My College Baseball Story

Rob Naddelman: Through a Parent’s Eyes

At many Baseball Factory events over the past 15 years, I have told my personal story to many families when we have discussed issues such as playing time and position changes. I have been encouraged to share this story as a blog by many parents who have heard it because they thought it would be valuable for other families. So here goes...

As an incoming freshman at the University of Pennsylvania, I was the last INF to make the team. There were only two INF slots open my freshman year because almost all of the INF from the previous year were returning. So a Lefty 1B and I were the only freshman INF to make the club. As such, I was the 3rd SS on the roster and was behind two upperclassmen. One in particular was a starter for the past two years and was only a junior.

Back then, not everyone was able to travel on our Spring Trip to Florida which was the kick off to the season. So initially, as the 3rd SS, I was not on the list to travel. My plan was to go home to NJ for Spring Break. At the last minute, I got a call that our Captain (who was the starting 3B) had to have an emergency appendectomy, so a spot opened up for me. I had no idea what to expect, but was just happy to be taking part in the trip.

For the first few games, I did not play at all. About 4 games into the trip, my coach decided to give me a start as SS. In the game I went 2 for 2 with a HBP (on the helmet by the way!). He then gave me another start, and then another start, and before I knew it, I had earned the starting shortstop job when we returned from Florida. I went on to start almost every game at SS the rest of the year.

The next year, I thought I was a shoe in to stay at SS, but we had a junior college transfer come in from Miami Dade that played SS and a top recruit from HS that played 3B. As such, I started the year behind both of these guys. Tough pill to swallow after starting at SS for my freshman year. On our Spring Trip to Florida, our top freshman recruit hurt his arm so I got a chance to play 3B. I hadn't played 3B since I was 9 years old. I took it as a challenge and worked hard and wound up starting the rest of the year and earned 1st Team All Ivy Honors as a 3B. This was very rewarding for me because to earn that distinction you need to have the most votes from the other Ivy League coaches.

The following year (Junior Year), I thought my days of "proving myself" were over. However, in the fall, we learned that our coach had recruited a top HS football and baseball prospect. He played football in the fall so nobody really knew him, but come Spring time he made his presence and ability known. He was Mark DeRosa, current 3B for the Cleveland Indians. He quickly became the 3B and I was out of a position again. Instead of getting upset, I took it as a challenge again and became the full time DH. Our team did very well that year and finished as the runner up for the Ivy League Championship. I broke my hand towards the end of the year, but if I hadn't, I probably would have been an All Conference player again.

My senior year rolled around the next fall and I thought I was a shoe in to be captain. I was a 3 year starter and clearly a team player. I wound up being passed up for the spot and my college roommate (the top pitcher on our team) was given the distinction. Usually there were 2 captains, but this year they only went with one. It hurt at first, but in the end I realized that you can be a leader no matter what your title is. That year, we had our best year as a team. Part of the reason was that we had DeRosa at SS (the Miami Dade transfer graduated) and one of our juniors was a 3rd Team NCAA DI All American. We had a Senior-Laden pitching staff that dominated most opponents. In addition, we had another top freshman recruit that played 2B. His addition to the team moved the current 2B to 3B, so here I was again out of a position. I realized this was probably my last year to play baseball and more than anything I wanted to be a part of a good team. So I swallowed my pride again and stayed in the DH role for most of the year and earned 2nd Team All Ivy honors. Towards the end of the year, we had a lot of good players all clicking at the same time, so I was platooning at DH. We won the Ivy League Championship and then had to beat Rider to go to the Regionals of the College World Series. I did not start the final game (the series was tied 1-1) but came off the bench to get the pinch hit single and RBI that sent us to a victory and a berth in the College World Series Midwest Regional in Oklahoma. It was the last time Penn has earned a trip to the big dance.

So the point is this. Never get down and don't let any of these circumstances define you as a player. Keep doing what you do, and keep your head held high. In the end, the right attitude and the hard work always pays off. Just stay focused and good things will happen. For all the parents, don't get too bent our of shape if you son is going through similar challenges. Just continue to encourage him and help him keep a good perspective.

Hopefully this story help!


Rob Naddelman is the President of Baseball Factory. Naddelman is a former two-time All Ivy League Third Baseman at the University of Pennsylvania, where he competed in a College World Series Regional. He has served as the President of Baseball Factory for the past 14 years, and also is the Executive Director of Baseball Factory's charitable arm The B.A.S.E. - H.I.T. Foundation. Naddelman and Steve Sclafani (CEO) have been featured in Business Week and CNN for their work in building Baseball Factory into the nation's leader in player development and college placement.

Position Changes…How to Deal With Them as a Parent

Rob Naddelman: Through a Parent’s Eyes

I think the idea of a player being asked to change positions and play somewhere new on the field can be more traumatizing for the parent of the player then the player himself. I just got back from the Baseball Factory’s Omaha Training and Tournament and met with a number of parents where the topic of position changes came up. When a particular player was asked to play a different position on the field (versus his normal primary or secondary position), I heard the following comments:

Parent 1: Why would he be asked to play anywhere other than shortstop? He is the best shortstop on the team.
Parent 2: He has never played the other positions, so it is really unfair to ask him to play somewhere he is not comfortable.
Parent 3: Why would you put a player in a brand new position and one that he is not used to?

One of our philosophies at Baseball Factory is to try and use our events to help prepare players for their college experience. College programs very often recruit center fielders and shortstops and then place them all around the field in certain spots depending upon how their tools play. For the recruited high school shortstops, the best hands and feet usually go to Short and Second (with the better arm playing short). The guy with the most power and limited defensive skills goes to first and the one with less range and strong hitting skills may go to third.

This happened to me in college when I played at the University of Pennsylvania. As a freshman, I started mostly every game at shortstop after having played SS my entire career. As a sophomore, I got moved to third base because we had a transfer student come in with exceptional defensive skills that played short. After a First Team All-Ivy season as a Sophomore at 3B, for my junior year, I was used primarily as a designated hitter, because we had a pretty good freshman infielder come in that year. You may recognize his name since he is the current second baseman for the Chicago Cubs (Mark Derosa). As a Senior, I split time between 3B and DH because we had another exceptional middle infielder added to our club as a freshman that made first team All-Ivy that year. I still wound up earning 2nd Team All Ivy Honors as a Senior.
Players need to be prepared to be moved around the field for a variety of reasons. Maybe your son is a primary pitcher that also plays shortstop in high school. In college, you will never see a RHP/SS. All two-way players that pitch wind up playing another secondary position like OF, 1B, or DH to help save their arm. Maybe his baseball tools have him better served to be a corner infielder than a middle infielder. Maybe someone on his team got injured and in order to get his bat in the lineup, the manager needs to use him in a different spot on the field. Be flexible and he will have a chance to gain more playing time.

For parents, as your son advances up the ranks past high school baseball and into college, start to understand that things may change, including his postion. Try not to get all bent out of shape and understand that as the game speeds up, his tools may play better at another spot on the field. From my personal experience, keeping an open mind and living up to the challenge of playing a new spot on the field was a great learning exercise for me. I enjoyed playing 3B and DH-ing much more than I would have enjoyed sitting on the bench and watching someone else play shortstop!


Rob Naddelman is the President of Baseball Factory. Naddelman is a former two-time All Ivy League Third Baseman at the University of Pennsylvania, where he competed in a College World Series Regional. He has served as the President of Baseball Factory for the past 13 years, and also is the Executive Director of Baseball Factory's charitable arm The B.A.S.E. - H.I.T. Foundation. Naddelman and Steve Sclafani (CEO) have been featured in Business Week and CNN for their work in building Baseball Factory into the nation's leader in player development and college placement.

Why Change Positions?

Kelly Kulina: Your Link to the Colleges

At some point during their careers, players are asked by coaches to play a different position, or positions that they’ve never played before. Players and parents sometimes take offense to this, but it may be in their best interest in the long run. There are many reasons why your position may change at the next level, whether you’re looking up at the high school level, varsity or college. College coaches like to recruit players and athletes that are versatile, and players need to be prepared for adjustments like this. This could be the difference between making a high school or travel team, and ultimately affecting their marketability as a college player.

A lot of people make the mistake of discounting certain programs because they look at the roster and see that their position is stacked by several players. What prospective players need to understand is that in the college search process, the position they play and the position they’re most marketable at are two different things. We’ve had several players in our Exclusive Program that find themselves with better options at the college level when they agree to begin working at another position.

Most coaches will recruit up the middle, because they value that athleticism. They build their teams around those positions because they know if a player can’t cut it there, they can move him to a less demanding position, like the corners (if his bat plays there). This is true at any level of baseball--as you move up the ladder of competition, more is required to stay in the middle of the field. For example, during my playing days, I was a shortstop at the high school level, but then made the move to third base and eventually the outfield in college. So, if you’re a corner infielder or outfielder in high school, your competition is not only against other players at your position, but against players at those premium positions, as well!

When I was coaching at the University of Maryland, I recruited a player that I had never seen before. He was a rare right-handed batter, left-handed throwing first baseman from Pennsylvania. What caught my attention was not his bat, however; watching him during infield practice, I really liked this kid’s size, arm strength and how the ball came out of his hand. When I approached him after the game, I was surprised to hear how little pitching experience he had. I recruited and signed this young man as a pitcher without seeing him throw one pitch! Eventually, he was drafted by the Atlanta Braves out of the University of Maryland as a pitcher. This is a perfect example of a mismatch between your position and your tools.

One of my favorite stories from my coaching days has to be the story of Steve Schmoll. Coming to a fall tryout for the baseball team as a catcher, he was the last player released in the fall because we didn’t have room for him on the roster. I really liked this kid, not as a catcher, but as a pitcher because of his size, arm action and potential on the mound. Instead of giving up on baseball, he took our suggestion to put work in as a pitcher and come back next year. Not only did he make the club as a pitcher, he started several ACC games when I was at Maryland, and eventually took over the role of closer during his senior year. Throwing from a variety of arm slots and armed with a low 90s fastball, he was a prime candidate for professional baseball and eventually made his debut with the Los Angeles Dodgers!

The bottom line is that you haven’t failed if you’re no longer playing your “original” position. You only fail if you’re not willing to make an adjustment. Being flexible and open-minded, along with showing a desire to play wherever you can help the team, are very underrated, but recruitable tools. In fact, they may make the difference between playing at one level and not playing at all. After all, you can only prove yourself if you’re on the field. So the next time a coach wants you to try another position, take it as a compliment and an opportunity to get ahead!


Kelly Kulina is the Senior Vice President of College Recruiting at Baseball Factory. Kulina is a former Associate Head Coach and recruiting coordinator with the University of Maryland. As a former recruiting coordinator for ten years in the ACC, Kulina has vast contacts and is widely respected throughout the nation. From 1989 to 2000, Kulina coached 46 players who were selected in the MLB draft.