The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Graffeo First To Sign NLI To Play Baseball At UAB
11/14/2007 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Nov. 14, 2007
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - UAB head baseball coach Brian Shoop announced Wednesday that Nicholas Graffeo, a right-handed pitcher from Overland Park, Kan., has signed a National Letter of Intent (NLI) to play baseball for the UAB Blazers. Graffeo will transfer to UAB from Olney Central Community College.
"Going into this recruiting season, improving on the mound was our No. 1 priority," Shoop said. "We could not be more pleased than to announce Nick Graffeo as our first signee. He is a power right-hander who could be special on the mound and we fully believe he will play a huge role on our staff next fall."
Under head coach Dennis Conley, Graffeo led the Olney Central staff with a 0.87 ERA, while going 3-1 with four saves. He gave up just one earned run all season, while boasting a 1.162 strikeout-to-inning ratio.
At the plate, Graffeo hit .290 with Olney Central, while legging out 15 doubles and driving in 32 runs.
"Nick has been a two-way player in both high school and junior college and we will absolutely give him the opportunity to play infield here at UAB as well," Shoop said. "He might be able to help us at two positions, making him even more valuable to our team."
For his scholastic career at Raytown High School under head coach Jamie Oyler, Graffeo earned a 5-1 record as a starter and was an all-state, all-conference and all-area selection. He boasted a 1.20 ERA and totaled 80 strikeouts in his senior season, including a school record 18 strikeout outing.
"We look for several intangibles for each of our signees and Nick fits the model in every sense," Shoop said. "He is a high character young man from a great family. He is a tremendous worker and has a highly competitive bulldog mentality on the field. He's an excellent student who is committed to earning his degree at UAB. All of these qualities make Nick Graffeo exactly what we are looking for and I believe that UAB is a great fit for him."
Graffeo's parents are Steve Graffeo and Beth Seitzer. His step father Kevin Seitzer played 13 seasons in the major leagues, including one season with the American League Champion Cleveland Indians. Graffeo has one brother and two step-brothers.
