STANDISH, Maine – Former Saint Joseph's College standout Nic Lops (South Portland, Maine/Cheverus) has signed a professional baseball contract with the Watertown Bucks of the Empire League.
Lops was signed on, last Saturday, by the Bucks after participating in a weeklong tryout at the Sports at the Beach Complex in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. In an independent league featuring four teams with 22-man rosters, Lops was one of 88 signed out of well over 200 players – from all corners of the country and beyond - competing in the tryout.
A catcher by trade, Lops will likely see time behind the plate as well as in the field with potential to play at the corner infield and outfield positions in his first year as a professional baseball player.
The South Portland native took a circuitous route to playing baseball beyond college. After a highly successful freshman season, during which he garnered GNAC Rookie of the Year and GNAC Tournament MVP honors, Lops suffered a knee injury midway through his sophomore year and played through the pain while serving as the Monks' primary designated hitter. As a junior, he helped lead St. Joe's to the 2014 GNAC Championship en route to earning First Team All-Conference and Second Team All-New England (NEIBA) honors. His NCAA career took another terrible turn prior to the start of his senior year when he, weeks before the first game, suffered a season-ending injury during indoor workouts. Almost immediately, Lops proclaimed his desire to fulfill his fourth year of eligibility and returned to the team for the 2016 campaign.
In his final year of college ball, Lops enjoyed a terrific season during which he hit .376 (56-149) with 23 runs, 12 doubles, two home runs, and 40 RBI while playing in all 41 of the Monks' games. The team tri-captain led the team in batting, hits, doubles, RBI, multiple-hit games (18) and multi-RBI performances (11) and ranked second on the squad in slugging (.497) and OBP (.425) and garnered All-Conference, ABCA/Rawlings First Team All-New England, and NEIBA First Team All-New England honors for his efforts.
For his career, Lops posted lofty numbers with a .357 (193-541) average, 82 runs, 38 doubles, three triples, three home runs, and 130 RBI over 154 contests. Currently, Lops ranks seventh in SJC Baseball history in at-bats, eighth in RBI and hits, 11th in doubles, and 13th in batting average.
Lops is one of eight former Saint Joseph's players to ink a professional baseball contract. They join Steve Osborne '01 (Yankees - A), Jesse LaCasse '03 (Germany), Charlie Furbush (2005-06) (Mariners), Luke Enman '08 (Nashua Pride), Pat Moran '10 (Pittsfield Colonials), Joe Coyne '15 (North Country/American Assoc.), and Nick Whittaker '14 (Ozarks) on the list of former Monks who have been signed to play at the next level.
The Empire Professional Baseball League, formerly The North Country Baseball League, is a player development focused league, seeking to assist young players in their efforts to move on to higher levels of independent baseball and affiliated clubs.
In 2016, The Empire League will field four teams based in Old Orchard Beach Maine, Watertown, New York, Rindge, N.H., and Rome, New York and play a sixty-game season in 2016. Opening Day will be on June 1 with the regular season ending on August 4. A five-game championship series will be played between the league's first half and second half champions to determine The Empire League's champion.
The Watertown Bucks will play their home games at Alex T. Duffy Fairgrounds http://empireproleague.com/venue/duffy/ and kick off the season Friday with a 6:30 PM contest versus the New Hampshire Wild at Dr. Arthur and Martha Pappas Field on the campus of Franklin Pierce University.
NIC'S DAILY BLOG - TRYOUT WEEK:
Day 1 - May 22nd
Sunday, May 22nd, began my journey in trying to make an Independent Professional baseball team in the Empire League. I left Duxbury, Massachusetts at 4:45 in the morning, and I arrived in Georgetown Delaware shortly after 1:00 in the afternoon. I enjoyed several cups of coffee to help keep me awake during the drive. There are a lot of very talented ball players from all over the country, and even a handful of players from outside of the country. It is a cool feeling being around 160 plus guys all with a similar dream to continue playing baseball. The Empire League is made up of four teams, two in New York, one in New Hampshire, and one in Maine. I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little nervous about this entire process. However, at the end of the day, it's baseball; it's a game I have played and loved since I was four years old. All I can do is play the game hard and stick to my game.
The cool part about this tryout is that it is a week long. At our introductory camp meeting tonight, the players found out that Monday will be a scout day to showcase our talents. After the scout day, the team managers will hold a draft and place every player on one of four teams. The rest of the week consists of team practices in the morning and scrimmage games in the afternoon. Every one of us has a week to showcase our abilities and earn the right to sign a professional contract. There are a lot of emotions running through my head right now as I lay in bed anxiously awaiting tomorrow. Overall, day one was great, and I'm ready to get this thing going.
Monday was the first day players could showcase their abilities. Essentially, it was a scout day in front of all of the coaches. Unfortunately, the fields at the complex were still wet from the heavy amounts of rain in the days leading up to this camp. My day consisted of catching some bullpens, making some throws down to second, and a conditioning test. I received some compliments about my receiving and blocking skills. My throws were very accurate to second base, but I felt as though I could have been a little quicker. I also passed the conditioning test. I was fairly happy with my performance during the scout day, but I know there are many things I can do better. Tomorrow morning I will be assigned to my team for the week and fight for a chance to earn a roster spot on that squad.
Day 3 was an interesting day. Since we didn't finish everything planned for the scout day on Monday, we needed to finish scout day today. Basically, my day consisted of two rounds of BP, one at bat in a scrimmage, and a whole lot of standing around. My BP rounds went pretty well. In my one at bat during the scrimmage, I flew out to deep center. The at bat was against a Japanese knuckleballer. After I took my rounds of BP, the general manager of the Watertown Bucks told me I have a very nice swing and pulled me aside to ask some questions about my style of play, focusing a majority of the questions on how I handle pitching staffs. This was a cool feeling. At the end of the day, the Old Orchard Beach Surge manager told me I was doing a great job this week and that I have a "sweet swing." This was also an awesome feeling. With over 200 kids at this tryout, the days have been very long so far. Since we are running so far behind, I still haven't found out which team I will be rostered on for the week. Tomorrow morning I should find this out. I'm pretty exhausted physically and mentally but my body feels pretty good.
Day 4 was my favorite day at camp so far. I was drafted to the Watertown Bucks, a team in New York. Another team's manager informed me that I was a high draft pick, and this was obviously a great feeling. After every player was assigned to their team for the remainder of the week, teams split up for practice. Our practice consisted of an extended infield-outfield, some swings in the cages, and conditioning at the end. It was a great first practice. There are nine catchers on my team basically fighting for two spots. There is some great competition going on. I spent the entire defensive portion of the practice focusing on catching. However, I told the skipper that I could play really anywhere on the field. He told me the OOB Surge GM, Alex Markakis, already mentioned this piece of this information.
During our first team scrimmage, which was actually against the Surge, I played three innings at first base and began displaying my versatility. Only half of the catchers on my team got to catch a couple of innings today, and I was not one of them. Everyone also only took one at bat. I have to say, I was very happy with my at bat. I fouled the first pitch straight back, left a changeup in the dirt, and then smacked a line drive to center field. Unfortunately, the line drive found its way into the center fielder's mitt after he had retreated a few steps. I was very happy with the solid contact, as I couldn't have hit the ball much harder. The manager came up to me a few innings later and told me he liked my swing and also noted that I crushed the ball during my at bat. Also, we ended up winning our first scrimmage game.
Overall, it was a great day, but I know that there is much more I can improve on, and I look to do so in the remaining few days. It's now time to actually do some grad school homework and get ready for bed. Another big day tomorrow.
Today was a pretty awesome day. My team had a great practice in the morning, and we won big in our scrimmage against the New Hampshire Wild in the afternoon. I DH'd and hit second for my time. The first pitch I saw was an 85 mph two-seam low fastball that I hit over the left field fence. It was the first opposite field homerun I have ever hit. Not a bad time to have my first "oppo taco" shot. I still haven't caught this week, but my coach told me I was going to start the scrimmage game catching tomorrow. I'm really excited for that. There are nine catchers on my team, so there is a lot of competition here at this tryout. Tomorrow is the final day for me to earn a spot on the roster. I am looking forward to the opportunity.
Today was my last chance to make a roster. My team had a terrific morning practice. We did a bunch of catching drills and I feel like I performed very well. We also took one round of BP on the field. I hit a few pretty solid in my round, but I could have done better. In our scrimmage game, we were the away team, and I batted third. I got a first pitch fastball in my at bat and lined a base hit into right field. I also caught three innings during the scrimmage.
Unfortunately, I caught a pitcher who was extremely wild. He must have spiked close to 15 fastballs in the dirt during his two innings. I blocked a high majority of them, but a couple of them snuck by. This really frustrated me. Although I blocked most of them, it's the couple that I let by me that bugged me all day long.
In my second at-bat, I walked on four pitches. Now that the week is over, I have to say I am happy that I gave my best effort in everything I did on the diamond this week. Now, I am going to try and get some shuteye. Tomorrow morning I will find out if I am able to ink a pro contract.
After a brief group meeting, we had our individual meetings with our managers and our skipper, Simon Walters, told me that I earned a roster spot on the Watertown Bucks It was an incredibly humbling and rewarding feeling.
The whole week was full of ups and downs, but it was capped off with the best news I could have gotten. After I was told I would be signing a professional baseball contract, I called my mom immediately and thanked her for all of her support in helping me get to this point. She has been my number one supporter my entire life; I could never thank her enough for everything she has done for me. I also called Coach Sanborn and thanked him for everything he taught me, especially how to carry myself like a ball player.
I am looking forward to continuing my baseball career. Although I was very excited about how things turned out, I can't become satisfied. There is a lot I need to improve on, and I look forward to getting better each and every day I have left to play this game. On to the next part of this journey. GOD IS GOOD!
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| Lops (5th from left) with the group of catchers at the Empire League tryouts (photo courtesy of Empire League) |
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 474-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.
