Tim Tebow plays home run hero as St. Lucie walks off in seventh
— -- Tim Tebow's one-out, solo homer in the bottom of the seventh inning sent the Class A St. Lucie Mets to a dramatic 5-4 comeback victory Thursday night over the Daytona Tortugas.
Tebow belted the 0-1 fastball from Cincinnati Reds minor leaguer Austin Orewiler over the left-field fence, sending a crowd of 2,667 at First Data Field into a frenzy. He has hit safely in 11 straight games.
Tebow, 29, was doused with Gatorade and mobbed by teammates when he reached home plate.
"It was fun to celebrate with all the guys," Tebow said.
Tebow, the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner and former NFL quarterback, said it was his first walk-off homer since his junior year at Nease High School in Ponte Vedra Beach, near Jacksonville. He did not play his senior year in order to focus on football.
"[The high school homer] was for the district championship," Tebow said. "That felt pretty good, but this one was special."
It's his third home run in 16 Florida State League games following a promotion from Class A Columbia and his sixth home run in 80 games overall in his first season as a minor leaguer.
Tebow is batting .327 with 10 RBIs with St. Lucie. All three of his home runs with the Mets have gone to the opposite field.
"The goal is just to stay behind as many balls as I can," he said. "See it, let it get deep. When you stay behind it, it goes the other way."
Tebow's high shot cleared the fence about 20 feet inside the foul pole, thrilling the 2,667 fans, many of whom arrived early to see him in action.
The victory capped a doubleheader sweep for the Mets. Minor league teams commonly play two seven-inning games during doubleheaders.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
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