Nick Kurtz Shaped by Experience at Wake Forest
5/12/2025 9:00:00 AM | Baseball
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – On the very first pitch of his first Major League Baseball at-bat, former Demon Deacon Nick Kurtz lined a hard grounder past the outstretched glove of Rangers second baseman Marcus Semien, driving in teammate Shea Langeliers.
The base knock gave the A's a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the first, as they came away with a 5-2 victory. For Kurtz, it signified his first MLB at-bat, hit and RBI.
"Before that, my heart was racing a mile a minute," Kurtz said about stepping up to the plate that first time. "But seeing that ball go through, even by a little bit — it just felt awesome. Just having that moment, it was really cool.
"That whole first at-bat is something I think I'll remember for a long time. After that, it felt like everything else just turned into playing baseball again — just a game I've played my whole life."
After a spectacular three-season collegiate career at Wake Forest, Kurtz was selected as the fourth overall pick of the 2024 MLB Draft by the A's. He split a brief amount of time between Single-A and Double-A last season, playing in 12 total games before starting this season at Triple-A Las Vegas, where he bashed seven home runs and was hitting .321 through 20 games before being called up.
"It doesn't really seem real yet, to be honest," Kurtz said before his first game. "I was taking classes less than 12 months ago, so coming into this, I'm just trying to be where my feet are, be present in the moment and enjoy every single second of it.
"It's been crazy. First Spring Training, first big league camp, first games in Triple-A, and now the big leagues. It's been a lot of new things — but new is always better. It's fun, it's exciting, and I'm just thrilled to be here."
To no surprise, the main priority for Kurtz as he gets acclimated to the highest level in professional baseball isn't personal statistics, but doing whatever he can to help the A's win games.
"Winning — that's all that really matters to me now," he said. "All the personal accolades got me to this point, and now it's about: can we win at this level? Can we win every single day? That's what I hope to bring — just doing something every day to help the team win.
"Defensively, I definitely feel most comfortable at first base. I've played there my whole life. But I'm also ready to go wherever they want to put me —wherever the team needs me."
With the uncanny ability to consistently hit for average and power, Kurtz also broke the Wake Forest career record for most walks drawn (189) and most in a single season (78). But when thrown to, he could also clobber the ball, finishing his Wake Forest career with 61 home runs and 182 RBIs.
"Our head coach emphasized walks and barrels — hit the pitches they miss over the heart of the plate, and do damage on those," Kurtz explained. "For pitchers' pitches, try to lay off and wait for your pitch. So I think just having that in the back of my head and hearing it every day in college really helped me get better at it.
"All my coaches at Wake Forest really helped me progress and get better. Bill Cilento and Matt Wessinger laid the foundation for me as a hitter. Tom Walter and Corey Muscara, the other two coaches at Wake, those guys helped shape who I am, both as a player and as a person. All of them together helped make me the ballplayer I am today."
Walter beamed with pride when asked about the team being there for Kurtz's second major league game.
"Getting a chance to see Nick play and spend some time with his family with our whole team is at the top of the list of career moments for me," he said. "It highlights just how hard Nick has worked and how talented he is. Just as important, it shows how much family means to our program."
The base knock gave the A's a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the first, as they came away with a 5-2 victory. For Kurtz, it signified his first MLB at-bat, hit and RBI.
"Before that, my heart was racing a mile a minute," Kurtz said about stepping up to the plate that first time. "But seeing that ball go through, even by a little bit — it just felt awesome. Just having that moment, it was really cool.
"That whole first at-bat is something I think I'll remember for a long time. After that, it felt like everything else just turned into playing baseball again — just a game I've played my whole life."
After a spectacular three-season collegiate career at Wake Forest, Kurtz was selected as the fourth overall pick of the 2024 MLB Draft by the A's. He split a brief amount of time between Single-A and Double-A last season, playing in 12 total games before starting this season at Triple-A Las Vegas, where he bashed seven home runs and was hitting .321 through 20 games before being called up.
"It doesn't really seem real yet, to be honest," Kurtz said before his first game. "I was taking classes less than 12 months ago, so coming into this, I'm just trying to be where my feet are, be present in the moment and enjoy every single second of it.
"It's been crazy. First Spring Training, first big league camp, first games in Triple-A, and now the big leagues. It's been a lot of new things — but new is always better. It's fun, it's exciting, and I'm just thrilled to be here."
To no surprise, the main priority for Kurtz as he gets acclimated to the highest level in professional baseball isn't personal statistics, but doing whatever he can to help the A's win games.
"Winning — that's all that really matters to me now," he said. "All the personal accolades got me to this point, and now it's about: can we win at this level? Can we win every single day? That's what I hope to bring — just doing something every day to help the team win.
"Defensively, I definitely feel most comfortable at first base. I've played there my whole life. But I'm also ready to go wherever they want to put me —wherever the team needs me."
With the uncanny ability to consistently hit for average and power, Kurtz also broke the Wake Forest career record for most walks drawn (189) and most in a single season (78). But when thrown to, he could also clobber the ball, finishing his Wake Forest career with 61 home runs and 182 RBIs.
"Our head coach emphasized walks and barrels — hit the pitches they miss over the heart of the plate, and do damage on those," Kurtz explained. "For pitchers' pitches, try to lay off and wait for your pitch. So I think just having that in the back of my head and hearing it every day in college really helped me get better at it.
"All my coaches at Wake Forest really helped me progress and get better. Bill Cilento and Matt Wessinger laid the foundation for me as a hitter. Tom Walter and Corey Muscara, the other two coaches at Wake, those guys helped shape who I am, both as a player and as a person. All of them together helped make me the ballplayer I am today."
Walter beamed with pride when asked about the team being there for Kurtz's second major league game.
"Getting a chance to see Nick play and spend some time with his family with our whole team is at the top of the list of career moments for me," he said. "It highlights just how hard Nick has worked and how talented he is. Just as important, it shows how much family means to our program."
Players Mentioned
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