Zammarelli eyes next chance
Lincoln native looks for next opportunity after leaving M’s
A few years ago, Nick Zammarelli had T-shirts printed up. Each one featured a quote regarding doing damage hitting-wise against pitchers that appeared on the back in bold lettering: “Make ‘Em Regret It.”
After recently receiving word that he was getting released by the Seattle Mariners, the Major League Baseball franchise that selected him in the eighth round nearly four years ago, “Make ‘Em Regret It” has taken on an even more profound meaning within Zammarelli’s universe.
“In the long run, this could be a blessing in disguise,” said Zammarelli, a 2013 graduate of Lincoln High School. “I’m looking at it in the sense that I’ll be joining a new organization. It’s always good to have fresh eyes on you. Whatever team I’m with next, that’s the one I’ll be breaking through with.
“At first, I was pretty upset. As it sunk in, it fired me up a bit and added fuel to the fire,” Zammarelli continued. “They’re going to see me in the big leagues and in the other dugout.”
The quest of turning a negative into a positive was officially launched last Wednesday when it was relayed to Zammarelli that his time was up in the Seattle farm system. Whispers were starting to circulate that MLB teams were looking into cutting minor league players. The May 31 deadline was set to expire where those in Zammarelli’s position were receiving $400 as part of the game’s weekly pay program.
Surely, Zammarelli would be safe from MLB’s version of cutdown day, right? In ffour pro seasons, he had made the All-Star team twice. In 399 games with four different MiLB clubs within the Mariners’ minor-league system, Zammarelli established thimself as a career .275 hitter with a .340 on-base percentage. Defensively, he could play both corner spots in the infield as well as right field.
Seeking assurance, Zammarelli reached out to Joe Rosen, his agent. Rosen’s reply was no way that Seattle would be looking to part company with him.
“They like you too much. You haven’t done anything to hurt yourself,” said Zammarelli, who turns 26 next month. “That put my mind at ease.”
In the back of Zammarelli’s mind, however, there was a part of him that was still worried. When he looked at his phone and saw it was Andy McKay, Seattle’s Director of Player Development, he quickly put two and two together. n “Seeing what was going on with other organizations, once I saw (McKay’s name) pop up, I knew what was going to happen,” said dZammarelli. “My heart kind of sank a little bit. It’s tough.”
The conversation with McKay was brief and to the point. The pandemic that has turned so many lives upside down had officially landed on Zammarelli’s doorstep.
“Honestly, I didn’t have much to say. (McKay) basically said that it’s not a talent thing. It’s not a performance thing. It’s about what’s going on in the world right now,” said Zammarelli. “If I didn’t play well or up to their standards, I can say I gave it my all and there’s nothing I can do about it. The fact that it wasn’t talent or performance-related, tthat made it sting even more. (Rosen) was in shock as much as I was.”
Zammarelli reportedly was one of 50 players to receive their walking papers from the Mariners. Across baseball, over 200 playters were cut loose last Friday. That’s a lot of players who are left with no form of income and wondering what lies ahead.
As much as he wants to get the ball rolling on his next move, Zammarelli understands he’s stuck in a holding pattern. Maybe something will break when MLB irons out the particulars regarding the 2020 season, but nothing at this point is guaranteed.
“Right now, it’s going to be a dead period. I don’t think anyone is going to be signing because there’s no baseball to sign for right now,” said Zammarelli. “If there isn’t a big league season, that will hurt all of us who were released even more.”
The outpouring of well wishes from members of the Seattle organization and on social media helped to lessen the sting.
“The amount of support I’ve gotten the last few days has been unreal. It goes to show how many people liked me as a player and the person I am,” said Zammarelli, noting he heard from Seattle’s big league field coordinator, the assistant big league hitting coach, and the minor league hitting coordinator. “They were all bummed out about it, too. I would have liked to stay in the Mariners organization just because how close I became with so many of the staff and coaches.”
Zammarelli was back in Rhode Island – specifically Prudence Island – when he was notified of the change to his baseball work address. He was abiding by quarantine rules & regulations after leaving his Arizona apartment that he stayed in until the weekend before Mother’s Day. With baseball shut down indefinitely, Zammarelli felt it was best to return to his native state.
“It was time. We had waited long enough,” said Zammarelli, who returned to his childhood home in Lincoln Monday.
In the interim, Zammarelli plans to take summer classes in an effort to finish up his undergraduate degree requirements at Elon University, where he played college baseball for three seasons before turning pro. He envisions giving hitting lessons providing there’s continued improvement with the virus. Amidst the sea of uncertainty, he’ll continue to keep his swing sharp.
“I’m just taking it day-by-day, doing what I can for myself and control what I can,” said Zammarelli.
There are plenty of unanswered questions for everybody, not just Zammarelli. Definitively, he can answer the query regarding his own personal status that he hopes becomes clearer once the storm clouds break and baseball is back in circulation.
“For me, I know I’m not done. I have so much more left in the tank,” he said.