Only 14 days removed from his 14th-round Major League Baseball Amateur Draft selection by the Cincinnati Reds, former Nova Southeastern baseball catcher Garrett Wolforth has been announced as the nation’s top defensive catcher among the members of the 2019 ABCA/Rawlings Division II Gold Glove Team.
The NSU Sharks have notched a Gold Glove winner in consecutive years, with 2018 Seattle Mariners seventh-round pick Jake Anchia winning last year’s award. Wolforth is now the second catcher in the program’s history to win the award and fourth player overall.
After transferring to NSU for his senior season following three solid seasons at Dallas Baptist, Wolforth (Spring, Texas) thrived in all facets under ninth-year Sharks head coach Greg Brown – a former professional catcher in the Miami Marlins system.
In his lone season with the Sharks, Wolforth held a .992 fielding percentage as a catcher as a dominant backstop for NSU, committing only two errors in 254 chances behind the dish. Wolforth shut down 41.7 percent of attempted steals, throwing out 15 would-be base thieves. He also proved to be a powerhouse swinging the bat for the Sharks, pacing NSU in hits (63), RBI (55), runs (54), home runs (12) triples (5), slugging percentage (.585) and total bases (120), while ranking second in doubles (11) and batting .307 overall on the year. Wolforth ranked among the top three in four statistical categories in the formidable Sunshine State Conference – ranking second in the league in homers.
Wolforth recorded 17 multi-hit games, 16 multi-RBI games and closed his career on a 23-game reached base streak.
Chosen as NSU’s highest draft pick in 2019, Wolforth led the Sharks to tie for the best league record in the SSC and their fifth-consecutive NCAA DII postseason – NSU reached the NCAA Regional Final in Tampa.
The Rawlings Gold Glove winners have been selected since 2007 in the collegiate and high school ranks, featuring many future Major League Baseball players. The ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove Awards are selected by ABCA coaches committees at each level: NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA, NJCAA Divisions I, II and III, Pacific Association Division, and High School.
The ABCA/Rawlings Award Program is one of the most comprehensive in all of sports, awarding All-America Teams and Gold Glove Teams in nine divisions of amateur baseball as well as All-Region Teams in five divisions.
The ABCA/Rawlings All-America teams date back to 1949 starting with one collegiate All-America Team. Other divisions subsequently added until the current total of nine was reached. The first ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove teams were recognized in 2007, making this the 13th year the Rawlings Gold Glove Awards have been presented in the collegiate and high school ranks.
The ABCA, founded in 1945, is the primary professional organization for baseball coaches at the amateur level. Its over 11,000 members represent all 50 states and 23 countries. Since its initial meeting of 27 college baseball coaches in June 1945, Association membership has broadened to include eight divisions: NCAA Division I, II and III, NAIA, NJCAA, Pacific Association Division, High School and Youth. The 76th annual ABCA Convention will be held Jan. 2-5, 2020 in Nashville, Tennessee.
For a complete list of all the 2019 ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove Teams, click here.
