Nolan Schanuel becomes an all-time Owl on way to MLB draft
Editor’s note: The Los Angeles Angels selected 1B Nolan Schanuel with the No. 11 pick in the first round of the 2023 MLB Draft on July 9.
BOCA RATON, Fla. (BVM) 鈥� Nolan Schanuel grew up 20 minutes north of the Florida Atlantic University campus and was a regular at games there. Years later, he is the greatest athlete in Owls athletics鈥� history.
The star slugger raked his first two seasons in Boca Raton but is somehow still shattering expectations as a junior. He is hitting .456 thus far on the year while slugging at an eye-popping .913 clip.
Schanuel is the No. 18 prospect in the upcoming MLB draft according to The Athletic鈥檚 .
He is a good hitter with raw power who has walked 117 times at the college level compared to only 57 strikeouts.
But Schanuel鈥檚 development as college baseball鈥檚 best hitter is something that has been years in the making. His hitting prowess which is now coveted by MLB organizations was developed on the streets of his hometown Boynton Beach.
鈥淢y neighborhood friends loved to play,鈥� Schanuel said. 鈥淭hat was our go-to after school or on the weekends. We鈥檇 play with a tennis ball, baseball or wiffle ball.鈥�
As Schanuel continued to work on his craft as the years went on, he emerged as a top recruit in his shortened senior season. This affirmed his belief in being able to have a future in the sport.
鈥淚t was always a dream,鈥� Schanuel said. 鈥淚t kind of came out of nowhere. I never thought it was out of reach because I knew I was able to play in big situations. It just kind of came up on me.鈥�
He was ranked as the No. 95 player in the country in the 2020 class at season鈥檚 end according to .
Schanuel was recruited by nearly every college baseball program in the state of Florida, but he knew Florida Atlantic was the school for him at the end of the day.
鈥淚鈥檝e always loved FAU and Coach McCormack is such a great guy,鈥� Schaunel said. 鈥淭he atmosphere at FAU is amazing. It was an easy answer for me.鈥�
He is now just months away from being selected in the MLB draft, yet his focus remains on the field.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 honestly my last concern right now,鈥� Schanuel said about his prospect status. 鈥淲e鈥檙e trying to make it to conference, regional and super regional. We鈥檙e trying to make it as far as we can. I鈥檓 just trying to play for my coaches and teammates.鈥�
The expectation of that type of draft status could be a lot on someone Schanuel鈥檚 age, but ever since he was eight years old, baseball has been what makes him tick.
His life has revolved around baseball, even to the point where his second-grade math teacher had to use examples based on the sport for him to understand.聽
The constant desire to play that has been built up for years now allows Schanuel to focus on what he needs to do and block out any outside noise.
鈥淏aseball is everything to me,鈥� Schanuel said. 鈥淚 eat, sleep, and breathe baseball.鈥澛�
Schanuel has aspirations of becoming a World Series champion and hall of famer, but for the time being, he is focused on every single at-bat he has left as an Owl.
鈥淚鈥檓 just taking it one step at a time.鈥澛�
