A's sign guy who hit 96 mph during in-stadium pitch-speed challenge

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There's shooting your shot for a job on Twitter, but what about pitching your pitch? That appears to have worked for A's free-agent signing Nathan Patterson.

Patterson signed a minor league contract with Oakland on Thursday, just 17 days after his brother tweeted a video of him hitting 96 mph at a speed pitch challenge during a Colorado Rockies game at Coors Field. 

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“How can you not be romantic about baseball” -Billy Beane Words cannot describe this feeling and I cannot thank everyone enough who has been part of this journey so far!My family has given me nothing but constant love and support throughout the last 9 months as I pursue a dream of mine that I’ve had since I was a little kid. It’s been a roller coaster to get here with many challenges and overcoming adversity.I’m grateful for all the trainers, coaches, friends, @rsrbaseball and everyone else who has supported me thus far! And for those who tell you that you can’t achieve your dreams, use that as fuel to work even harder. Because those people are the ones that settle.I’m grateful for the @athletics organization for giving me this opportunity!This story is not over. It is not the beginning. I am writing the next chapters and excited for this journey! Time to focus even more, work even harder, and it all starts with your mindset. Go after your dreams and make them a reality!

A post shared by Nathan Patterson (@njpatterson12) on Aug 1, 2019 at 2:10pm PDT

While Patterson might have gone viral within the last two weeks, he seems to have been working at this for quite some time. Since January, he has posted footage on Instagram and Twitter of himself training at Parker Sports Performance in Nashville, Tennessee, and Patterson tweeted in June that he topped out at 95 mph in a game. 

[RELATED: How Chapman changed fortunes vs. Brewers' Hader in A's win]

Looking for market inefficiencies has been in the A's DNA since "Moneyball," but this feels more like something out of "The Rookie." Give or take a few years, at least, since Patterson's Facebook page lists him as 23 years old. 

Of course, Patterson's story by itself has the makings of a true-to-life tale. He surely hopes signing Thursday is just the beginning.

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