Niko Decolati
| Niko Decolati | |
|---|---|
| Free agent | |
| Right fielder | |
| Born: August 12, 1997 Boulder, Colorado, U.S. | |
Bats: Right Throws: Right |
Nicholas Quinn Decolati (born August 12, 1997) is an American professional baseball right fielder who is a free agent.
Amateur career
[edit]Decolati was born in Boulder, Colorado, before moving to Las Vegas due to his father's job; he attended Cimarron-Memorial High School in Las Vegas.[1] As a junior in 2014, he batted .414 with eight home runs.[2] In 2015, Decolati senior year, he hit .411 with ten home runs, 25 RBI, and 39 runs, and was named the Southern Nevada Player of the Year.[3]
After graduating high school in 2015, Decolati enrolled at Loyola Marymount University where he played college baseball. As a freshman in 2016, he played in 47 games (making forty starts) in which he hit .306 with four home runs and 33 RBI, earning a spot on the All-West Coast Conference Freshman Team.[4] In 2017, Decolati played in 56 games, slashing .320/.426/.432 with four home runs and 24 RBI. That summer, he played collegiate summer baseball for the Orleans Firebirds of the Cape Cod Baseball League, where he was named a league all-star.[5][6] As a junior in 2018, Decolati started 54-of-55 games and batted .271 with six home runs and 21 RBI.[7]
Professional career
[edit]After his junior year, he was selected by the Colorado Rockies in the sixth round, with the 186th overall selection, of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft.[8]
Decolati signed with the Rockies and was assigned to the Grand Junction Rockies of the Rookie-level Pioneer League. After being a third baseman all through high school and college, the Rockies immediately moved him to right field,[9] where he was subsequently named an All-Star.[10] Over 69 games in Grand Junction, Decolati batted .327 with 11 home runs and 56 RBI.[11] In 2019, he missed time at the beginning of the year after suffering a broken wrist, but returned to play in June with the Asheville Tourists of the Single-A South Atlantic League, hitting .265 with six home runs and 38 RBI over 77 appearances.[12] Decolati did not play in a game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.[13]
Decolati was assigned to the Spokane Indians of the High-A West for the 2021 season, slashing .264/.341/.402 with 11 home runs, 56 RBI, and 26 stolen bases over 100 games.[14] He spent the 2022 season with the Hartford Yard Goats of the Double-A Eastern League but missed time due to injury.[15] Over 44 appearances for Hartford, Decolati slashed .199/.327/.277 with one home run and 17 RBI.[16]
In 2024, Decolati played in only 10 games for the rookie-level Arizona Complex League Rockies, hitting .143/.333/.143 with three RBI and one stolen base. He elected free agency following the season on November 4, 2024.[17]
References
[edit]- ^ "Niko Decolati dared to dream in the MLB, now it's his turn to give back". J500rst.ku.edu. March 23, 2019. Retrieved 2021-05-04.
- ^ Kevin Askeland (2015-02-19). "2015 Nevada preseason baseball Fab 5, presented by the Army National Guard". MaxPreps. Retrieved 2021-05-04.
- ^ Seiters, Damon (2015-05-20). "Cimarron-Memorial's Decolati named Southern Nevada player of year | Las Vegas Review-Journal". Reviewjournal.com. Retrieved 2021-05-04.
- ^ "LMU Baseball Preview | Sports". laloyolan.com. 2017-02-15. Retrieved 2021-05-04.
- ^ "#24 Niko Decolati – Profile". pointstreak.com. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
- ^ Doherty, Matthew (2017-07-15). "Eight Firebirds named to All-Star team | Orleans Firebirds". Pointstreaksites.com. Retrieved 2021-05-04.
- ^ Newman, Kyle (2018-06-05). "Tracking the Rockies' selections in Rounds 3 through 10 of 2018 MLB Draft". Denverpost.com. Retrieved 2021-05-04.
- ^ "Rockies Draft pick Niko Decolati from Colorado". Mlb.com. Retrieved 2021-05-04.
- ^ ARNOLD, PATTI (August 11, 2018). "Up to the challenge". The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel.
- ^ ARNOLD, PATTI (August 2, 2018). "Five GJ Rockies selected to Pioneer League All-Star team". The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel.
- ^ Arnold, Patti (June 14, 2020). "Settling on GJ Rockies 'Dream Lineup' no easy task". The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel.
- ^ "Rockies' Niko Decolati: Off to hot start in Low-A". CBSSports.com. June 7, 2019. Retrieved 2021-05-04.
- ^ "2020 Minor League Baseball season canceled". MLB.com.
- ^ Nichols, Dave (2021-09-02). "Niko Decolati records three hits, three steals as Spokane Indians beat Tri-City 7-5". Spokesman.com. Retrieved 2025-02-16.
- ^ "Yard Goats hold of Rumble Ponies, 5-3". Hartford Courant. 2022-05-06. Retrieved 2025-02-16.
- ^ "Niko Decolati Stats, Fantasy & News".
- ^ Eddy, Matt (November 6, 2024). "Minor League Free Agents 2024". Baseball America. Retrieved November 6, 2024.
External links
[edit]- Career statistics from Baseball Reference (Minors)