Why walk when you can run? Giants' Szykowny finding his inner Nimmo

GOODYEAR, Ariz. – How do you put yourself on the pro radar while playing Division III baseball in cold-weather Wisconsin?

Hustle. All the time.

Even on walks.

In a sport predicated on routine and often on conventionalism, seeing something out of the ordinary always piques interest. One such instance of that happens when Charlie Szykowny draws a walk. The Giants' infield prospect drops the bat and takes off down the first-base line with the fervor of trying to beat out an infield hit mixed with the intensity of being chased by a wild animal.

“It’s just something I've done my whole life,” Szykowny said. “My dad always told me to hustle everywhere, so I always hustle.”

The 24-year-old's presence in the Fall League after his second pro season is a testament to that mentality.

For four seasons, the product of Palos Heights, Ill., starred as a two-way player for the University of Wisconsin-Stout, a Division III program in Menomonie, Wis. Perhaps unsurprisingly, no player has taken the direct route from Wisconsin-Stout to an eventual big league career as a player, but Joe Vavra – a member of the school’s Hall of Fame – was an eighth-round pick in 1982 before returning to coach on campus ahead of embarking on a Major League coaching career with the Twins and Tigers.

A high school team captain, Szykowny set the Wisconsin-Stout single-season home run record (18) in 2022, his final year there. Even with summer stints in the Perfect Game Collegiate League (2021) and Northwoods League (2021-22), there was a desire to further solidify his place on the pro radar. So he spent a graduate season at the University of Illinois-Chicago, just 45 minutes away from his hometown.

When Szykowny slashed .335/.426/.655 with 16 homers and 55 RBIs in 52 games for the Flames, the Giants rolled the dice on the left-handed hitter as a ninth-round pick in the 2023 Draft.

In baseball, all things can be equal for a time at a certain level. That's how Szykowny, a player who signed for $50,000, wound up serving as lineup protection behind Giants No. 1 prospect and ‘23 first-round pick Bryce Eldridge (who inked a $4 million signing bonus) for pockets of this season with Single-A San Jose.

The D3 ethos has stuck with Szykowny during his foray into pro ball. After all, he is just 29 months removed from playing in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. Now he’s a Fall Leaguer, once again united with Eldridge along with dozens of other likely big leaguers, a track he hopes his time with Scottsdale will help put him on.

“It's surreal,” Szykowny said. “It's kind of why I come out here every day and just want to prove that people could play D3 [and make it here]. It's awesome. I got to go back there when I had a little break here and to see all the guys there, it just means a lot coming from D3. It's nice to see. There's a couple of other D3 guys out here and it's like a brotherhood.”

Astute Major League Baseball viewers know the Mets’ Brandon Nimmo has a propensity for busting it down the first-base line after drawing a walk. The 13th overall pick from the 2011 Draft famously didn’t even play high school baseball, but his sheer grit and tenacity made his skill set undeniable. And he shares a key trait with Szykowny, along with scores of other ball players grinding their way up the ranks:

Hustle.

The big leagues remain the ultimate goal for Szykowny, who knows he’s still got a long way to go. He appeared in 40 games for High-A Eugene at the end of the 2024 season, and there he struggled through his first extended pro stint of not dominating in the box. After posting a .679 OPS, he has hit the ground running in the Fall League, quite literally, with a .318/.375/.455 slash line through his first six games.

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Szykowny won’t magically play his way into San Francisco’s plans come next Spring Training. His time with Scottsdale is development-focused, a way to further elevate his game by playing against advanced competition. But overall, there’s so much to take away from his first full pro season:

“I'd say it's the best job in the world. It's coming out and playing baseball every day in front of fans that want to see you play and … it's the best thing in the world. There's no other way to describe it.”