Champions' TriBUne Archive

By: Josh Bissonette
 
Champions' TriBUne is a special feature through Baylor Athletics that will give you the student-athlete's perspective and tell their story in their voice. Josh Bissonette is a three-year starter at second base and shortstop who hit .269 last season with a career-high seven homers and 39 RBI, helping the baseball team make its second straight NCAA regional. A native of Anaheim Hills, Calif., Josh traveled on the road with his dad, Matt Bissonette, who has been a bass player for David Lee Roth, Rick Springfield and currently Elton John:

Basically, at an early age, my dad tried a bunch of different instruments. But, his mom was the one who gave him a bass and said, "Hey, learn this." If you know anything about music, bass players aren't really the center of the stage, they aren't really the type of guys who get all the attention. But, without a bass player, you don't have a band.
 
So, just seeing the way that my dad has learned how to play bass, how to stand out in the music industry, because it's a brutal industry, but just his ability to learn and to stay with it is definitely something that's inspiring to me. Whether that's in music or baseball, just his knack for wanting to perfect something was definitely passed on to me.
 
Since I was home-schooled until high school, I was able to travel a ton with my dad. And while he was on the road, we were actually able to visit all 30 MLB stadiums. That's why I fell in love with the game at such an early age. Just seeing big-leaguers at a young age, getting to meet people and just seeing games and everything, it's definitely influenced me to where my passion for the game is now. I think it's one of the greatest things that's ever happened to me, because without it, I don't think I would have the love for the game that I do now.
 
My parents said that as soon as I picked up a bat, they knew that's where my future was going to take me. They said it just looked different. Growing up, I had played a lot of tennis and golf. Tennis is really good for your hand-eye coordination and agility. But, my parents said they could just tell at a young age that baseball is what I really loved, just because i kept telling them to throw me the ball. They would get so tired of it. We had holes in the house just from me throwing baseballs back and forth.
 
I started off playing in the Anaheim Little League, which was literally right down the street from my house. When I was around 9 or 10, I joined a team from the Compton area called the South Gate Democrats. It's funny, because our whole family is just so conservative. There was a lot of diversity on that team compared to other teams I had been a part of.  
 
What I thought was cool at that age was they didn't care what I looked like, I didn't care what they looked like. It was just about baseball and baseball only. I think baseball is a simple game with a simple language. If you can play, it doesn't matter what you look like or who you are, you're going to find somebody.
 
The drives there got to be a little too much, so I had to find a team a little closer to home. I played with the So Cal Birds, and that's where I met Mike Cosgrove, who was actually one of the actors in the movie, Moneyball. He had played a couple years in the majors, and he helped me out a lot.
 
You're going to think I'm crazy, but my parents wanted me to do the whole ambidextrous thing. They saw me swing left-handed when I was around 9 or 10, just playing around, and they were like, "You should try that." I was actually a switch-hitter for a couple years, even during high school. My freshman and JV years, I actually had an ambidextrous glove so that I could throw both ways on the mound. That lasted a couple years, and then I realized that my arm strength wasn't near where it needed to be from the right side, so I stopped pitching and just stuck with the infield.
 
I was a shortstop pretty much my whole life until my junior year of high school. I had the honor of playing second base with a guy named Josh Morgan, who was a third-round pick by the Texas Rangers out of high school. He's at Double-A Frisco now, and they turned him into a catcher because he's gotten so big and they realized that he had such good hands and really good instincts. I learned a lot from him, and then my senior year I ended up moving over to short and didn't really get any good looks or opportunities to go play.
 
Originally, I signed with the University of Pacific out of Stockton, California, but then their coaching staff ended up getting fired in late July. It was about three weeks before school started, and I was about to go to a junior college when I randomly got a call from Coach (Jon) Strauss. He said it was their first year at Baylor and they needed one more middle infielder. Would I want to take a visit? Never in my life did I think I would leave California, just because I was so acclimated to the culture. But then once I got here, I realized it was the best decision I've ever made.
 
I'm pretty sure I was in the same position as the Baylor coaches. Obviously, they knew they had a job here, but it was probably so new to them that it made me feel a bit more comfortable knowing that I was going to be a part of that transition with them. And not once since I've been here have I ever felt scared or nervous to ask them about anything.


 
Coming in that freshman year, I didn't really have any expectations. I was just so fortunate that I could even come to school here. Baseball was a plus. I came in here weighing like 155 pounds, and just put all my trust in the coaching staff and the strength program and gained 15 pounds that first fall.
 
My glove was always something that was good for me, but the hitting was always a question mark. What kept me in the lineup was my ability to do whatever I could to help the team win, whether that was hit-and-run, drag bunts, push bunts, all the small things. That was why I was in the lineup every day my freshman year.
 
Anytime I've had to deal with adversity, it's never knocked me down. It's always just encouraged me to keep going and keep getting stronger. Once I got here, I knew the opportunity was in front of me, and I just needed to work my butt off and do whatever I can to be between the lines. And fortunately, I got that opportunity.
 
When I found out that I was moving from shortstop to second base my sophomore year, I thought of it as a huge opportunity for me to stand out and be one of the best second baseman in the league. I've always been the type of guy that never lets my ego get in the way. Some guys can look at that and say, "Wow! I'm moving from shortstop to second, do they not think I'm that good?" So, I never looked at it as a downgrade, I just looked at it as an opportunity to stand out and be one of the best.
 
After my freshman year, I got sent to go play baseball in Alaska, which is the farthest thing from home. But, I think that was the greatest thing for me, because I really needed to grow up and learn a lot of things on my own. My host family didn't even have a car and they were vegans, so I had to really do a lot of things on my own up there. Without going up there, I don't think I would be the person I am now.


 
Winning the Big 12 Championship last year was unreal. I look up at that big picture every day. It's literally right above my locker. I just look at how happy we are, and I'm like, "Dang, I want to do that again."
 
That championship game against TCU was the craziest game of my life. I remember going to the bathroom by myself in the eighth inning, and I got on my knees and prayed. I said, "God, I know I probably shouldn't be praying for a win here, but just give us peace and help us relax and not get too caught up in this environment that is so hectic. Just help us realize that this is same game we've been playing our lives."
 
You can't explain how we won that game. Back-to-back at-bats, outfielders losing the ball in the sun. it was almost as if we were meant to win that game. That, and Tucker Cascadden's walk-off grand slam against A&M, are the two highlights of my life playing baseball, for sure.

This year, we're not settling for anything less than going to Omaha for the World Series. Last year, we would get in the huddle and say, "Big 12 Champs!" That was our goal, and we did it. It's almost like speaking things into existence. This year, it's "Natty Champs!" We have our entire starting lineup back with our same three returning starters, and we have a really good, young bullpen that can come in and contribute. We definitely have the ability to go to Omaha and win it all. I think if there's any year to do it, this is the year to do it.
 
Right now, playing pro baseball is Plan A, and that's really the only plan. My main focus is helping this team win and get to Omaha and win a championship. And I believe if I can contribute and do what I can to be a leader, then those outside influences like getting drafted will kind of fall into place.
 
If you would have asked me five years ago, "Hey, what do you want to go do?" I never would have thought Baylor would be in my future. That's just kind of crazy how God works. One door closes, then another one opens. You get this new opportunity. And ever since I've been here, there hasn't been a single time where I've thought, "This isn't where I want to be." This whole experience has been nothing but positive, and the people here are really cool.



Previous Champions' TriBUne Features
Men's Tennis - Will Little (Jan. 31, 2019)
Men's Basketball - King McClure (Jan. 17, 2019)
Women's Basketball - Chloe Jackson (Jan. 3, 2019)
Football - Blake Blackmar (Dec. 13, 2018)
Volleyball - Braya Hunt (Nov. 29, 2018)
Soccer - Jackie Crowther (Nov. 16, 2018)
Cross Country - Alison Andrews-Paul (Nov. 8, 2018)
Football- Ira Lewis (Nov. 6, 2018)