Season 24 of “Dancing With The Stars” is airing on ABC this spring and David Ross will be hitting the dance floor with Lindsay Arnold. Ross is likely a familiar name to baseball fans, but he may not be all that well-known to “DWTS” viewers. What do people need to know about this contestant?
As MLB notes, David Ross recently retired from playing professional baseball, having played catcher for the past 14 years professionally. He started his professional Major League Baseball career with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2002 and was with the Boston Red Sox twice.
This new “Dancing With the Stars” contestant wrapped up his catching days with the Chicago Cubs, helping them win their recent buzzworthy World Series last fall.
The “DWTS” Season 24 contestant has three kids, MLB notes, and he detailed that getting the chance to spend more time with them was part of his decision to retire this past year. He has two daughters named Landri and Harper along with a son named Cole, and his wife Hyla is a pediatric ICU nurse. Ross hasn't laid low for long after his baseball retirement, though.
According to CSN Chicago, the “Dancing With the Stars” contestant recently took on a gig as a special assistant to baseball operations for the Chicago Cubs, and he'll also be working with ESPN to do some analysis on “SportsCenter.” Interestingly, the 40-year-old is apparently the first baseball player to tackle “DWTS.” The show has seen plenty of Olympians and football players, as well as athletes from a few other sports, but David is the first to come from the MLB.
Ross will dance with Lindsay Arnold in her fifth season as a pro on “Dancing With the Stars.” Lindsay's placed third on “DWTS” in two different seasons, last fall with Calvin Johnson and in Season 21 with Alek Skarlatos. She also placed fourth with Wanya Morris last year and ended up in eighth place in her debut with Victor Ortiz.
Could David Ross and Lindsay Arnold take home the mirror-ball trophy this spring on “DWTS”? There definitely is a lot of stiff competition in Season 24 of “Dancing With the Stars,” so they certainly have their work cut out for them. However, David and Lindsay's fans are anxious to cheer them on and they can vote for “Team Lady and the Gramp” by calling 1-800-868-3404.