Jacobson receives honor
Tyler Jacobson toured the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y., when he was 12, but when he returned this summer, he had an even better time. On June 20th, the UW-Platteville sophomore was presented the 2009 George W. Rulon American Legion Baseball Player of the Year Award.
Jacobson, who played Legion ball for Mixtacki-Johnson Post 337 of Pulaski, Wis. in 2009, received a $3,500 scholarship from the Legion and a free pass to attend the 2010 Baseball Hall of Fame games.
"In the two days I was there, I was actually at the Hall of Fame three different times to get through the museum," Jacobson said. "It takes a lot of time to get through there. Then at the Hall of Fame Classic is where they presented the award in the middle of the game. I was also able to go on the field and get autographs from seven different Hall of Famers and a few other major leaguers as well. It was a really cool experience." // ');// ]]>
Jacobson hit .553 for the Pulaski American Legion team in 2009. For the Pioneers, the shortstop played in 36 games, starting 28 in 2010. He hit .250 with five doubles and 18 RBIs.
Jacobson was also part of a Pioneer team that qualified for the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference playoffs for just the second time in school history.
"It was great," he said. "Going into the last weekend of the season, there were four teams fighting for a spot. After we won the last game at Superior, we had to wait about a half hour on the bus to get the word that Oshkosh lost. When we got the text message, the bus just kind of erupted. It was one of the greatest bus rides I've ever been on."
The George W. Rulon Player of the Year is presented annually to eligible Legion baseball players. It pays tribute to George W. Rulon, the national staff coordinator who operated American Legion Baseball for 25 years. The American Legion Player of the Year award is based on integrity, mental attitude, cooperation, citizenship, sportsmanship, scholastic aptitude and general good conduct.
David Lamb, award winner in 1992, was the last American Legion Player of the Year to play Major League Baseball. Other notable Players of the Year include Dave Magadan, and Rollie Fingers.
American Legion Baseball is a variety of amateur baseball played by teenage boys in 50 states in the USA. More than five thousand teams participate each year. The American Legion Department of South Dakota established the program in 1925 at Milbank, South Dakota.
