Reitz grad, Yankees prospect Elijah Dunham 'Breakout Player of Year' in Arizona Fall League

From a chubby preteen wolfing down Oreos to a rising star in the New York Yankees organization, that’s the amazing saga of ever-improving Elijah Dunham.

“Growing up, I was never the best athlete on any sports team I played on,” said Dunham, named “Breakout Player of the Year” in the Arizona Fall League.

“I was always bigger and slower. My dad (Paul) informed me that if I had any goals of playing sports in the future I would have to work to become a better athlete.”

He had an epiphany at age 13.

“I started taking working out and training extremely seriously because I knew I wanted to play professional sports one day,” Elijah said.

More: Reitz grad Elijah Dunham signs with New York Yankees after going undrafted

A three-sport athlete at Reitz High School, Dunham became a mainstay on Indiana University’s baseball team. Undrafted after MLB’s five mandated rounds, the Yankees scooped up Dunham as a free agent last June.

“Not being drafted in the five-round COVID draft really motivated me,” Dunham said. “I have always been one of the hardest workers wherever I’ve gone and believed I should have been drafted.”

But after falling short, the work became personal.

“From hitting to speed work and everything in between, it was all amplified," he said. "This work and the never-ending belief in myself helped me become the breakout player of the year.”

Dunham hit nine home runs and stole just six bases in 94 games in his career at IU. He began to truly blossom in the New England Collegiate Baseball League, with 13 homers and 18 stolen bases in 73 games in 2020. Dunham had a combined total of 13 homers with 57 runs batted in and 28 stolen bases playing 64 games for High-A Hudson Valley after 29 games at Single-A Tampa last summer.

Where did all the speed and power come from?

“It was just training differently,” said Dunham, a 6-foot, 213-pounder. “I focused on training my body to move quickly and powerfully instead of just being strong.”

In college, he said he was always big into hitting and being strong.

“But over COVID I decided to train more agility and speed work to help me with my athleticism and defense,” Dunham said.

He has made just three errors in 7452/3 innings, playing all three outfield positions. Not bad for someone who began as a first baseman at IU.

Dunham took pride in proving people wrong because he was always doubted.

“But I have realized that I’m not putting in all this work for other people,” he said. “I’m doing this for me and my family. Now people doubting me has just turned into a little extra motivation here and there.”

Dunham, who led the Arizona Fall League with 11 stolen bases in 12 attempts playing for Surprise, was one of two players with at least 10 extra-base hits and five stolen bases. He finished with a slash line of .357/.465/.571, with two homers, three triples and six doubles in 23 games.

Dunham relishes playing into the tradition-rich Yankees’ organization.

“I take a ton of pride wearing their jersey while trying to win for the organization every day,” said Dunham, who was also chosen in the 40th round by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2019 and a third-team all-Big Ten selection. He hit .390 and led the Hoosiers with a .490 on-base percentage as a senior.

Dunham is part of quite the athletic family. Younger brother Isaiah was another multi-sport standout at Reitz who continued his football career as a defensive back at Yale, but is now strictly a student. Moriah is a freshman women's soccer player at Taylor University. Josiah is a sophomore basketball standout at Evansville Christian.

“Without my family I wouldn’t be where I am today,” Elijah said. “Every single day growing up and currently it’s a competition at whatever we do. We push each other every day to become the best version of ourselves mentally and physically.”

Isaiah runs a Parlor Doughnuts in Fort Worth, Texas, flying back and forth to Yale during the semester. Now a senior, he is seeking a degree in economics.

But for older brother Elijah, Oreos and doughnuts are a thing of the past.

Contact Gordon Engelhardt by email at gordon.engelhardt@courierpress.com and follow him on Twitter @EngGordon.

This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Reitz grad Elijah Dunham goes from undrafted free agent to rising star