By Louis Addeo-Weiss
With Major League Baseball’s amateur player draft on the horizon, teams are filled with the excitement of drafting assets they hope will lead them to a World Series championship. The draft, too, fills fans of their respective teams with optimism for a brighter future.
With time, we’ve come to realize that not all glitter turns to gold. On Monday, June 3rd, when MLB Network hosts the first round of the draft, commissioner Rob Manfred will read 32 names, some including the likes of Bobby Witt Jr., C.J. Abrahams, and Nick Lodolo, but alas, not all of these 32 men selected in the first round will see action in a major league game. The likes of Mark Appel, who was taken as the number one overall pick by the Houston Astros in 2012, stepped away from baseball following the 2017 season after five-plus years toying away in the minor leagues.
What history has also taught us though is that baseball is all about finding diamonds in the rough, with the perfect example being Mike Piazza. Piazza, arguably the greatest hitting catcher the sport has ever seen, was a 62nd round pick in 1988 by the Los Angeles Dodgers, done as a favor by manager Tommy Lasorda for Piazza’s father. If there’s one quote that summarizes Mike Piazza, it’d have to be when, during his Hall of Fame speech in 2016, he told a crowd of some 40,000-plus, to “never let your dreams go away,” and if there’s any one person that may be selected in this year’s draft that lives by those words, it would be Nick Marchese, pitcher for the University of North Florida.
Marchese’s passion for the game is what, in his mind, keeps him humble.
When asked what wisdom he would impart onto children interested in taking up the game, Marchese stated, “if you love baseball the way I love baseball, cherish it, because one day your cleats will be taken away from you and there’s nothing you can do about it.”
Were I to be a general manager of a club, the first thing I look for in a player is their character, and Marchese’s words there alone would have me itching to pick him. We’ve seen a myriad of players, from Albert Belle to Jose Canseco, who, as great as they were on the field, their personalities led others to hold strong disdain for them as people off the field, a line I don’t see Marchese succumbing to.
One aspect of Nick’s character I admire is his forthcomingness, particularly regarding his road to where he is now.
“I’ve never been given anything in my life,” says Nick after a long toss session.
“I’ve always had to work hard and grind for what I’ve earned.”
What Marchese has earned is recognition for his performance on the field, which has led to him being scouted by teams such as the Minnesota Twins and St. Louis Cardinals, it is his performance off the field that further reflects the kind of person he is.
A 2018 recipient of the Jeffrey Dow Leadership Award, an award named in honor of a past UNF professor who created various leadership development activities and spurred the expansion of the mentoring program model, Nick recognizes the importance in giving back to his community.
“We are proud of Nick,” said head coach Tim Parenton. “He works very hard, both on and off the field. He is well deserving of the award and is the prime example of a great student-athlete, giving back to the community as well.”
On the field, Marchese’s performance in college can best be described as a slow-but-steady rise to excellence. Originally spending two years at Tallahassee Community College, Marchese pitched well as a freshman, posting a 4-2 record, 3.38 ERA, and tossing two complete games, one of which being a no-hitter, over 37 innings pitched. After pitching to a 4.92 ERA his sophomore year, Marchese transferred to the University of North Florida, playing under newly hired head coach Tim Parenton.
Following his junior year, where he pitched to a 3.92 ERA, Marchese had the best season of his collegiate career as a senior. Working his way into the rotation, Marchese finished the year with a career-best 3.01 ERA in 86.2 innings pitched, 65 strikeouts, and limiting opponents to a .231 batting average. His performance that season earned him ASUN Second Team All-Conference honors, as well as player of the week honors for the week of March 18, 2019.
When asked what he feels led to a surge in his senior year, Marchese attributed it to the low ¾ arm angle he throws with, a habit he developed from his years playing first base at St. Thomas Aquinas High School.
“It has its perks being at a lower arm angle than some guys because every pitch I throw will move in a different direction,” says the right-hander.
From what scouts have seen and from his aforementioned self-awareness, Marchese relies heavily on deception, as he notes he won’t blow it by a ton of hitters.
“I prefer to pitch backward. My fastball is strong but definitely not overpowering….I really like starting hitters off with a slider than resorting to my fastball. I love elevating fastballs to change the hitter’s eye sites.”
Coming out of high school, Marchese’s fastball sat between 84-86 miles per hour. Now, after four years at the college level where he has put on muscle mass and further grown into his 6’4, 210-pound frame, scouts have his fastball clocked as high as 93, though sitting between 89-91.
While, yes, velocity such as that won’t wow many, as it seems most pitchers throw 95-plus nowadays, Marchese could find himself among the likes of the Dodgers Hyun-jin Ryu and the Cubs Kyle Hendricks, both pitchers, who, while not blessed with great velocity, rely on location and trickery as a means of getting big league hitters out.
So far this year, Ryu’s 1.48 ERA leads all of baseball and Hendricks, currently sporting a 3.06 ERA, 145 ERA+, and team-best 70 innings pitched, has been the Cubs best starter in rotation highlighted by veterans Jon Lester, Jose Quintana, and Yu Darvish.
To complement his fastball, Marchese relies on a slider, one which he deems his best pitch, and a change-up which he has tastefully incorporated into his pitch arsenal.
Like Hendricks, Marchese adores the concept of dissecting a hitter’s tendencies.
“Over the years, I’ve really learned to read the hitter’s swing,” says Marchese.
“I think a lot of pitchers lack that and don’t pay great attention to detail. If you already know your opponent’s next move, why would you not counter it?”
Hearing him say this gave the impression that I was talking to 2019’s collegiate equivalent to Greg Maddux, and while it may be too early to forecast a name such as Mad Dog’s on Marchese, he’s shown that baseball is more than just a game of natural ability.
Now, when the draft ends on June 5th, I can guarantee that of the nearly 1300 players who will be selected this year, Nick Marchese will be one of them.
When asked on what it would mean to be drafted, Marchese had this to say.
“Honestly, that would mean the absolute world to me….Nothing would make me more proud as a human than to put a professional jersey on and represent a team.”
For Nick Marchese, baseball is something he has never taken for granted, especially when calling the opportunity to play until age 22 as a “blessing.”
“It’s a kid’s game at heart. Treat it like it,” says Marchese.
“Have fun, play hard, play safe, give everything you have and play the game the right way.”
