He went to elementary school a short walk from Elk Grove High, where his father, Jeff, coached baseball, so every afternoon Dylan Carlson, not yet 10, toddled over to be around his dad and their California hometown team. A boy among young men, Dylan hopped in the batting cage and followed their lead. He hit off the tee, righthanded, until he spied one of his dad’s players hitting from the opposite side of a tee.
At a time when some kids are held back to be older, bigger, more mature members of their grade, Jeff Carlson pushed his sons forward.