John Cotton

John Cotton won a baseball gold medal at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. He was selected by the Cleveland Indians in the 10th round of the 1989 MLB Draft and had a 15-year career in the minor leagues, but he never played in Major League Baseball (MLB).

Cotton was with multiple MLB organizations, including the Indians, San Diego Padres, Detroit Tigers, Chicago White Sox, Chicago Cubs, Colorado Rockies, Montreal Expos, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Pittsburgh Pirates. He played several positions but mostly second base and the outfield.

Cotton played 1,530 games in the minor leagues, compiling a .256 batting average with an OPS of .760 and 190 home runs, as he played for over 20 different teams. He did make it to Triple A ball in 1996-97 and 1999-2001.

After his playing career ended in 2003 Cotton trained to be an emergency medical technician (EMT) but later became a firefighter with the Sugar Land (Texas) Fire Department.