WEST Coast is set to rookie list former baseballer Corey Adamson for season 2015.
Adamson, the son of Olympic baseballer and former Australian Baseball League home-run record-holder Tony Adamson, has been playing baseball in the United States for six years after signing a contract with the San Diego Padres as a 16-year-old.
The 22-year-old was a star junior footballer. He was named All Australian at Under-15 level and played in a WA schoolboys team alongside West Coast forward Jack Darling, and Gold Coast midfielders David Swallow and Brandon Matera.
The club announced on Monday that it has submitted paperwork to the AFL to rookie list Adamson under a rule that gives clubs access to players who have not been registered with an organised Australian football competition for more than three years.
Adamson has not played football for six years but after some AFL testing in the US with West Coast recruiting officer Brad Smith, the Eagles have decided to rookie list him.
Eagles coach Adam Simpson told 6PR on Monday night that it was a free swing at a young man who showed great potential as a schoolboy.
"I met him yesterday," Simpson said.
"All I know is he was an All Australian Under-15 player with speed and was hard at it.
"I've seen a couple of bits of vision on the database at work. Hopefully with six years out of the game as a junior it doesn't take him too long to get back into it.
"But it's a bit of a free hit to be honest. We're not losing anything on our list. If he can produce anything like he did when he was 15 we might find a player."
Adamson stands at 188cm and as a baseballer was an outfielder and power-hitter like his father, but in an interview with the Eagles' club website he revealed he played a number of different roles in junior football.
"Mostly I played in the midfield when I was younger," Adamson said.
"When it came to state tournaments and development squads I played mainly centre half-back."
