Please tell us more about yourself.
I was actually born in San Francisco, although I only lived there for the first year of my life. Eventually we moved to Washington State, and then to the amazing South, where I spent most of my youth growing up in Peachtree City, Georgia (the land of the golf carts). I attended Starrs’ Mill High School, where I was captain of the baseball team and played basketball as well. I went on to play college baseball at D-1 Birmingham-Southern in Alabama for 3 years, followed by a year at D-1 Lipscomb University in Nashville, TN. I was captain of the baseball team, and was fortunate enough to get drafted by the Giants in the 25th round of the 2007 MLB draft.
My love for acting and film didn’t really become apparent to me until I started studying it more in the off-season after my rookie season with the S.F. Giants.
Tell us about your experience filming Moneyball and working with Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill.
It was nothing but an amazing blessing and opportunity of a lifetime to work with that cast. Brad is such a stand up guy, and extremely down to earth for the position he was in. Spending two months of my time with him, we were able to get to know one another a little better, and had a great time on set, and at both of the premieres of the film. To step up the acting game to that level after only 6 months of living in L.A. was something I can’t explain. It has truly “boosted” my career onto levels that I probably wouldn’t have seen so quickly if I hadn’t been thrown into that successful environment from the get-go. I can’t thank Brad, Brennett Miller, Francine Maisler, and Sony for signing off on my talent and ability to play the role of Chad Bradford. I’ll forever be grateful.
Are you working on anything now?
I just booked a role on the show NASHVILLE. I really couldn’t be more happy about that because I love the city, and I really love the show too. It is one of the few I have been able to keep up with since it started earlier last year. Excited to get back to the town I love and be in what I believe will be an iconic show.
I’m also working on producing a host of films. The film I’m working most closely with is about Don Meyer. He is the most winning NCAA Men’s basketball coach of all time. I’ve been working closely with the entire basketball community, and the support has been wonderful. His story is truly incredible, as he won the ESPY award for perseverance back in 2009. If you don’t know much about him, just look him up on YouTube or online. The man’s story needs to be told, and I take much pride in having the opportunity to be the one to do it!
What was your memories of playing Minor league baseball? Your Salem-Keizer card is one of my favorites.
I loved playing in the Minors and being on the road with all the guys. You build friendships that will never go away, even though you are all competing against one another. For all of us, to live out our childhood dream of playing professional baseball was something that we can always take with us, and it was truly something to see that dream come to fruition with all of the hard work put in.
Playing in Salem-Keizer was wonderful. We had a great team, and I think it was one of the best places to play in the Northwest League. I still remember the day we took those pictures for our baseball cards. I figured I should probably have a card that would “stand out”, so I made it a nice live action shot with some dramatic features. I hope you put it up with the blog!
Who influenced you growing up?
My parents had and always will have a great influence on my life. They have always been there for me and supported me in everything I have done. I was very fortunate to have such a support team in my life that allowed me to pursue things in my life I was passionate about. That support has not left me, although it comes in different forms now than it did then.
As far as people outside of my parents, my coaches at Birmingham-Southern and Lipscomb University were great influences. Coach Brian Shoop at Birmingham-Southern had more of an influence on me than I realized at the time. He definitely set me on a path that would steer me toward success on and off the field. I’ve been fortunate to have a number of mentor’s in my life throughout all of my levels of schooling, athletics, and the entertainment industry.
If a player tests positive for PEDs in their career should the be eligible for induction into the Hall of Fame?
This is always a tough question to answer, and I’ve been back and forth on the matter. Personally, I know that I didn’t participate in any PED’s for my career, and that may or may not have cut my career shorter than those who did take PED’s. I’ll never really know for sure, but I can always walk away knowing that I didn’t cheat.
I do believe that the player who doesn’t use PED’s should definitely be put higher on the list than a player does use PED’s in terms of getting into the HOF. Breaking the rules of the game is cheating…and cheating is cheating, there is no way around that. However, a player like Barry Bonds, for example, is Hall of Fame caliber with or without the PED’s. If anything, I believe that they should be allowed in the hall of fame, but with the infamous asterisk (*) next to their name.
Casey, thanks for taking time. Check out Casey’s website. www.TheCaseyBond.com