The summer after Porter Clayton’s junior year of high school, a Baltimore Orioles scout posed a hypothetical question. If given the choice between a $3 million signing bonus and serving a mission for your church, which are you picking?
“Without hesitation he says, ‘A mission,’” recalls his father, Troy Clayton.
Since he was a young boy, Clayton has told everyone that his two dreams are to play professional baseball and serve a mission for his church. His passion for baseball is exceeded only by his devotion to his faith. That was exhibited after his freshman season at the University of Oregon when he chose to spend two years in Houston, Texas serving his mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“The conversation that we had was, ‘You need to understand that by making this decision to serve a mission, you may never throw another pitch competitively,’” Troy said.