New Canaan's Casali Drafted by Detroit Tigers

Curt Casali didn't find out he had been drafted by a phone call from the Detroit Tigers. He didn't learn that he had fulfilled a dream by watching the draft obsessively on MLB Network.

Nope, the Vanderbilt senior catcher was in bed sleeping in his dorm room after a tough practice when he was awoken by earth-shattering screams from teammate Jason Esposito, who had been following the draft on MLB.com.

"He came running into my room yelling that I had been drafted," said Casali, who graduated from  in 2007. "He started jumping on me, screaming that the Detroit Tigers had taken me in the 10th round."

A scream, a shout, and a joyful celebration with a teammate he had bonded with through hours of preparation and dedication. That's how Casali will remember what is arguably the biggest day of his life. 

"This is something I had dreamed about ever since picking up a baseball as a little kid," said Casali, who is hitting .310 for Vanderbilt in 2011. "This is awesome. I'm really happy about being drafted by a class organization like the Detroit Tigers". 

The road to getting drafted wasn't an easy one for Casali. After a magnificent career at New Canaan High School where he batted .427,  Casali headed to Vanderbilt as one of their top-recruits. But he had to endure a position change and major elbow surgery in his first three years playing for the Commodores. 

It was the first time the hard-hitting catcher faced adversity of any kind in his athletic career. Through hard work and perseverance, Casali overcame the adversity and outlasted the tough times.

"Things happen for a reason," said Casali. "Dealing with all that made me a better person and a better player. It really forced me to grow up. I learned to appreciate the game a lot more and not take anything for granted. I'm just blessed to be playing the game at all."

It didn't take long for the news of Casali getting drafted by the Tigers to reach New Canaan. Mark Rearick, who coached Casali during his entire career with the Rams was elated to hear that his former star player had fulfilled his dream. 

"First of all, Curt is a great kid who was a pleasure to coach," said Rearick. "I couldn't be happier for him. He has a quick bat, great power, and a strong arm. He's also smart. He was like having another coach on the field. Curt has a chance to go really far with the Tigers."

Casali was also a standout quarterback for the Rams, leading the team to the first of four consecutive state titles. He made All-FCIAC and All-State, and helped usher in the spread offense at New Canaan.

 "Curt had one of the strongest arms of any quarterback I've coached at New Canaan," said Marinelli. "He could make any throw and squeeze it into  tight windows. He's a hard-working kid who deserves this. I'm really happy for him." 

Casali is one of a record eleven Vanderbilt players to be taken in the MLB draft. Detroit, incidentally, selected another catcher with their first pick, but that didn't phase Casali at all. 

"I know there are going to be a lot of great players ahead of me," said Casali, who has six home runs and 50 RBIs this season. "But I can only control the things that I can control, which I really learned during my time here at Vanderbilt. I'm just going to continue to work as hard as I can to become a better player."

Casali still has some college work to do before signing his contract with the Tigers. Vanderbilt (50-10) is hosting Oregon State  in the Super Regionals this weekend, the winner advances to the College World Series.

There is a chance Casali could start his professional career in Connecticut. The Tigers have a team, Norwich, which plays in the NY-Penn league.