Announcement
MURFREESBORO – Three student-athletes officially joined the Middle Tennessee baseball program Wednesday. Head coach Jim McGuire announced the signings of Aaron Antonini, Elliott Curtis and Grant Williams to national letters of intent during the first day of the early signing period.
Antonini is a switch-hitting catcher who will join the Blue Raiders from Hollywood, Fla., where he currently plays at North Broward Prep. As a junior at Chaminade-Madonna College Prep he hit .326 with 12 doubles, one home run and 24 RBIs while also playing with the Elite Squad travel team.
Antonini also competed in the Perfect Game Wood Bat 17U National Championship, where he hit .400 with three doubles and a home run on his way to being named to the all-tournament team. He moved to Hollywood from Caracas, Venezuela in the fall of 2014.
"Aaron can really catch and throw and that's what we need," McGuire stated. "We needed to bring in a freshman that's a defensive guy first. Being a switch-hitter is a plus and he swings the bat good from both sides."
Curtis is an infielder who played for the Ontario Terriers travel team. He hit .370 last season with an on-base percentage of .498 and drove in 34 runs. He also scored 54 runs for the Terriers and stole 26 bases in 28 attempts.
A native of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, Curtis is a two-year member of the Team Canada Junior Sunbelt team and made the All-Sunbelt Tournament team as a sophomore. He is the top-ranked shortstop in Ontario by Prep Baseball Report.
"Elliott is a left-handed hitting infielder and we really like his hands," McGuire said. "The way he moves around he projects as a second baseman or third baseman. With our shortage of left-handed bats he'll have an opportunity to swing the bat for us right away."
Williams hails from Hendersonville, Tenn., where he pitched for Hendersonville High School. After a 5-0 sophomore campaign, the tall righty went 9-1 in his junior season with a 1.31 ERA and .165 BAA. He struck out 69 batters in 69 1/3 innings and can handle the bat as well, hitting .358 with 32 runs batted in as a junior.
The in-state signee was the District 9-AAA MVP in 2015, was named TBCA All-State and was selected to the Team Tennessee Junior Sunbelt team. He has also competed for the Hendersonville Shooters and Knights 17U Elite Baseball travel teams.
"Grant is a big, strong right-hander who throws strikes," McGuire stated. "He's been able to locate his pitches in a lot of big games. We've recruited him as a pitcher, but he'll get a chance to swing the bat and we think he has huge upside."
With only three of the five available spots filled in this year's signing class, McGuire may not be done yet. The Blue Raiders can still add two more recruits in the early signing period or fill out the class in the spring.
AARON ANTONINI
6-0 // 180 lb // C
Bats: S // Throws: R
Hollywood, Fla./North Broward Prep
ELLIOTT CURTIS
6-0 // 190 lb // IF
Bats: L // Throws: R
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada/St. David CSS
GRANT WILLIAMS
6-4 // 235 lb // RHP
Bats: R // Throws: R
Hendersonville, Tenn./Hendersonville HS
Antonini is a switch-hitting catcher who will join the Blue Raiders from Hollywood, Fla., where he currently plays at North Broward Prep. As a junior at Chaminade-Madonna College Prep he hit .326 with 12 doubles, one home run and 24 RBIs while also playing with the Elite Squad travel team.
Antonini also competed in the Perfect Game Wood Bat 17U National Championship, where he hit .400 with three doubles and a home run on his way to being named to the all-tournament team. He moved to Hollywood from Caracas, Venezuela in the fall of 2014.
"Aaron can really catch and throw and that's what we need," McGuire stated. "We needed to bring in a freshman that's a defensive guy first. Being a switch-hitter is a plus and he swings the bat good from both sides."
Curtis is an infielder who played for the Ontario Terriers travel team. He hit .370 last season with an on-base percentage of .498 and drove in 34 runs. He also scored 54 runs for the Terriers and stole 26 bases in 28 attempts.
A native of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, Curtis is a two-year member of the Team Canada Junior Sunbelt team and made the All-Sunbelt Tournament team as a sophomore. He is the top-ranked shortstop in Ontario by Prep Baseball Report.
"Elliott is a left-handed hitting infielder and we really like his hands," McGuire said. "The way he moves around he projects as a second baseman or third baseman. With our shortage of left-handed bats he'll have an opportunity to swing the bat for us right away."
Williams hails from Hendersonville, Tenn., where he pitched for Hendersonville High School. After a 5-0 sophomore campaign, the tall righty went 9-1 in his junior season with a 1.31 ERA and .165 BAA. He struck out 69 batters in 69 1/3 innings and can handle the bat as well, hitting .358 with 32 runs batted in as a junior.
The in-state signee was the District 9-AAA MVP in 2015, was named TBCA All-State and was selected to the Team Tennessee Junior Sunbelt team. He has also competed for the Hendersonville Shooters and Knights 17U Elite Baseball travel teams.
"Grant is a big, strong right-hander who throws strikes," McGuire stated. "He's been able to locate his pitches in a lot of big games. We've recruited him as a pitcher, but he'll get a chance to swing the bat and we think he has huge upside."
With only three of the five available spots filled in this year's signing class, McGuire may not be done yet. The Blue Raiders can still add two more recruits in the early signing period or fill out the class in the spring.
AARON ANTONINI
6-0 // 180 lb // C
Bats: S // Throws: R
Hollywood, Fla./North Broward Prep
ELLIOTT CURTIS
6-0 // 190 lb // IF
Bats: L // Throws: R
Waterloo, Ontario, Canada/St. David CSS
GRANT WILLIAMS
6-4 // 235 lb // RHP
Bats: R // Throws: R
Hendersonville, Tenn./Hendersonville HS
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