Ellicott City Resident Signs with Red Sox

The Major League Baseball draft, all three days of it, came and went last week without any mention of Ellicott City resident Nick Natoli. 

But when the Boston Red Sox needed a middle infielder to help fill out rosters of minor league teams, scout Chris Calciano suggested Natoli.

A four-year standout at Towson University, he was named the defensive player of the year in the Colonial Athletic Association.

"We felt there was a need for another middle infielder," Red Sox scout Calciano, who is based in Delaware, told Patch on Wednesday.

Calciano, who covers the mid-Atlantic region, is in his fourth year with the Red Sox and has followed Natoli’s progress; he played in high school at Mount St. Joseph's.

"He has a good baseball IQ," Calciano said. "He should get the opportunity to play shortstop with one of our teams. He could see action at second base."

Natoli told Patch on Thursday that he signed a contract with the Red Sox earlier this week and passed his physical on Wednesday in Boston. "I am excited to be here now," said Natoli, who attended Ilchester Elementary and Bonnie Branch Middle School, both in Ellicott City. He played baseball in high school at Mount St. Joseph’s.

Natoli said he is expected to join the Lowell (MA) Spinners, a farm club of the Red Sox in the New York-Penn League. He was slated to work out with Lowell on Thursday afternoon.

Lowell draws large crowds and is about one hour northwest of Boston, one of the top sports cities in the country and a city that is celebrating another major title as the Bruins won the National Hockey League crown on Wednesday.

The hitting coach for Lowell is Rich Gedman, a former catcher for the Red Sox.

The Natoli family has already checked the schedule of the Spinners, who are slated to open the season at home Friday against Connecticut, a farm club of the Tigers.

"My mom told me we play in Aberdeen in July," Natoli. She is right: the Spinners have a three-game series at Ripken Stadium, the home of the IronBirds, July 6-8 against a farm club of the Orioles.

Natoli expects to have several family and friends on hand. "It will be exciting,"  he said. The infielder said he has spoken with former Towson teammates Brian Conley and Gary Helmick, who have played in the minors with the Orioles, about the rigors of pro baseball.

Natoli was also teammates with pitcher Drew Permison (Oakland Mills High), drafted out of Towson last year by the Toronto Blue Jays. Permison was a closer in the New York-Penn League last year and played a series in Aberdeen.

Natoli was also named defensive player of the year in the CAA in 2008. He played second base in a summer league in high school and played third base when he was younger.

"For Nick to be honored as the Defensive Player of the Year again is no surprise," Mike Gottlieb, the Towson head coach, said in a release. "Those of us who have seen him play every day for the last few years realize how good he is. I know that many of the other CAA coaches respected him. Nick is one of the best players ever to play here and he is very deserving of these honors."

He had a fielding mark of .954 this year and led the CAA with 169 assists and was part of 45 double plays. Natoli was also the second-leading hitter on the team with a mark of .314. He scored 38 runs and had 17 doubles, four homers and 32 RBIs.

The Ellicott City resident ended his college career with a school-record 827 at bats and an average of .307. He had 254 hits, three-best in school history. Natoli had a lifetime fielding percentage of .948 and hit 11 homers.

He is just the latest in the long line of players from Mount St. Joseph's to join the pro ranks. That list includes Major League players Gavin Floyd, a pitcher for the Chicago White Sox, and Mark Teixeira, a first baseman for the New York Yankees who hit two homers on Wednesday.

Natoli said he is friends with Brendan Floyd, a younger brother of Gavin and a former player at the University of Hartford, in Connecticut. The Ellicott City resident came back strong in 2010 after he tore the ACL in his left knee during the first day of practice in 2009 at Towson and that caused him to miss the entire season.