching base in over half of his plate appearances.  He also had a solid fall on the mound posting a 2-0 record and a perfect 0.00 ERA in two starts. 

As one of the top players for a very successful team, O’Bey has become a leader.

“I lead by example.  I am not necessarily a vocal leader but I work hard to provide leadership through my performance on the field as well as just being a good all-around teammate.”

This does not stop him from having a fiery demeanor.  Both in skiing and baseball, O’Bey refuses to give in.

“My mindset is that I want to win every race like I want to win every baseball game.  Nothing less than 100 percent effort,” O’Bey explained.

The commitment to both sports leads to a busy lifestyle not just for Wyatt but also his parents.  To develop on the slopes, the O’Bey family makes a trip to Duluth two or three nights a week for training.  He races in Region 1 of the United States Ski Association which covers Wisconsin, Minnesota and Michigan and makes multiple trips each year to the Rocky Mountains for races.

Adding in baseball on the weekends in the Twin Cities also adds miles every week. 

“I’m thankful to my parents for giving me all these opportunities, like playing for the Blizzard.  My parents have taught me that results are connected to effort.  If I work hard my parents are proud regardless of the results.”

While at some point O’Bey will have to make a decision as to what sport he pursues in the future, he hopes it doesn’t come for a long time.  Right now he has his sights set on both and is working hard every day to better himself.

“My future goals are to competitively downhill ski or play baseball at the collegiate level.”