22: Jorden Hussein | Stop Chasing the “Right” Baseball Path | JUCO, Indie Ball & Banana Ball

Show Notes

Texas Tailgators shortstop Jorden Hussein never planned on playing Banana Ball.

His path went from North Shore High School in Houston to Crowder College, Division I baseball at Little Rock, two seasons of independent ball, the Party Animals, and now the Texas Tailgators. At several points, the next opportunity looked nothing like what he originally pictured.

That’s exactly why I wanted him on the Chasing Baseball Dreams Podcast.

Jorden talks about why he chose JUCO when he had a Division I opportunity, why parents need to be realistic about where their son actually is as a player, and what his own parents got right throughout his baseball career. He also gives one of the better analogies I’ve heard about what a player needs from his dad after a bad game.

We also get into Banana Ball. Is the baseball real? Are the games scripted? And after playing inside it, does Jorden believe Banana Ball is actually here to stay? His answer might surprise some traditional baseball people.

In this episode we cover:

• Why Jorden chose JUCO instead of going Division I right away
• What parents should look at beyond the school name and division
• The reality check he thinks more baseball parents need about their son
• What each jump in competition exposed about his own game
• What his parents did when he struggled
• What NOT to do on the car ride home after your son goes 0-for-4
• How a phone call he almost turned down led him to Banana Ball
• Whether Banana Ball is scripted and how competitive the games really are
• Why he believes Banana Ball is here to stay
• What Banana Ball taught him about slowing the game down defensively
• Why parents should stop obsessing over statistics
• What he wishes he could tell his high school self

Jorden’s path is a good reminder for baseball parents: your son’s best opportunity may not have the name, logo, division, or path you pictured.

Pay attention to where he can play, where he can get better, and where people genuinely want him.

🎙️ Host: Bobby Minor
⚾ Guest: Jorden Hussein, Texas Tailgators shortstop
🎧 Chasing Baseball Dreams Podcast

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Chasing Baseball Dreams is the only baseball parent podcast hosted by someone with no financial stake in where your money goes. I don't run a travel team. I don't sell lessons. I don't coach for an org. I have no reason to steer you in the wrong direction. I'm Bobby Minor... former Division 1 player, 35+ years coaching select baseball and high school, former travel organization director, over 1,000 college recruiting assessments, and a college baseball dad who almost lost 2 sons to this game for 2 very different reasons, with one currently playing college baseball.

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Bobby Minor: All right, welcome to the Chasing Baseball Dreams Podcast. And today I've got Jordan Hussein, shortstop for the Texas Tailgators, even though he's out right now. just had surgery, but we'll jump into that. If you don't know Jordan, he's from Houston, Texas. He played went the JUCO route out of high school, played at Crowder College, and then played Division I at the University of Little Rock, spent a couple of seasons playing indie ball, then joined the party animals in his venture into banana ball before moving over to the Texas Tailgators. And so We want to hear, you know, hear how how all that happened, what helps you along the way, and what you wish more baseball parents understood. So Jordan, welcome to the show, man.

Jorden Hussein: Thank you for having me, Bobby. it's a pleasure. I've seen some of the guests you've had recently, so I'm very excited to be here.

Bobby Minor: Yeah, no, thank you so much. I I just think this is cool. This is you know, it like I said, I always tell everybody everybody's path is different. Like I said, I I doubt when you were in high school even, I'll say when you're twelve years old, I doubt when you're in high school you're thinking like, Man, I I'm gonna I don't I don't wanna play college baseball, I wanna play banana ball. So but

Jorden Hussein: Yeah, never never thought this in a million years, but it's been it's been a blast and still get to do what I love, so I love every second of it.

Bobby Minor: Yeah, no doubt, no doubt. And so so I mentioned your injury. Do you wanna kinda walk us through a little bit about, you know, about what happened, where you are and when when you when

Jorden Hussein: Yeah,

Bobby Minor: do you hope to be back in action?

Jorden Hussein: so two weeks ago we had a game in Syracuse, New York. I was running to second base. I was out by a good little bit, so I checked up, didn't slide. And just kinda felt my knee is the word I used explode. not a ton of pain, but I just felt it go and I kinda knew. The infielders from the other team kinda rounded around me and asked, you know, what what do you got? And I told pretty much get me off the field, my season's over. I was able to get up and run off on my own, which was cool as part of my little my little ego that I have there. trainers didn't love it, but I I did it. And yeah, so now I'm down for about nine months. Had I'm one week post stop toward my ACL and my meniscus. my niscus wasn't as bad as they thought, but everything's successful surgery and I'm a week out week post stop. So it's been good. It's been a grind already, digging through some pain and some things, but nothing I haven't been through before. So

Bobby Minor: Yeah. Wow. That's that's wild. So best case scenario, when will you when when do you hope to be able to resume baseball activities? I guess baseball activities

Jorden Hussein: I'm not the mathematician.

Bobby Minor: are a little bit different than banana ball baseball activities.

Jorden Hussein: Yeah, so they I what I'm under the impression about six months or so they they say I should be moving and running around pretty good. but I won't be cleared to play in a game 'til about nine months. So I'm thinking my math tells me June, which tells me June first, but that's not it. I had surgery late September. So I think we have a we have a break right after the fourth of July or the Fourth of July. I think somewhere around there is a is a goal of mine to shoot for. So Probably the longest I've ever gone without ball, but it's it's a test, so

Bobby Minor: Yeah, no doubt. So in a I guess in a season, well like how many games how many games do the Telegators play in a full season?

Jorden Hussein: We all we had sixty this past year, so still

Bobby Minor: wow.

Jorden Hussein: a good still a lengthy schedule.

Bobby Minor: Yeah. Okay. All right. So I mentioned high school. So take me back to high school. Like how how did you end up at Crowder and what made that what made that the right opportunity for you?

Jorden Hussein: Yeah, I played high school baseball at North Shore High School in Houston, Texas. my head coach played at Crowder back in the day and and my head coach in high school was very hard nosed and like he he played the he wanted us to play the game hard. He coached the game hard, he didn't take anything. Like it was his way or the highway and I don't know. Most kids don't like that and I fell in love with that. I was like, This dude gets it, this dude is a is a baseball junkie and I just kinda always picked his brain and then when it was my turn to kinda get some offers rolling in. I think I had Texas Southern, swack offer and

Bobby Minor: Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: I didn't want to go division one right away, because

Bobby Minor: Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: I knew it wasn't gonna benefit me. I was gonna go set the bench and I ended up going to Crowder College. That's where he kinda convinced me to go and it didn't take a lot of convincing 'cause I liked the way he thought about the game. So I was I was more than willing to go there and trust him. I went and took some ground balls and did a workout for them and I got to go on a visit there and I fell in love with Every single person was like my high school coach. They were just born to play baseball and that's all they wanted to do. And ended up at Crowder College and man I fell in love with that school, so

Bobby Minor: Awesome. you mentioned TSU. I it's funny, like I played Division I baseball back in the eighties. That's truly back in the day. But TSU was one of the schools I was looking at. I ended up playing at Prairie View. So and got hurt got

Jorden Hussein: Okay. I think

Bobby Minor: hurt really quick. So my my career is very short lived, but yeah.

Jorden Hussein: Yeah, I'm I'm familiar with both of those schools. But Texas Southern was a school like my junior and senior year in

Bobby Minor: Yeah. Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: high school. They were constantly calling me, calling me, calling me. And I ended up going to Crowder and I didn't even really play my freshman year at Crowder, but I learned a ton and I got to be around people that I wouldn't trade for the world, so

Bobby Minor: Yeah, that's good stuff. So what do you think? What should a family look at that goes beyond 'cause you you're saying like you didn't want to go D one right away, and it seems like so many people have

Jorden Hussein: I mean

Bobby Minor: they have the D one or bus mindset. So what should a family look at beyond like the school's name and division when their son's choosing a place to play? Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: Yeah, now don't get me wrong. I know there's gonna people that say, like, how are you gonna sit here and say you didn't want to play division one right away? I personally we all wanna play division one. We all wanna go play, you know, I wanted to go play shortstop at Oklahoma State, at Texas, at all these big schools in the South, but the abilities that God gave me and what I had at that point, I knew I needed to go junior college or I needed to go to a small division one. But it's it's it's a pride thing. I've never had kids and I don't have kids yet, but I know that I'm gonna try my best that when I do have kids they get to that point. I was always very real with myself and I think that's what took me a long way and still allows me to play. I knew when I didn't need to go division one. I knew that, you know, I just I don't think that everybody needs to follow the same path, like you said, Bobby. I was a guy that I just knew I had to go junior college or I wasn't gonna learn and I wasn't gonna play. I had buddies that were ready and they went division one right away and it worked for them, but we weren't built the same and we didn't think the same. so my advice to parents would be just just try to be as real as you can with yourself. how good is your son really? You know? and I don't mean that in a in a bad way. I don't say that I'm better than anybody, but Sometimes I hear parents talk to me about their kids and I'm like, dude, I think you got it wrong because your kid's here and you think your kid's here. Or vice versa, your kid's here and you think he's here. Like you need to, you need to realize how good your kid is, whether it's good or bad for you. And then assess, you know, like where, where, where should my son go? Should my son go to a junior college, or should my son go to these showcases that would benefit him because big schools need to see them. You just need to be real with yourself. And I think that's my main thing with parents, is just try to keep it as real as you can with yourself.

Bobby Minor: Yeah, that's really good stuff, man. Parents, I hope you're listening. And I think the unfortunate thing is because this industry capitalizes so much on parents' hopes and dreams and their fears that there a lot of people there aren't there aren't a lot of people out there. There are good people out there, good people that coach and run organizations, but there are a lot of people out there that are not gonna be real with parents. And help facilitate that kind of delusion that, you know, they think they're selling their kid on the D one dream, knowing, you know, good and well like it's never gonna happen. w when you're in high school, who'd you play s I mean, I'll tell people like I always called it select baseball here in Texas. You

Jorden Hussein: Okay.

Bobby Minor: know, everybody else calls it travel ball. So I've kind of adapted that. But who did you play select baseball or travel baseball for when you were in high school?

Jorden Hussein: played with a coach named Coach Jack Schulte. He was about ninety years old and he coached us with Team Maruchi and he was one of

Bobby Minor: Okay.

Jorden Hussein: the best one of the best coaches I ever got to play with and I I'd lost contact with him but he was he was awesome. So I got to play with Marucci for a couple of years a couple of summers and Jack Schulte was our head coach there. So

Bobby Minor: Okay. Yeah, great organization. Down I know Marucci down in Houston, you know, probably HP Banditos. There's a lot of good organizations down there in that area. So all right, so you went from junior college to division one, then indie ball. What did each jump expose about your game that you needed to work on? What what'd you learn about yourself

Jorden Hussein: my.

Bobby Minor: as you were as you were progressing?

Jorden Hussein: the first thing I I mean I it's not even something that I would say I learned, but I it's something that I realized like, shoot, I am smaller than everybody or I am a little weaker than everybody. Every every level that I ever got to jump that people told me I wasn't gonna make it to, I'd make it to that level. And and there was a strength difference there for me every time, you know, there was a size difference for me every time. but for me it was it was having the confidence every time The worst it got was when when I went to Lake Erie in the Frontier League right after Little Rock, I was kind of shooting for the Pioneer League around that time and the Frontier League was the first league that called and I got there and I was only about twenty three at the time and all of my teammates were like twenty six, twenty seven, a little older than me. And I let that right away just kind of kill my confidence for a second, which I shouldn't have. So I think for me, every time I jump levels, I have that confidence, but I would kinda let it fall a little bit and Just a advice for the kids, you know, it that self-belief that you have, you really have to walk that walk. Like I I tell people all the time, it's because I truly believe how good I am. Like you have to believe it. But there was times where I didn't believe it. I I could walk out the door and have people think that I believed how good I was, but I I'd come back inside and be like, Am I really that good? so just like that self-confidence would kind of get me every time I'd bump up a level and see the size difference in in the people, I'd kind of be like, Whoa. And I'd have to remind myself, I've played with these people at every level. So it was kind of that for me, the strength and the and the size. that was the biggest jump for me that I had to adapt to.

Bobby Minor: Okay. That's man, that's good. Thank you for sharing that. So how can a parent recognize that their son's getting better even when like maybe his numbers aren't showing it or even his his playing time isn't showing it?

Jorden Hussein: That's a tough one. especially because like my my dad, my mom and dad, they're not they didn't grow up in baseball families or anything. So like I feel like at times they would just my dad would just see is he playing good or not, you know. So that that's a really hard one. I don't know, if your k if your kid's putting in work and you know your kid's putting in work, you need to baseball's a really, really hard sport. there was a lot of years that I put in work hitting for hours and hours and hours and I never got better at hitting. And I don't think my mom really ever told me like questioned my work ethic, like, hey, why do you keep going to the cages if you're not getting better? I think she just cared that I was working hard at something and she knew it would pay off one day. just as long as your kids are working, I I'd I'd say that's the only thing. You know, if you got people wondering why they're not getting better at baseball, but they're not working at it at the same time, it's like It's it's a really hard game and you have to work. So for me it'd just be as long as they're working, that you got something to play with.

Bobby Minor: Yeah. Okay. So okay, you just said you didn't grow up in a baseball family. So who like who introduced you to the game and and how'd you fall in love with it?

Jorden Hussein: like my dad didn't play baseb my my parents didn't play sports. I think they liked baseball, you know, they they liked baseball and droid baseball. But I I just started playing t ball and stuff at a really young age. Three, two, three years old. I think I started playing little league at the at the park. My parents just kinda wanted to get me into something. They like sports, but I don't know if they were like a sport fan. I don't know. Just kinda like the little league, local little league started playing at three or four. And my dad worked nights is the funny thing my whole life. And my mom said, like around the time I started getting like five or six, seven years old, she would call him and be like, Hey, I I think he might be pretty good. I don't I don't know. I don't want to sound like that mom, but like people tell me he's good, but I don't know. And my dad was like, Yeah, whatever. Like, okay. My dad's driving a forklift, like, okay, he's good. He's seven, whatever. And

Bobby Minor: Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: then he got to come to a couple games and they would tell me stories about plays that I would make when I was younger. And my dad was like, Wait, maybe he does kind of like that. So they kind of just kept me in it forever. And it was something that I've always loved as a kid. So From the time that I got the play, I never wanted to be out of it.

Bobby Minor: Okay. And I know before we started we before we started recording, you mentioned being a big fan of Pedroya, growing up and

Jorden Hussein: Yeah.

Bobby Minor: everything. So I'm assuming though you're an Astros fan and I gotta think Altuve is probably another one of your favorite players.

Jorden Hussein: so Altuve is one of my favorite players now, but actually my favorite all time player, what what the reason to answer your other question?

Bobby Minor: Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: I I grew up a diehard Astros fan. Parents used to take me to games all the time, and I I fell in love with Craig Biggio from the second I saw that man play baseball.

Bobby Minor: yeah. Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: the hustle, the pine tar, everything

Bobby Minor: Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: that he does is like what that's what I focus on. And so so to have Altuve in his spot

Bobby Minor: Yeah. Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: now, generationally, is is very cool for me. But Pedroya Altuve, Biggio, those are three people that obviously three second basemen, but they have very similar work ethics and very similar playing styles. They're one of a kind. So it's not we it's yeah, those are three guys that I look up to and they're very similar. So

Bobby Minor: Yeah, for sure. All all great players. so okay, what number do you wear with the with the tailgators? Okay. All right, now why five? I was thinking you I think you're gonna I was thinking you're gonna wear seven because of Bijgio. Okay.

Jorden Hussein: In college at Little Rock I wore seven for Biggio. and I got to I got to Banana Ball and they were like, Hey, what number do you want? And I said, Give me seven and they were like, Well the head coach is seven and I was like, Well, I guess I'm not getting seven. So five was the next closest. So I I took five. We'll give Bagwell some some honor there.

Bobby Minor: Yeah, another pretty good one. Now I don't even know why coaches have numbers. Like, okay. Seriously. Like, you know, you're not doing that. It's funny, so my my youngest son, he went the JUCO route and he now he's playing division two out at Sol Ross in West Texas. He wants to wear number five this year. He's n he's I think he wore it one one fall. We were playing with the Dallas Tigers and he wore number five, but yeah, he wants to wear number five this year. So I I hadn't even asked him. No, he's a middle infi well, he's a middle infielder,

Jorden Hussein: He's a pitcher? No.

Bobby Minor: but he's a middle infielder that He played third last year and he's been playing center all fall. This fall so far. So

Jorden Hussein: I have to let it.

Bobby Minor: pretty play. Yeah. I honestly kinda look alike. It's funny. I have to I'm gonna show you. I don't wanna bring on.

Jorden Hussein: And he's a s he's a Sol Ross now? Yeah, he's got the go T and yeah.

Bobby Minor: Yeah, that's that was a senior but he's got to go you gotta see him now the he yeah, y'all yeah. When I show my wife this episode, she's gonna be like, He looks like Julian. So yeah, but he's he's out at Solros right now, out in Alpine, Texas, in the middle of nowhere.

Jorden Hussein: Yeah, that's that's good for though. That's that takes me back to the work. That's like what in junior college I was in the middle of nowhere in Missouri

Bobby Minor: Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: and that's all we had to do was just hit and play catch. So

Bobby Minor: That's pretty much what he does. I think the nearest Walmart's

Jorden Hussein: Yeah.

Bobby Minor: like fifty miles away. So there's not a not

Jorden Hussein: Okay.

Bobby Minor: a whole lot going on. so all right, so you know, when you're growing up playing and even even now, I mean I don't well, I don't know so much about now, how much it applies, but like like when you're growing up, like when you were going through a rough stretch, what did what did you need most from your parents?

Jorden Hussein: I'm not gonna say I didn't need anything from them, but I've always been a mentally tough player. I never really needed somebody to come and kind of like give me anything. but when I will say this is the way my parents are. My parents are kind of hard nosed when it comes to like motivating me and doing that stuff. and I still now I can beat my butt off and I try and I go in slumps and I do that and I care. but when I get down and I struggle, once my parents realize like, 'Cause they they know that I'm a mint I usually can kind of just brush things off. Once it's two or three days of me kind of moping, maybe two, my parents will literally just come up to me and be like, Hey, like, cut it out. This is who you are, this is what you've done. You're this you're 27 years old and you're still playing. You can like you've we've seen you do it, like chill out. And then I'm like, You're right. And that's how easy it is for me. but sometimes that's what I I've always needed that I've needed that from them. throughout my career, whether it was high school, especially when I lived with him and and when I was in Texas, they would kind of see me after a bad game or a bad weekend, and it would just kinda like I didn't need bathing, but they would just look at me be like, Hey, bro, like chin up, let's go. You got a game next weekend? Like you're gonna sit here and cry, or are you gonna get ready for your next one? And that's kind of how I am with my teammates now. And it it's I love them for that. So just kinda tough love, like, hey. Life's hard. You're playing a kid's game. So do you wanna go to you wanna drive a forecliffe like your dad or do you wanna struggle here? And I'm like, I'll I'll keep hitting. So

Bobby Minor: Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: just just that perspective of I know my life could be a lot harder. My challenges are fastballs and curveballs. People have different challenges. So this is a lot easier for me to brush off and try to keep playing.

Bobby Minor: Yeah. At least you're not having to hit wearing stilts.

Jorden Hussein: No. Yeah, I I I no I don't need that. I'd be on crutches for real if I had to hit on those.

Bobby Minor: Yeah. I don't know how he does that. now so for the dad for the dad like waiting in the parking lot after his son goes over four, like what would you want him to understand before that car ride home?

Jorden Hussein: I would want him to understand, this is the way I put it into perspective now, 'cause the older I've got, me and my dad have always been best of friends, but the older I've got, I've been able to express things to him differently. And for that dad, I would just want him to know that you gotta think about, I mean I tell my dad, you have a job. You you drove that forklift for years and you did that. If you had a bad day at work, and I knew you had a bad day at work, because I got to watch you have a bad day at work. And you pulled in the driveway, and I'm standing in the driveway looking at you like this. Why'd you have a bad day? Why'd you drop this box? Why'd you do this? Why'd you hit that? You know? Don't you think I asked myself that a hundred times before I saw you standing in the driveway? And he's like, Yeah. I'm like, okay. It's I just want that dad to know that. And something that I started telling my dad this year was when he would kind of get onto me after a bad weekend or whatever, I would tell him, like, hey, if you start caring about this more than I start caring about this, then we're doing it wrong. Cause nobody cares about my batting average more than I care about my batting. Like I told him, I know you love me, I know mom loves me, I know my teammates want to see me s succeed. But nobody in the world wants to see us have a better batting average, a better stats than us. Cause we're in the box. Those are our numbers. So when when success rates drop and Dads are coming at you with questions and questions. Just tell those dads, take a step back and maybe go a different route. Because all those questions that they're hounding us with, we're already hounding ourselves about. And we're trying to pr it's just I tell my dad that now, you know, if you had a bad day at work and I knew you had a bad day at work and I was waiting on you, it's just it doesn't make that bad day. It makes the bad day worse. And even

Bobby Minor: Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: if we're playing a game, it's the same thing. It's still life to us. So

Bobby Minor: That's good.

Jorden Hussein: That would be my analogy, is just it's it's simple. I mean, that we're trying our best. Everybody's trying their best at everything they do. And when we mess up, we know we mess up. So

Bobby Minor: Yeah. Hope parents out there listening to that. So how did you go from Indie Ball to the party animals? From Indie Ball to banana ball? Kind of walk like just walk walk me through how that whole thing happened.

Jorden Hussein: Yeah, I was I got to play a short stint in the Frontier League after a little rock. got released, got asked to come back, but then the manager didn't re-sign, so got released, went to the US PBL in Detroit, Michigan. smaller pro league out there. had a hamstring injury the day before opening day. Missed the first two weeks of the year. Then I came back and I was playing really good ball. Made the All-Star game, started at shortstop in the All-Star game that year. And then in between contracts, I was gonna end up just going back to that league. if the Pioneer League or somebody didn't call me. and the first call that I got that offseason was from the party animals to come come to a tryout in Arlington at the Rangers Youth Academy.

Bobby Minor: Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: And I was kind of like listening to the spiel from the bananas recruiter. His name's Barry Aldridge, just kinda like talking to me about all this stuff. And I was like, all right, well, you know, I'll I don't really dance or do any of that, but I appreciate it. I'll get back with y'all. And I went into the living room and my parents again, they were like, Who did you who was that? And I was like, The bananas or somebody. They want me to come to a tryout. And they were like, Sweet, when is it? Like, when are you going? And I was like, I told them I wasn't going. And my dad was like, Well, you don't have a job. You don't have money. You still live in our house. How are you going to turn down a job offer you don't have a job? And I was like, All right, I'll be back. Went back and called them and I was like, hey, y'all said Arlington this day? All right, sweet, I'll be there. And I I went and got to the tryout and I had no these these dudes showed up in costumes. These dudes showed up dancing. I showed up with a dip in with my shirt tucked in, my hat on, my glasses on the back of my hat, and they were like, What's up, Hussein? First of all, no dip at the facility. Second of all, go back to the truck and like relax a little bit. I was like, All right. So my buddies took me to the truck. They cut the sleeves off my shirt. They made me leave my truck in the hat. And I think I just wore my glass. I just they kind of just made me like less baseball y. And then just went out there and took a bunch of ground balls on turf, which was fun, and just got to I had no idea what I was doing. I mean, I was fielding ground balls and just like trying to go in between the legs and throwing but I was just really trying to showcase my baseball ability and I think they saw that and they were kinda like, Hey, we can work with you and ended up signing with the party animals that year. So

Bobby Minor: So okay, scale of one to scale one to ten, how do you rate your dancing skills?

Jorden Hussein: I give my s if I had to rate myself, I'd say a three or four. Other people would probably give me more. They say that I my teammates think that I can dance. I just don't like to it. I think that's what it is. I just I just don't have that that about me, that character about me to go out there and do it. But I'm getting better each day, I guess. I can't play ball,

Bobby Minor: So

Jorden Hussein: so I'm gonna have to start doing something.

Bobby Minor: Yeah, well that that's tr yeah. Well you'll you'll be back out there. So

Jorden Hussein: Yeah.

Bobby Minor: so are are there any hopes at all of finding your way back I don't wanna say I mean not real baseball. That's I don't wanna I don't wanna say it

Jorden Hussein: Yeah.

Bobby Minor: like that. But you know what I mean to I'd say to organized baseball or traditional baseball.

Jorden Hussein: honestly not at all, man. I mean

Bobby Minor: Okay.

Jorden Hussein: I my biggest thing was just to to try to play the game as long as I possibly could. I know I'm not technically playing baseball, I'm playing banana ball, but I still get to go out there and showcase. I think banana ball even I I hate to say it, banana ball has I don't want to say treated me better 'cause baseball has done so much for me and and has got me crazy places, but I think my athletic ability is is able to take me a little bit farther in banana ball. it allows me to shine a little bit more defensively, just things that I get to do. And even offensively, I don't have to go up there and slug these crazy numbers and and struggle to hit a bunch of doubles and keep up with these dudes like I was trying to in Pro Bowl. I was making myself a worse hitter when I got to Pro Bowl because I knew that in Pro Ball you had to hit for power. So I

Bobby Minor: Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: was trying to hit for power and I was trying to do these things and it'll was just making me hit for less contact. but just in banana ball, I've just been rewarded so much. and I'm not talking financially or anything. I'm just talking like I've always loved baseball, but since I started playing banana ball, my love for baseball has spiked again. And I do genuinely feel like I'm six or seven or eight years old, just playing pitch machine. at the Little League, I do feel like a kid as to where I'm a serious competitor. Like, even in Bananaball, there's fans that come up to me like, We wish you were like nice to talk to before the games, but you're just so locked in. I'm like, Yeah, I mean, I am nice to the fans, but that's just who I am. I'm a competitor. So I still

Bobby Minor: Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: get to do that with Bananaball. but after Pro Ball games, man, I'd be beating myself up mentally, just like, you know, just 'cause it was do or die to me. And this is do or die to me. Winning these games are do or die to me, but the fans make it a lot about like it's about the fans and and that aspect. And that's that's allowed me to play better. So I think I'm comfortable where I'm at. I love the Texas Tailgators. I love the squad we got. Couldn't ask for better coaching staff and I'm happy, so

Bobby Minor: So okay, so what would you say to the to the people out there that think that, you know, banana ball is just all all it's like WWE of baseball. It's all scripted. not not trying not trying to burst anybody's bubble and let them know that wrestling

Jorden Hussein: Yeah, sometimes no

Bobby Minor: is fake, that wrestling's fake. But I mean, you know what I mean? like what would like what would you say? Like how much of it's scripted, how much of it is real baseball? do stats matter? You I mean, are y'all really trying to win? Like, walk us through that.

Jorden Hussein: My f my friends and family have to slow me down all the time because when even at at games, when fans make comments about scripts and this and that, I'm like I'm not being hostile. I'm just being me. I'm just being funny. I'm just but I chirp and I'm like, dude, this what I tell people I mean, my best friends that know me, one of my best friends play he's a double A pitcher for the the Pirates, Jacob Dees, right hander pitcher, good arm. When I he found out that I he's a very serious baseball person, just like me. When he found out that I was doing this, he was like, What are you doing? This isn't you. Like this I'm like, I have no idea. All I know is I get to play ball. That's all I get to do. And I I'm gonna I'm gonna try to play ball. I tell those people that doubt us and whatever, just come watch a game because I think my favorite part about a baseball a banana ball game is the big burly dad or the big hard-nosed dad that kind of st looks like my dad or one of these dads that I grew up hanging around, these blue collar dads come up to you after a banana ball game and they're like hand extended and you shake their hand and you're like, Yes, sir. Like I just want to let y'all know y'all are some good ball players and this is real baseball. I mean, there there is stuff that happens. There's scripts and there's dances and things, but the baseball is straight up. Anybody who knows me, anybody who's ever played with me knows how hard I play, knows how competitive I am, knows I want to win everything I do. It's straight up baseball. There's no script about the thing. They don't tell us to strike out. They don't tell us to do anything. We just go out there and try to kill each other, honestly. They hate when I say that, but like I I tell people I don't care to call it Disney ball because y'all can call it Disney ball. People can call it what they want. Because if you come watch me play and my teammates play, we're trying to kill that team in the other dugout and they're trying to kill us. We might be smiling. It might look good. And it's all love, but it's very competitive dudes that are trying to Hit the ball as far as they can. They're running as fast as they can. We're doing yeah. It's legit baseball. so that's why that's another reason why I'm comfortable here. It's I get to compete and I think that's what I love to do is compete. So

Bobby Minor: That's that's really, really cool. So do you think is banana ball here to stay? Is it a fad, a trend? Like what do think?

Jorden Hussein: honestly, man, the first couple of years I was here, I was kind of soaking it all up because I didn't know how long this was gonna last. And since it's become a league this past year, I think we're definitely here to stay. the league blew up this year. We've got Jackie Bradley Jr. playing in center field for the clowns and for the naysayers that said, that's just a publicity stunt. Jackie Bradley Jr.'s surely not gonna play 60 games this year. Well, he did. And he balled out. And we had to compete against him. And for the triple A guys that came in and these double A guys that came in and people were like, They're not gonna play all year, they did and they competed. We're playing with these p these dudes are here to compete. it's definitely here to stay, man. We have we have a lot of good people here. we have a lot of good athletes that are bought in. You have people like Jackie Bradley Jr., Shane Victorino coaching a team here, Ryan Howard. Like there's just there's there's becoming too many baseball people here that that are bought in and and see that it I mean, those guys were the best competitors in the world. And you're telling me they're here, there's obviously something that's there's it's not too bad here. So I think it is here to stay. And I wouldn't mind it at all.

Bobby Minor: That's awesome. And I know, you know, the bananas were just here in Dallas Fort Worth this past weekend. I didn't get to go to the games because I was at an event at the Field of Dreams, which was which was really, really cool. But so I've seen a lot of the a lot of the clips on you know on Instagram, but like, you know, Raphael Palmero, Josh Hamilton, Prince Fielder. You know, all those guys coming and making appearances and everything. Those are all pretty legit baseball guys. I d I doubt you know what I mean? Like they wouldn't associate with something that I you know, they weren't on board with. And I it's crazy to me, 'cause like the here's what's really cool. I'll say this. It's not just about the bananas anymore. You have, you know, teams like the Telgators and the Clowns and other teams that are filling stadiums without the bananas. And I think that's really kind of a you know, testament to how th how this is growing and the success of it and

Jorden Hussein: And it it it goes back to like I mean, those stadiums are selling out because it is entertain there are entertaining things happening throughout the stadium. There's there's you know fire and waterworks and all kinds of cool things that are happening and dancers and singers and stuff, but the there's a lot of freaking baseball junkies coming to watch these games and like there's there's good baseball being played. the coconut center fielder is a freaking bodybuilding dude. He's huge. He can do backflips. He can steal bases. He can hit homers. He's a freak of an athlete, division one baseball player. Like we have dudes on every team, all over the field that make really entertaining plays all game long. so I I definitely think it's here to stay. Yeah, these these stadiums are packed and I they're packed for a reason. So and th those guys aren't gonna they're not gonna buy in Prince Fielder those people aren't gonna buy, especially the Josh Hamilton and Prince Fielder are too pretty.

Bobby Minor: Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: pretty serious baseball players and seeing them

Bobby Minor: Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: this weekend this was like, Wow, yeah, we're doing cool things so

Bobby Minor: I saw I saw a picture online that was the pregame stuff outside at you know Globe Live and there were so many people there. I thought this has gotta be AI. Like this could not be a real picture, but it was just crazy. And I know down at Kyle Field, when y'all did the you know, when the bananas played at Texas A and you know, the crowd down there was crazy. have you faced Fisher Pollerdorf from the Clowns before?

Jorden Hussein: Have I faced I don't think I've got to face him yet, honestly. He's he's hit a couple

Bobby Minor: Okay. I think I guess he's a knuckleballer.

Jorden Hussein: he's hit a couple line drives over my head this year. He's got a couple line drives right over shortstop, which is fine. It's always fun to watch him hit, so. Yeah.

Bobby Minor: Yeah, he's he's a good ball player. He he him he's a year he graduated a year after my son, but they played against each other in high school playoffs here in Dallas Fort Worth, and then they both played played for the same travel organization, scout teams a year apart. what would you so what would you tell the parent whose son gets a baseball opportunity that looks vastly different than what they'd hoped for?

Jorden Hussein: every opportunity is a great opportunity. I always hear people say every opportunity is a good opportunity. And I always try to correct them and say that every opportunity is a great opportunity. you know, takes me back to like s like the division one thing. Of course I wanted to go play division one baseball. and if Texas State or somebody would have called, there would have been thoughts, you know, mid-major, there would have been thoughts in the back of my head about doing it, but For the parent, they you know that they don't get what they hope for. take that opportunity, I guess. I'm trying to think of what I would have done. I'm trying to use an analogy, but can you repeat the question for me, please?

Bobby Minor: Yeah, well, I was just saying, like, you know, what would you say to the parent whose son gets a baseball opportunity that looks different

Jorden Hussein: Okay.

Bobby Minor: than what they had hoped for? I I'll tell you, you know, a great example. So this is another good example, because you mentioned Texas Southern earlier. So, you know, let's say like their dream is to go play for Texas AM, but you have a couple of HBCUs that are stuck still D1 that really want their son.

Jorden Hussein: Yeah. if that's your opportunity, then take that opportunity. it's kinda like I like my my my dad said, you don't have a job right now, you don't have any income. Why are you turning down a job? It's like you shouldn't turn down any opportunity if you've got nothing on your plate. so any opportunity that you get is a great opportunity, even if it isn't that Texas AM that you're looking for. and for the parents, I think the best thing to do is just Even if it isn't what the parents want, and that's not what they want to go tell their their friends, you know, my son signed here instead of A They need to be their their son's biggest fan. their big but takes me back to you you have to be rational about how good your son is. I'm not sitting here telling you to go tell people, my son's a division one signing, he's the best. But you just have to you have to have a parents that support you have to support your kid. you don't want to be the parent that's Man, TSU, that's not that good. That's in your son's ear when he's sitting here. You know, that's a division one opportunity. Every opportunity is a great opportunity. And I guess that would be the advice I have for parents is no matter what the opportunity is. And if you're playing baseball, there's there's a lot of people playing baseball. So take whatever opportunity you can and just run with it. your work ethic and everything else will take you as far as you can go. So

Bobby Minor: Yeah, I think that's great I think that's great advice. And I mean, I you know, like I always tell parents, you wanna go you wanna go where they want your son, you know,

Jorden Hussein: Yeah.

Bobby Minor: and like where they really want him, not just, you know, where they're gonna give him a roster spot, but like where they really, really, really want him. So I wanna go back, I wanna go back to something we were kind of we were kind of talking about a few minutes ago. So like like in banana ball, you've definitely got the entertainment side of it. But like you said, you still gotta feel the ball, you still gotta compete, you still gotta make the plays. So you being like an intense type of player that you are, what have you learned about playing loose while still taking your job seriously?

Jorden Hussein: Yeah, I tell people all the time, I tell our infielders, even other infielders, if when I'm coaching younger infielders mainly, I tell them if I could go back to those two years of indie ball right now and play defense, I might make one error season. Simply because now that I'm here doing tricks and fielding the ball and bouncing the ball and doing all these things that I don't have to do, it makes me realize how much time I have. You know, like. Now it it makes me want to call every high school coach, every college coach, every coach I've ever played for and say, Thank you. I didn't re 'cause I mean Our entire lives, you have time. Slow down. Do like, you know, this coach is trying to slow you down. Slow you. And you're just sitting here like, What? Like you're trying to play fast. You're a young kid trying to play fast. And then the older I get, the more I realize, like I have so much time. So much more thought, bro. I we've been playing this game for so long that our brain knows what's coming. You know, just slow down. yeah, that would be if I if I could go back to Pro Bowl right now and just take ground balls, it would be without the tricks, I think I could field pretty dang well. Just Panana Ball has helped me slow down and just slow the game down in so many ways. Just the atmosphere, the entertainment that they rely on you to do during the plays and everything else is just like, man, I'm doing all this and I'm having success. I used to just stand here at shortstop like this while the pitcher was off, throw a pitch, walk the back of the mound a couple of times, throw the rosin, like you don't realize how much time you ha you have in between pitches and how much time you have on that six three easy ground ball that I rushed a hundred times in college, you know. I'd I'd freaking boot behind me and I'd look up and the runners halfway and I'm like, dang, I had a lot of time. I knew I had a lot of time. Now I know how much time I have because I'm doing something harder. so that would be it there.

Bobby Minor: that's good stuff. So All right, Jordan, I w wanna wrap up with this. We'll finish with something I just call in and out. You being an infielder, very familiar with in and out. It's gonna be four quick questions, kind of rapid fire, you know, rapid fire answers. I always say 15 to 20 seconds, but it you don't have to get hung up on that. But let's just give the parents some good, some good nuggets. So time for a little in and out with Texas tailgators, Jordan Hussein. So I Jordan, first question. What's one thing you wish baseball parents would quit worrying about?

Jorden Hussein: I wish baseball parents would quit worrying about statistics and just let their kids play and and and genuinely enjoy the process of it all. Throw statistics out the window and just enjoy the process of the game.

Bobby Minor: All right, good stuff. What's one question a parent should ask before accepting a roster spot for their son?

Jorden Hussein: Can I pass this one?

Bobby Minor: You can pass. You can pass. that's all right. Hey, you're the first person that's ever passed on one, so but that's all right. We're gonna pass on that one.

Jorden Hussein: I didn't I didn't know if I had fifteen seconds to answer. I didn't want to kill it.

Bobby Minor: no, no, no, no. If you we can come back to it. So third question.

Jorden Hussein: Okay. Yeah.

Bobby Minor: So third question. After a bad game, would you rather your parents talk baseball or just let you bring it up when you're ready?

Jorden Hussein: for me, I'd rather my parents talk baseball. And I think honestly, if that's what we're playing is baseball and and that's it's right there in front of your face. If you had a bad game, talk it out and once you're done talking about it, that's it. Forget it to the past, focus on the next game. I think that's the easiest way to do it. Talk it out and get it over with.

Bobby Minor: Good stuff. All right, last question. Here's the slow roller. You can go back in time. What's something that you tell your high school self that a player listening right now needs to hear?

Jorden Hussein: Again, enjoy the process. I was a kid that was wrapped up in everything else, all the time and trying to do what everybody else was doing in the travel ball scene and what gloves and bats and everything else. Enjoy the process, work hard and and everything falls into place and all that gear'll come so in due time. So

Bobby Minor: All right, good stuff. All right, that was in and out with Jordan Hussein. All right, Jordan, last question, and then we're gonna wrap everything up. whether it's as a player or a fan, what's your all-time favorite baseball memory?

Jorden Hussein: my so far I was actually watching the video today. It's when I won the region championship in junior college. we were at Missouri Southern State University in Joplin, Missouri, and we won the junior college. we won our region. And that was a really special team, the hardest working team I've ever been a part of, the grittiest team I've ever been a part of, and maybe the most talented team. So winning winning with those guys my sophomore year was probably the coolest moment of my life.

Bobby Minor: Yeah, no doubt. Super exciting. Okay, I lied. One last question. I forgot that I was going to ask you. I ask everybody now. best baseball movie.

Jorden Hussein: I I I like Moneyball 'cause it's it's a it's a it's a real story, so I I

Bobby Minor: Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: enjoy the the reality of it.

Bobby Minor: All right. Moneyball's a good one. except Bull Durham's my favorite.

Jorden Hussein: Yeah. Everybody says Bulder. I think I'm one of like the f one of the baseball guys and I I

Bobby Minor: Yeah.

Jorden Hussein: think I've seen it a couple of times, but I I don't know. I can't quote it like a bunch of baseball guys can.

Bobby Minor: Yeah, it there's there's a lot of great quotes in there. and

Jorden Hussein: yeah.

Bobby Minor: I gotta say now field of dreams because I literally was on the movie set this past weekend. So that was a pretty cool experience. Yeah, well we we

Jorden Hussein: Is that where y'all played? Okay.

Bobby Minor: did some stuff there and then we actually played our global softball game on the MLB field. So

Jorden Hussein: That's sweet.

Bobby Minor: but I got to walk out of the corn with my wife recording video. So all right,

Jorden Hussein: There go. There you go.

Bobby Minor: Jordan. So for anybody out there that wants to follow your journey on social media, where can they follow you?

Jorden Hussein: Instagram and TikTok I got Jordan Hussein five everywhere, Facebook. So that's where you can find me. I post nothing but outdoors and baseball. Come see me.

Bobby Minor: All right, yeah, you look like you had a good time hunting and fishing here recently.

Jorden Hussein: yeah.

Bobby Minor: So we'll have to go there and check that out. So all right, Jordan, man, I really appreciate it. Good luck. Good luck in your rehab. Hopefully we'll see you out there, you know, next summer, back out there doing your

Jorden Hussein: So

Bobby Minor: thing, man. But I really appreciate you taking the time.

Jorden Hussein: Yes, sir. Thank you, Bobby, very much. Thank you for having me.