Tim Tebow to Pursue a Professional Baseball Career After Training for the Past Year

Tim Tebow has been honing his baseball skills at facilities in both Arizona and California

Published on August 9, 2016 12:45 PM

Tim Tebow is eyeing a return to professional sports – but it won’t be in the NFL.

The former quarterback has been working on his baseball skills since last fall, training at facilities in both Arizona and California, and PEOPLE confirms that Tebow is actively working toward a career in the major leagues.

Tebow, 28, has always made it abundantly clear that he is open to new opportunities. After being cut by the Philadelphia Eagles last year, he was optimistic about his future.

“Disappointments come,” he told PEOPLE at the time, “but you can’t dwell on them. You have to look for the next thing that God would have you to do.”

Tebow will be conducting a public workout at the end of the month, and all 30 major league baseball teams will be invited to attend. Tebow hopes to be signed to a roster.

To prepare, he has been working with coaches on his hitting and fielding techniques. According to sources who have seen Tebow play, he is improving dramatically.

But baseball isn’t new to Tebow. He was an all-state player in high school, when he hit .494 for Nease High School in Florida.

The athlete currently works as an on-air sports analyst for the SEC Network, and will continue in that role during his training. He will also continue working with his charity, the Tim Tebow Foundation, which does everything from granting wishes for sick children to organizing proms for people with special needs.

“I’ve always said that everyone should find something greater than themselves,” Tebow told PEOPLE, “and my Foundation is one way for me to do that.”

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Tebow’s football agent, Jimmy Sexton, fully endorses his new direction.

“Obviously, we support Tim in his pursuit of a baseball career, as we have in all his ventures,” Sexton, tells ESPN.

For those close to Tebow, the latest foray comes as no surprise, as he has always kept an open mind about his athletic career.

“I’ve always been one to look to see what God has for me,” Tebow told PEOPLE this spring. “It’s about being open to wherever God leads me. And if I’m supposed to go in another direction from football, I’m open to that.”