What offseason? Jo Adell goes back to school

7:23 AMWhen we last visited Jordon “Jo” Adell, the recent high school graduate was training just outside of Miami on the eve of the 2017 MLB draft. Adell eventually was selected by the Los Angeles Angels with the 10th pick, received a signing bonus worth $4.3 million and had a successful first year of professional baseball, batting a combined .325 as an outfielder in the Arizona and Pioneer leagues.

Adell could have coasted during his offseason, which comes to an end as players begin reporting to spring training this week. Instead Adell, who last year graduated from Ballard High School in Louisville, Kentucky, decided to go back to school.

When his baseball career is over, Adell wants to transition into a career along the path of Shaquille O’Neal, Jalen Rose and Michael Strahan: former athletes who are successful in the media. So he took an Introduction to Communications class at the University of Louisville, one of the many schools that recruited him out of high school.

“Everyone in my family is college-educated: My dad went to North Carolina State, my mom went to North Carolina and my sister at Louisville,” Adell said. “Education for me is important. I wanted to be as well-rounded as possible.”

Adell took the class online, learning about the basics of the discipline. He plans to use some of his downtime each year to take more classes (paid for by MLB) that he hopes will prepare him for his career after baseball.

“I want to have a television show one day, or be in a position where I’m doing postgame interviews for a network,” he said. “Athletes play professional sports for as long as they can, and we all have to hang up our cleats one day. To have a plan beyond baseball is motivation for me.”

Adell’s father had a piece of advice before his son took the class: Don’t overdo it. “He really didn’t want me to be in a position where school was first and baseball was secondary,” Adell said. “I’m just trying to take a load each year that I can handle.”

And he’s gotten a lot of support, especially from his mother, who has been a school principal in Louisville for the past 10 years. “Everyone’s been really supportive,” Adell said. “It’s really been a group effort to help me, and it’s been great.”

Now it’s back to baseball. Pitchers and catchers report to Angels spring training in Tempe, Arizona, on Feb. 13, while position players will be in camp on Feb. 19.

“I’m excited about this season,” Adell said. “This is such a great organization, and I just want to continue to grow so I can reach my full potential.”