Etowah Grad Named Gatorade Georgia Baseball Player of the Year

WOODSTOCK, GA -- An Etowah High School graduate has garnered a prestigious honor for his athletic as well as academic achievements.

The Gatorade Company has named Drew Waters the 2016-17 Gatorade Georgia Baseball Player of the Year. Waters, the first Gatorade Georgia Baseball Player of the Year to be chosen from Etowah in the award’s 32-year history, is now a finalist for the Gatorade National Baseball Player of the Year honor.

The award, which has been won at the state level by players including Derek Jeter, Jon Lester, David Price and Clayton Kershaw, recognizes outstanding athletic excellence, high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character on and off the field.

As the state's player of the year, Waters will now have the opportunity to choose a local or national youth sports organization to receive a $1,000 grant as part of the Gatorade Play It Forward program.

As an outfielder, Waters led the Eagles to a 26-16 record and the Class AAAAAAA state championship title, batting .494 with 13 home runs, 35 RBI and 43 runs scored through 42 games, with a 1.126 slugging percentage.

Waters, who earned a 92.1 grade point average in the classroom before graduating last week, volunteered for Goshen Valley Boys Ranch and Never Alone Food & Clothing Outreach Center, and helped raise more than $12,000 for a family whose son was diagnosed with a brain tumor.

Waters has signed a letter of intent to play baseball on scholarship at the University of Georgia this fall, but is projected as an early round selection in next month's Major League Baseball draft. He is ranked as the nation’s No. 11 recruit in the class of 2017 by Perfect Game and No. 33 by Baseball America.

Photo: Drew Waters. Credit: Cherokee County School District