‘This is my dream’: All Braves prospect David McCabe wanted was an opportunity

Or maybe it is – if all you ever wanted was an opportunity, and you view this as that.

“It’s nice, seeing how good the competition is,” McCabe said in the visiting dugout after his batting practice group finishes. “Everyone here is so good.”

Everyone here is here to improve. Big-league dreams never disappear. The pursuit of them always continues. Over the years, some of MLB’s top prospects have played in the Fall League.

Many of the Braves’ top prospects are not here. But the 23-year-old McCabe, the organization’s No. 16 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, has enjoyed this experience, which has been the latest step in his winding journey toward achieving his dream of playing in the majors.

‘Why am I not getting offers?’

Billy Best is the area scout who found McCabe. Best, now with the Royals, scouted the Carolinas for the Braves, and on a stop in Charlotte, he became impressed with McCabe. Everyone could see McCabe hit the ball hard and far, and featured a good arm.

In talking to McCabe’s coaches, though, something else stood out: His makeup (the baseball word for character). They raved about his diligence. They lauded the way he prepared.

Best kept hearing this and figured there had to be something to it.

“When you talk to (the coaches) enough, you could tell (his makeup) was different than maybe some of his other teammates, or any college player,” Best recalled over the phone. “They just kept talking about it over and over. Just common-sense things, but they kept talking about it so much, and they still do, to this day.”

Where does this work ethic come from?

To know, you must understand McCabe’s story.

“A big part of that (work ethic) is not really having many options out of college,” he said. “I was overweight when I graduated high school. I had to lose about 35 pounds in about three months, four months. Just not being as supremely talented as some of these other guys, finding a way to set myself apart and do other things to make up for that maybe talent gap there is.”

When he didn’t get any big scholarship offers out of high school, McCabe was a bit frustrated, but decided to use that energy in another way. Instead of pouting, he asked himself a couple of questions.

“Why am I not getting offers?”

“How am I going to make myself better to make sure that changes?”

The answer to that first question?

“It was, I didn’t look the part of the Division I player, I didn’t look the part of a college player, and I knew that needed to change,” McCabe said. “So that was my main focus that offseason. Then secondly, it was just being seen. Being seen in Canada is kind of difficult. Schools aren’t making trips up to watch us play.”

Credit: Arizona Fall League

Credit: Arizona Fall League

Out of high school, McCabe took a gap year because he didn’t have any Division I scholarship offers. He had only offers from small junior colleges. He trained and lost weight by cleaning up his diet and working hard in the weight room. He also played for the Ontario Blue Jays, a travel baseball team. (Small world: Mike Steed coached the Ontario Blue Jays. Steed was the pitching coach for High-A Rome this year, so McCabe reunited with him there.)

On a travel-ball tour, the Ontario Blue Jays played against colleges and junior colleges in the United States. Charlotte noticed McCabe. The school wanted him.

“It all just kind of fell into place,” McCabe said. “It was a blessing.”

He entered the program in 2020. Going into the 2021 season, McCabe thought he might be drafted. But injuries limited him that season, and teams weren’t willing to give as high of a signing bonus as he hoped. So he bet on himself and went back to school, which was a difficult decision made easier because he loved the school, his coaches and his teammates.

In 2022, the Braves drafted McCabe in the fourth round and gave him a $476,400 signing bonus.

This year, McCabe played 42 games for Low-A Augusta, then 81 for High-A Rome. Between both levels, he slugged 17 home runs, drove in 75 runs and posted an .835 OPS.

The Braves let him play third base daily to get the reps. It’s a work in progress, but he feels he’s improving.

‘I think my faith is something that really keeps me grounded’

In the Bible, the Book of Matthew is the home of these verses: “Look at the birds of the sky, that they do not sow, nor reap, nor gather crops into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more important than they? And which of you by worrying can add a single day to his lifespan?”

These might be McCabe’s favorite verses. “For me, it’s giving God my life and letting him take care of it, and just trusting Him,” he said. These days, McCabe doesn’t compare himself with others who might’ve had easier paths.

“I don’t worry about that,” he said. “All I can do is become the best player that I can be and be the best person that I can be. Everything else is out of my control. I can only take care of the things that I can do.”

This is a primary baseball cliché – to control what you can control – but it can be easier said than done, no?

“It is, definitely,” McCabe said. “And there are times when I struggle with it, but I think my faith is something that really keeps me grounded. When I may be thinking negatively or wrong, I have the Bible to go turn to and read and learn and grow.”

Each morning, McCabe reads the Bible. “Times of struggle are really what draw me near to Jesus,” he said. He’s become grateful for any struggles because he feels they’ve made him better.

His faith took its biggest step when he moved to a new country for college. His parents have traveled to the United States to see him play, but he has other family members in Canada that he hasn’t seen since 2020.

Now, he leans on his faith for any trying time.

‘This is my dream’

McCabe doesn’t remember this, but his dad told him the story: One time, he was in the front yard hitting with a plastic bat and ball from Walmart.

Eventually, he said, “I’m gonna switch sides now.” He then hit from the other way.

He’s done it ever since.

During the season, McCabe might do a lot of cage work from the right side because he might not face a lefty for weeks. He’s a natural righty, but is better from the left side because he sees more righties.

The Braves have Matt Olson at first base and Austin Riley at third base. They’ll be with the team for a long time.

But perhaps someone like McCabe eventually could profile as a designated hitter?

“Yeah. Without question,” Best said. “That’s what I’ve been thinking. Because everybody sees that. You got Riley and Olson. Nobody’s gonna move those guys out. But you might need a guy off the bench or a DH, and he would fit that role perfectly, especially being a switch-hitter.”

To be clear: The Braves are one of baseball’s better teams. Their roster should stay in the National League’s top tier for years to come. There might not be room for McCabe, who must continue developing. But his power eventually could help him reach the bigs – if not with the Braves, then somewhere else.

But even his current situation – playing in the minor leagues – is an opportunity.

That’s all he ever wanted.

“This is my dream,” McCabe said. “I’m able to have the best job in the world, and I couldn’t be more grateful for it.”

It hits him when the anthem is playing, when he takes batting practice, when fields ground balls.

“Or you look up in an at-bat, and you’re like, ‘Man, I’m living the dream,’” he said.