Three years ago Curt Casali was the captain of the New Canaan Rams baseball team and was still basking in the glow of a state football championship. Now, the former New Canaan High School catcher and quarterback is the starting designated hitter (DH) as a junior on the Vanderbilt University Commodores baseball team. Vanderbilt has advanced into the Super Regionals of the NCAA tournament, the second round, whereit is facing Florida State in a three game series down in Tallahassee, Fla.
And he thinks that if the Commodores play up to their potential, they have a good shot at going far in the tournament. "If we play sound fundamentally, we have a really solid chance. We are a good ball club that is used to pretty much anything, so we are ready for the challenge," said Casali, who has seven home runs this season.
Casali, who led New Canaan to a FCIAC baseball title his junior season, has been a leader for the Commodores, moving from catcher to DH after an injury last season. The move may have hurt his draft chances (he was not drafted in last week's Major League Baseball draft), but has helped Vanderbilt's title chances. In a must-win game against Louisville in the opening regional round, Casali singled and later scored the game winning run. On Friday, Vanderbilt fell to Florida State 9-8 in the first game of the series, but Casali shined, finishing the game with four hits, including a home run.
Vanderbilt, located in Nashville, Tenn., seems like an unlikely place for a kid from New Canaan. But Casali saw an opportunity to play "big time college ball in the SEC," which he called the best conference in college baseball. "Combine that with the academics of Vanderbilt and it was an easy decision," Casali said.
While he hoped to get drafted, he said he was completely focused on the Florida State series and not anything he can't control. Casali has already played in the Cape Cod Summer Baseball League, a wood-bat league that includes many Major League prospects and expects to return this summer. While there, Casali can show off his catching ability. Next season, Casali should be back behind the plate, as the starter, Andrew Giobbi, will graduate. Casali was the second-best prospect in the Connecticut/Rhode Island region coming out of high school according to Baseball America, and was among the top 20 Tennessee prospects this season.
Vanderbilit takes on Florida State in an elimination game at 1 p.m. on ESPN.
Click here to follow Daily Voice and receive free news updates.
