An attentive silence gripped the Franklin crowd as Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred made an announcement Sunday.
“With the third pick of the 2023 MLB Draft, the Detroit Tigers select Max Clark, an outfielder from Franklin Community High School in Franklin, Indiana,” Manfred said on ESPN.
With that sentence, the silence turned into jubilation for the hundreds of people who attended the MLB Draft Party at the DriveHubler.com Amphitheater. A moment anticipated for years became a reality, as Clark became the highest-drafted athlete in Johnson County history, and the first high school player selected in this year’s draft.
In anticipation of the draft, city officials had organized a watch party at the amphitheater, complete with food trucks from local restaurants. Although he had the option to attend the draft in Seattle, where it took place, Clark decided to watch it from his Franklin home, before traveling by police escort in a limo past Franklin Community High School and to the amphitheater to greet a crowd of dozens of kids waiting for autographs and hundreds of cheering community members behind them.
“That’s my everything. I mean, they are out here just supporting the absolute heck out of me giving everything they can just to put Franklin Community on the map again,” Clark said. “It was my goal and my want to get back to those kids. I’ve had an absolute blast here tonight. It’s been absolutely unreal, so I thank the community and they have been an absolute pleasure.”
Although it was long expected Clark would be drafted, the selection made the magnitude start to sink in for people in attendance, including Rita Holman, principal of Franklin Community Middle School, which Clark attended four years ago.
“I’m super proud of him, happy to be part of his journey, so happy for him and his family, and I can’t wait to see what’s next. It’s very cool and very surreal to be part of this,” Holman said. “Max, when he was in eighth grade, he was voted the top eighth-grade boy in this class. He got to come back as a senior to talk to the student body. It’s great to see it come full circle, knowing what was in his future. They look up to him, it’s neat for our kids and community.”
Clark’s decision to spend the draft in Franklin shows his dedication to his hometown, said David Clendening, superintendent of Franklin Community School Corporation.
“What a great honor for Max, but also for our kids who got the chance to play with him, it’s the memory for a lifetime. Now the people in Detroit will get the chance to see what we have. This kid works hard and the best part is, he gives back. It’ll be fun to watch him,” Clendening said. “He started in Franklin and said ‘this is my home.’ It speaks volumes to his character and integrity. It’s a pleasure to have him with us and be part of our community.”
The community’s anticipation for the draft grew with each passing year. Clark was already a highly-touted prospect entering high school, and accepted an offer at just 14 years old to play baseball at Vanderbilt University if he decided to go to college. But that won’t be necessary. Clark went on a tear during his high school career, winning Indiana’s Gatorade Player of the Year Award three years in a row and gathering national attention from Major League Baseball teams and their scouting departments.
Ryan Feyerabend stepped down as the head coach of the Franklin Community High School baseball team in June, but coached Clark all four years of his high school career.
“His dedication to his team and community has been unmatched,” Feyerabend said. “He’s an extremely hard worker, a great student and just a great kid. Obviously, we knew this day was coming. It’s kind of surreal that the day is finally here and I couldn’t be more excited for him.”
Clark has made a habit of being a role model for younger people who look up to him, sticking around after games to sign autographs for children and posing for photos with them. Just four days before the draft, Clark was still giving back to the community, taking part in a youth baseball camp at Powerhouse Athletics on the east side of Franklin. Franklin Athletic Director Bill Doty has known Clark since he was coaching him in Little League and on travel teams and said that spirit of generosity likely won’t stop anytime soon, even with the fame that awaits him.
“He’s a good friend, a good teammate, he’s good in the classroom, he takes everything seriously and puts a lot into everything, and hopefully kids pay attention to that,” Doty said. “I think he’s proven to kids that dreams can come true. He will inspire youth in this community to chase their dreams. Kids know now that it can be done.”
For Franklin, it is a historic moment. Clark is the first baseball player from the school to be selected in the first round of the draft, and even though he will start his career in Minor League Baseball, he could very well become just the second Franklin player to make the Major Leagues after George Crowe, who had an 11-year career and retired in 1961.
Clark’s selection holds special meaning for the city of Franklin, said Matt Shoup, a Franklin resident whose son plays for Franklin Youth Baseball, a travel team.
“All the work Max put in, it pays off. A once-in-a-generation, once-in-a-lifetime player came through the community. It shows the younger people, ‘shoot for your goals,’” Shoup said. “He loved his hometown. There are 500 people here right now, it tells you how much they back him and how much he loves the community.”
Terry Kinnett, who coaches a team of 11-year-olds for the Franklin Youth Baseball travel team, said Clark has consistently visited his players throughout his time at Franklin schools.
“It’s very impressive how much interest he has in the youth program and the kids. The guy who doesn’t have to be around, he has his own stuff to worry about, but he cares about the community and the kids,” Kinnett said. “It tells the kids, ‘if you work hard and love the game, you can live out your dreams.’”
The night of July 9 will be one the people of Franklin will remember for years to come, and Franklin students, like incoming sophomore Bryan Strathman, will be able to tell people they went to school with Max Clark.
“You have someone so big representing our small town, and, you know, it’s just exciting,” Stratham said. “There’s a lot of kids who look up to him.”
