From Ivy League standout to FSU's silent leader, this catcher masterfully directs the game, sparking a dominant pitching staff and potent offense.
In the game of baseball, teams must have a commanding presence behind the plate who can “coach” the pitchers as the game goes along as well as act as a leader for the team on the field.
The Florida State Seminoles have a real-life version of Crash Davis (of "Bull Durham" fame) in redshirt senior catcher Nathan Cmeyla.
A former Ivy-Leaguer at Dartmouth, Cmeyla was a star behind home plate for the Big Green. Cmeyla recorded 490 combined putouts for the 2022 and 2024 seasons (he was injured for most of the 2023 season), and committed only 12 errors during his time at Dartmouth.
He earned All-Ivy League honorable mention twice as a member of the Big Green.
At FSU last season, Cmeyla made 12 starts (eight at catcher, four as a DH), batted .259, with one home run, eight RBI, and scored 13 runs.
This season, while competing for playing time with Hunter Carns, Cmeyla has taken advantage of Carns being banged up and put his experience and leadership on display for coach Link Jarrett and his staff.
Jarrett likes what he has seen from Cmeyla and heaped praise on his catcher during his post-game press conference after the no-hitter against Bethune-Cookman.
So far this season, Cmeyla has posted 79 putouts, committed zero errors and allowed just one passed ball. He had a season-high 14 putouts against Wake Forest. Cmeyla is batting .324 with two home runs and five RBI, and has struck out just five times in 34 at-bats.
Jarrett consistently praises his execution, both at the plate and on the mound.
The catcher position is critical for the Seminoles success this season, and Cmeyla has shown that consistency and execution as the man behind the mask calling the game on the field.
That was evident in the Wake Forest series. With Cmeyla calling the game, the rotation of Wes Mendes, Trey Beard and Bryson Moore combined for 32 strikeouts as the Seminoles swept the Demon Deacons in the opening weekend of ACC play.
If this past weekend’s performance on the mound is any indication, and the combined no-hitter on Tuesday night against Bethune-Cookman, Florida State may have one of the more dominant pitching staffs in college baseball.
Offensively, FSU has some of the best offensive talent in the country as they launched 10 home runs against Wake Forest.
With over 50 starts at the collegiate level, Cmeyla is the game manager that Jarrett desperately needs behind the plate, calling for the right pitches and maintaining live-game situational awareness.
That leadership, consistency and execution that Jarrett preaches will continue to shine as FSU hosts NC State for a three-game series, beginning on Friday night at Dick Howser Stadium, a venue in which the Seminoles are undefeated at 12-0.
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