Hitting Helps Ball Find College Home Late In The Process

Nathan Ball 1B / OF / Bay City John Glenn, MI / 2023

BAY CITY - It did not matter what college he decided to attend, Nathan Ball understands what makes him valuable at the next level.

“Hitting is my gold ticket,” the top-ranked 2023 first baseman in Michigan proclaimed.

It had the Bay City John Glenn graduate confident he could find a place to play even with the start of college less than two months away.

“I knew there were smaller opportunities out there,” Ball explained about his thoughts when he decided to be released from his commitment to Northwood a month ago after a coaching change at the university. “There was a very good chance I would still go to Northwood if they hired the right guy, and they did, but it was too late.”

By then Ball was getting interest from a number of other schools.

“I tweeted out a week after my release from Northwood and it kind of exploded,” Ball noted. “Eastern Michigan was one of the schools that reached out, but there were a lot of others. We talked on the phone and he said if this is the place for you I don’t see why you wouldn’t come here. Three days later I committed.

“Coach Britt sold me on it,” Ball continued in reference to the new EMU head coach Robbie Britt, who was hired in the middle of June by the Mid-American Conference school. “They had some interest in me before Northwood, but it was a different coach and not the right fit for me.”

The 18-year-old believes that is not the case any more.

“I like that it’s close to home and I can get a good degree,” noted Ball, whose home is 90 minutes away from Ypsilanti. “And a lot of the facilities are amazing.”

Admittedly, an unknown future the summer before the beginning of college was stressful.

“It was definitely tough,” Ball related. “It was a little scary not knowing what was out there. But once I got out in the recruiting world it all went well.

“PBR helped me,” Ball added about his overall recruiting process. “Every coach would go on my profile and see that I was a Future Games participant. I also went to the Procase this year. Every coach mentioned that.”

His left-handed stick, to go along with being 6-4 and 225 pounds also stood out for Ball, who credited Zac Goodman with helping gain more strength to improve his game and his father for “talking him through the recruiting process and keeping my head on straight” once he was released from Northwood.

“Eastern likes that I can hit,” pointed out the 25th-rated 2023 in Michigan. “They’re gonna try to find a spot for me, probably first, but hitting is my gold ticket.”

A major in finance is the plan for Ball, whose first meeting at Eastern Michigan is on Aug. 25.

“I already went to orientation at Northwood but then the coach leaves,” Ball said. “I had to work fast.”

As one would expect, there was a lot of relief once a home was found so late in the process.

“It was a happy feeling to finally have it all figured out,” Ball said. “Division I baseball has been my dream and it felt good to get there.

“I’m excited to go against some great competition,” Ball concluded. “I want to get better and hopefully hear my name called in a few years.”