Takedown Report

Phillies catcher Realmuto still credits his wrestling roots

By Bryan Van Kley

Somehow, one of the best athletes to come out of Oklahoma’s famous Smith family quit the sport of wrestling to go out for basketball … and lived to tell about it. 

This is the same Smith family of 10 children who most wrestling people know quite well. The family included four boys: six-time Olympic/World champion John, who coaches at Oklahoma State, four-time NCAA champ Pat, National Wrestling Hall of Fame director Lee Roy and Mark, a two-time All-American. 

But this particular athlete, who “jumped ship” from wrestling for a brief time for the court, has done OK for himself. 

Meet All-Star catcher J.T. Realmuto.

This column appeared in the November issue of WIN Magazine. Click on the cover to subscribe to WIN.

Statistically, Realmuto ranks as one of the best catchers in Major League Baseball. And, he said he owes much of who he is as an athlete to his time as a wrestler. Growing up in Del City, Okla., Realmuto is the nephew of the four well-known Smith uncles. His mom Margaret is one of the six girls from the group of 10 kids. 

Wrestling was Realmuto’s first sport. He started at the age of five or six and wrestled all the way through eighth or ninth grade on the club level. 

However, it was in seventh grade when his family moved 15 minutes to the Carl Albert High School district, that Realmuto gave up junior high wrestling to play basketball since that’s what “all” his friends were doing. 

“I’m about the only boy in the family who got out of the wrestling world. They shunned me away for little bit,” Realmuto said with a laugh. “I still regret not wrestling through high school.” … rest of story at WIN-magazine.com/2022/11/01/phillies-catcher-realmuto-still-credits-his-wrestling-roots

November 4, 2022 - Posted by The TakeDown Report | Uncategorized