Story by Zach Giroux
BENNINGTON, Vt. — Southern Vermont College 2015 graduate Chris Nicastro Jr. (Kenilworth, N.J.) has become the first student-athlete in school history to earn a paid professional baseball contract as the shortstop recently signed with the VCardinals, a class affiliate of the Virginia Marlins in the World Baseball Pro League (WBPL).
The league is for players who want to play beyond collegiate competition and be paid appropriately based on their work both on and off the field. They play every day for one month, raise unlimited amounts of money to support their game, and have the option to sign with the traditional affiliated MLB franchise.
“Playing professional baseball has always been on my mind from a very young age,” Nicastro said, “so having this opportunity is like a dream come true.”
The Mountaineer coaching staff has been pleased with Nicastro’s efforts on and off the diamond.
“Chris was a tremendous piece to building the culture of our program,” commented SVC head coach Dave Gage. “Chris was a great captain and someone who we are very happy to say represents our program with excellent standards.”
The WBL officials have noticed the clay marks that the New Jersey native has made on the league.
“Chris Nicastro Jr. Is the epitome of a professional collegiate student-athlete,” noted Virginia Marlins President Frank Fulton Jr. “Personally accountable, determined, goal oriented, team player. He has the unseen tools of character and positive citizenship that makes the ordinary athlete a great athlete.”
Nicastro’s peers have great confidence that he will succeed and advance to an even higher level of play as his journey in the “field of dreams” continues to flourish.
“These are the type of players that win championships long after they are gone because of what they built at SVC,” Gage added.
A solid four-year player for the Mountaineers, the criminal justice graduate ranks third all-time in the SVC 100 Hit Club with 140 career base knocks. He maintained a .295 batting average throughout his career and stole the fifth-most bases in program history with 36, being a captain for Coach Gage since his sophomore year. Nicastro earned an All-New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) Honorable Mention in 2014 (junior season) and was named the NECC Player of the Week once in 2013 (sophomore year).
Connor Murray (SVC ’13) played in the California Winter League in 2013, an unpaid developmental instructional league based in Palm Springs, Calif. that allows professional teams to evaluate players.