Bryson Gandy was anxiously watching and waiting to see his name announced as the latest player drafted in Wednesday’s Major League Baseball Draft. With his patience and nerves wearing thin, Gandy’s father raced in with the news that he had been drafted.

The former Charles Henderson Trojan was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 32nd round of the MLB draft.

“I was lying down in my bed just watching the draft tracker,” Gandy said. “I was patiently waiting and I kind of got discouraged because it was getting late. My dad came in the room and said ‘You got drafted’ and we all got excited. A lot of people texted me and told me congratulations.”

Gandy just wrapped up his second year at Wallace Community College and was weighing his options between going to Auburn Montgomery or hopefully getting drafted. On Wednesday afternoon, he got his answer.

“I was putting in work just waiting for this moment,” Gandy said. “My coaches just told me to keep my head on straight and keep my faith and everything will turn out in my favor and it did.”

Gandy attended a showcase put on by the Minnesota Twins where he was able to show off his skills to the scouts.

“They invited me to a showcase to see if they were going to draft me,” Gandy said. “I went down there and I think I did pretty good.”

The Twins looked at Gandy and ultimately liked what they saw.

“They were the only MLB team that was in contact with me,” Gandy said. “I am really thankful for them showing a lot of love and taking a chance on me.”

Gandy grew up in Troy, played at the Troy Sportsplex and later went on to star at Charles Henderson. It was a time that Gandy still thinks about fondly.

“I had a lot of fun with those guys and created a lot of friendships,” Gandy said. “To this day, I still keep in touch with those guys. It was a good process.”

After graduating from Charles Henderson, Gandy went to Wallace Community College. After a slow start to his career, Gandy turned things around during his sophomore season.

“I appreciate coach (Steve) Helms and coach (Brandon) Ware for developing me into the player that I am today,” Gandy said. “It was really a tough road. I started off kind of rocky my freshman year, but that is when I matured into a solid player going into my sophomore year. I started understanding the game more and I was able to break down certain aspects of the game to help me get better.”

Two years ago, Gandy never believed it was even a possibility that he would be drafted by a Major League Baseball team. Now, he turns his sitghts on heading down to Fort Meyers, Florida, where he will begin his career playing with the Miracle.

“Honestly, I did not think that today I would be drafted,” Gandy said. “I was thinking I would be going to a four-year college. I thank God for that. I had plans to go to AUM, but I decided to go ahead and go play for the Twins and be a part of that organization and enjoy the process.”