Tarpons pitcher lives double life as accomplished DJ

TAMPA, Fla. - Tampa Tarpons pitcher Chandler Champlain fell in love with the sights and sounds of baseball long ago. 

"As far back as I can remember. My dad put a ball in my hand when I was three or four [years old]," recalled Champlain. 

According to his coaches, the flame-throwing righty out of USC is always ready to bring a crowd of fans to their feet. 

"The bringer of vibes is probably the best way to put it. He's a big energy guy," said Tarpons pitching coach Grayson Crawford. 

But Crawford has a point. Champlain definitely brings the vibes even when he isn’t on the mound for the Tarpons because Champlain, one of the New York Yankees' top young pitching prospects, has a successful hobby outside the lines of the dirt diamond.

"I love being, not the life of the party, but making the party," explained Champlain. 

When he was in college at Southern California, Champlain definitely kept many parties going as a successful DJ. 

"It definitely gets a rise out of you, gets your adrenaline pumping and gets your emotions going," Champlain said. 

The Tarpon's pitcher picked up the hobby when his college fraternity asked him to control the music at a party. From there, Champlain dove into the world of electronic dance music and learned everything he could about sound mixing while continuing to DJ at parties and venues around USC. 

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But while Champlain is not the Tarpon's official clubhouse DJ, he says his goals of pitching in the big leagues haven’t changed. 

"I can't wait for what the future holds and one day I'll hopefully wear those pinstripes," he said. 

For now, however, the Yankees' 2021 ninth-round draft pick is ready to drop a strike or a beat anytime. 

"I love pitching and I love DJing. I think there are a lot of similarities between them," said Champlain. 

Recently Champlain was added to the list of Yankees' top 30 prospects in just his first full professional season. 

His next music career project, however, will be to upload personalized set lists that any player in the Yankees organization can download and listen to pre-game.