As a high school baseball player, Nick Ciuffreda received a rare opportunity to get tutored by Major League Baseball coaches and be made to feel like he belonged.
The Lawrence High junior enjoyed that experience Jan. 12-14 when he was part of a select group of players from around the country selected to compete in Mesa, Arizona at the Chicago Cubs Spring Training complex. As an Under Armour Preseason All-American, Ciuffreda was mentored by MLB coaches and had the opportunity to showcase his talents in front of scouts from all 30 teams.
“What was really cool was how the big league coaches were very matter-of-fact with us,” he said. “They didn’t treat us like kids, they really just treated us like players who obviously love the game of baseball. I guess that makes it feel like a more genuine experience as they actually focused on coaching us rather than separately feeling like they needed to teach us things. I know when I’m watching MLB games this year and see some of those coaches on the field it will probably hit me a little bit more.”
Ciuffreda was one of approximately 400 players selected to participate, as eight to 10 from each state were chosen. His journey started when Cardinals coach Andrew Septer recommended Ciuffreda for the Under Armour Baseball Factory evaluation at Arm & Hammer Park. He attended the workout prior to a trip to Italy with one of the countless Lawrence High clubs he is in and was impressive enough to receive invitations through his player development coach, Chris Brown, to numerous tournaments. When the offer to play at the Cubs facility arrived, Ciuffreda put it at the top of the list.
Septer could not have been happier for his versatile performer, who plays first base and pitches in addition to his regular position of catcher. He hit over .300 last year for the Cardinals in his first year of varsity.
“He can do it all,” the third-year coach said. “He swings the bat from the left side, which is a huge help. He’s got some power so he helps us offensively. He swung the bat really well for us last year and this year he’s going to be the guy that we hopefully have behind the plate, kind of leading our pitching. He’s a baseball player. He competes.”
He has always wanted to be a baseball player. At age 5, despite being too young for tee-ball, Nick would attend his friends’ games and help out their team just to be part of it all. He joined up the following year and has been playing ever since.
As a member of the Lawrence Little League 12-year-old All-Stars, he helped his team to the District 12 winner’s bracket finals. He moved on to Lawrence Babe Ruth and Lawrence Middle School baseball and, due to an August birthday, played Little League (46/60 pitcher’s mound/base paths), travel ball (50/70) and middle school (60/90) all within the same year. Ciuffreda played in an 11U travel tournament as an 8-yeaer-old with the Central Jersey Lashers, has been with several other travel teams and is now on the Locked In Baseball Expos and being coached by Atlanta Braves scout Chris Bagley.
His travels have taken him to Ripken Stadium in Maryland, the ESPN Zone in Orlando, the Ripken Myrtle Beach Experience and the Music City Classic in the Nashville area.
“And of course,” he said, “the fields in Arizona were spectacular.”
So too, was the experience over Martin Luther King weekend.
On Friday night, Ciuffreda took part in an opening ceremony and met his teammates, who were from New Jersey and New York. The first game was 8 a.m. Saturday—“which didn’t really allow for us to do much bonding as a team before the game, so we really had to be flexible and it really put our leadership abilities to the test.”
In his first at-bat, Ciuffreda stroked a double to take a load of pressure off his shoulders.
“That felt really good and definitely helped me to settle down for the rest of the tournament,” he said. “The count started at 1-1 for every hitter so I knew that being aggressive early was going to be key. I still had to be under control though, so having a solid knock like that helped me to find my groove and settle in for the remainder of the tournament.”
It would actually be his only hit, as he went 1-for-3, but Nick also drew three walks and had an on-base-percentage of .833.
“This tournament showcased a lot of great pitching talent, so there definitely weren’t a lot of opportunities to jump on mistakes,” he said. “After I started off with a double, the pitchers really tried to nibble at the plate and expand the zone, which made for some great battles. I ended up drawing a lot of walks, but overall I feel like those were great successes too. There were a number of pitchers there who are already committed to big Division 1 programs, so I certainly can’t complain about drawing walks against that kind of talent.”
Equally important was his 1.000 fielding percentage, which came while playing first base. Fortunately, he was able to showcase and be filmed as a catcher. That produced positive results, as indicated by the scouting report published by Baseball Factory, which stated:
“Nick is a solid/strong (6’0”/215) LHH catcher who showed well during his time in Arizona. With the bat, this lefty displays an open stance with centered balance. He gets his hands back into a strong launch position and is ready to fire. He squares the ball up with some pop as the ball jumps off of his barrel. Behind the dish, he sits in well with quiet/athletic actions tracking pitches into a soft mitt. He sticks the ball, framing well. Throws to 2B are on a line and accurate with pop times at 2.00. This 2019 grad has upside and should find success as he’s entering his junior season.”
In his own self-assessment, Ciuffreda felt his “performance was pretty good for being an out-of-season kid from the Northeast.” He was, indeed, playing with guys from warm weather states who can hone their craft year-round.
Aside from three games and the showcase, Ciuffreda tried out Easton’s new bats, received an exit velocity reading, and participated in a pro-style skills workout with the MLB coaches. That included proper stretching, measuring several metrics, and taking infield-outfield and batting practice. Sections of the workout were filmed for evaluation and review. At night, he enjoyed NFL playoff football, swam in the pool and visited the Phoenix Zoo, “which was a really cool evening event with the zoo decorated in a ton of lights.”
During the workouts, Ciuffreda worked with coaches from the Rockies, Mariners, Nationals, Orioles, Diamondbacks and Pirates.
“I did not get a chance to catch all of their names,” Ciuffreda said. “But the Pirates coach who I got to work with, Kimera Bartee, is the actual first base coach for the team, which was really cool because he is the guy you see on TV when the Pirates are playing. I didn’t necessarily learn stuff from them as much as I just got an opportunity to talk to them and hear stories about traveling, locker rooms, and being around the big stars.”
Septer feels that Ciuffreda’s trip will benefit not only the player, but the entire Lawrence team.
“I think just the organization he had to go through—they run that like you’re in the big leagues—he can bring that back to the program,” the coach said. “He can help guys with their pre-game stuff, getting ready for games. I think that experience leading into his junior year is huge. Now he can take those high stakes and transfer that to the team. We’re looking for him to be a leader, especially behind the plate, and he can use that experience and spread it around to his teammates.”
Ciuffreda feels the trip will help his mental game during high school this year. After enjoying success in a high-pressure situation of performing before MLB scouts, he hopes to be more relaxed at the plate for a Cardinals team he thinks is on the rise.
“I feel like this can be a breakout year for us,” he said. “In the last two seasons, we’ve made a lot of progress in terms of developing a real team energy under Coach Septer. Last year, I believe that we were a much better team than our (4-16) record showed as a lot of our losses were close games, or games where we just couldn’t close the door after being ahead. All I can hope for is for my teammates to inspire me to continue to improve my game, and for me to be able to return the favor.”
As much as Ciuffreda loves baseball, it is far from the only thing in his life.
He is seventh in his class with a 4.35 weighted GPA and belongs to a slew of clubs and organizations. He qualified for state competition as part of the business club DECA; takes part in the Tri-M music honor society that hosts coffee houses; and is involved with Operation Smile, a global non-profit that provides free and safe surgeries with cleft lips and palettes in third world countries. His trip to Italy last summer was the Operation Smile International Student Leadership Conference. This summer he will be an assistant team leader for the conference, which brings together 500 high school students from around the world to develop leadership skills and do charity work.
If that isn’t enough, he is a Little League umpire, does volunteer coaching in baseball and basketball and works at Captain Paul’s Firehouse Dogs. He is working on his sixth President’s Volunteer Service Award and is in his second year as a student director for the Lawrence Middle School musical. He is the throwing captain for the Cardinals winter track team, is part of the LHS Madrigal choir and played Corny Collins in the high school production of Hairspray as a freshman.
Other than that, he found a little time to impress some baseball scouts in the desert.
Lawrence High junior Nick Ciuffreda competed as an Under Armour Preseason All-American at the Chicago Cubs spring training complex in Mesa, Arizona Jan. 12-14.,
