THSB Cover Player: Grady Emerson, Sr, SS, Fort Worth Christian

 admin  |    Dec 23rd, 2025

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Grady Emerson is a 6-2 195 Senior SS for the TAPPS D2 District 1 Fort Worth Cardinals. He has signed with the University of Texas.

HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL
In his junior season for 5A Argyle, Emerson hit .351, with 11 2B, 2 3B, 4 HR, 25 RBI, 35 Runs, and 14 SB. He was named to the 6-5A All District Team as a 1st Team SS.

As a sophomore, he hit .380 with 10 2B, 4 3B, 4 HR, 24 RBI, 44 Runs and 19 SB. He was named to the 7-5A All-District Team as a 1st Team SS. He was also named as the Denton Record Chronicle All-Area Offensive Player of the Year.

In his freshman season, Emerson hit .336 with 15 2B, 5 3B, 2 HR, 35 RBI, 36 Runs and 10 SB. He was selected as the 7-5A Newcomer of the Year and the Denton Record Chronicle All-Area Newcomer of the Year. He was also named to the TSWA 5A All-State Team as a 3rd Team 1B.

OTHER BASEBALL RECOGNITION
2025 – USA Baseball U18 National Team
2025 – WBSC U18 All-World 3B
2025 – MLB Home Run Derby X Champion
2025 – MLB USA Baseball All American Game
2025 – Perfect Game All American Classic
2025 – Rangers Area Code Team
2024 – USA Baseball U18 National Team
2024 – Prep Baseball All-American Game
2024 – Dick’s Sporting Goods All-American Game
2024 – Rangers Area Code Underclass Team
2024 – Perfect Game All-Star Game
2023 – USA Baseball U15 National Team
2022 – USA Baseball U15 National Team

INTERVIEW

Grady, when did you first realize that you might have a future in baseball?

The first time I realized I might have a future in baseball was my 13U summer year. I joined a team called Team Elite in Georgia. That was the first time I traveled out of state for baseball. I flew to Georgia every weekend during the summer and it was pretty cool for a 13 year old to get to do that. I had a lot of success doing that and because of that I got invited to PG Select Fest 13U in Oklahoma. I hit a double and an inside the park home run there. Then the national rankings came out and I was Top 3.  I remember thinking then that there is a shot for me in baseball.

How has the transition to Ft. Worth Christian gone for you?

It’s been amazing. The people there have been so welcoming. It already feels like I have been there forever with the relationships I have built with the teachers, the coaches, the students. It’s like a new home for me. The off season has been great. The baseball team has been working hard. Rusty is doing a great job of making sure we get all the details right before the spring gets here. I’m looking forward to next season.

How do you feel about the 2026 Ft. Worth Christian team?

I think we are going to be a really solid defensive team. I don’t think we are going to let any team put pressure on us from the offensive side. I think we will make all the plays we should. We have a bunch of dudes on the field who have been training on the defensive side for years. Me and Jake Parkeson go back to when we 9 years old doing infield camps together. From the offensive side, we are going to have dudes who can bang. Griffin Carney and Jaxon Casselberry are guys who hit over .400 last year. We are going to have a lot of ways to score runs and I love that.

What will it take for this team to get to the TAPPS State Tournament?

The thing that will be crucial for us is just staying together as a team. There are some really good teams so for us it will be just staying true to ourselves and not trying to do too much. We need to remember that we are a scrappy team and we are going to create runs and put pressure on the other teams to rush and make mistakes. We need to stick to the fundamentals and trust in ourselves and just play how we know to play. That will be key for us.

As a new player in the program and a senior, how do you see your role on this team?

My role is to play shortstop to the best of my ability and help this team win. Obviously I want to be a vocal guy, I want to be the guy who runs the infield especially if I think somebody needs to move over. Griffin Carney has been the captain of this team and I was a captain at my old school. We’ve already had talks together and we talk about working together. It’s been nothing short of amazing so far in the way we’ve been able to communicate and in the way we’ve been able to run things within the infield and within the outfield as well. So I think my role is going to be to tag along with Griff and hopefully lead this team to a lot of wins.

What was your USA Baseball experience like?

I always tell everybody that it has been the greatest baseball experience I have ever had. Every time you go out there with the red, white and blue on your chest, playing for your country, there is no better feeling. You are going out there with a lot of pressure but also a lot of pride. And not a lot of kids get that opportunity to do that. So to have that opportunity to do that for 4 years was something super special and something I will never take for granted.

What kind of weight does being the top ranked player in Texas have on you?

Honestly, when I play I don’t think about that kind of stuff. I just go out there and play the game I love, playing with the people I love. The rankings come as a result of the on-field stuff. But the more I tend to listen to that noise and dig into that the more it hurts me in general. I think just going out there and playing the game the way it’s supposed to be played and letting everything else take care of itself is how I like to roll.

Why UT?

Troy Tulowitzski had a really big part in that. I first met him when I was 14 years old and I was at the USA PDP. I was committed to TCU at that time and he came up to me and gave me a hard time about it. I spent a week with him there and felt like I got so much better within that week of being with him and learning from him. So in my mind I started thinking about how much better I could get spending 3 years with him. So that was a big part. And then just the community that the University of Texas brings me. The fans there are so great. It feels like a great community to be a part of. So those two reasons just made it a no-brainer for me.

PERSONAL

Parents: Brandon and Deanna Emerson
Age: 17
Siblings: One younger brother
Current Favorite Singer: Cody Johnson
Favorite Restaurant: Perry’s Steakhouse
Go to Fast Food: Chipotle
Last Movie I Saw: Gladiator II
If you could travel to any place, where would you go: Brazil
What do you like to do outside baseball: Listen to music and skeet shoot
Favorite MLB Player: Corey Seager
Biggest Win Last Spring: District win at home vs Colleyville Heritage
Summer Baseball Highlight: Winning gold in Japan at the WBSC 18U World Cup