| Austin Nola | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Nola with the Omaha Storm Chasers in 2024 | |
| Kansas City Royals | |
| Catcher / Infielder | |
| Born: December 28, 1989 Baton Rouge, Louisiana, U.S. | |
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| June 16, 2019, for the Seattle Mariners | |
| MLB statistics (through 2023 season) | |
| Batting average | .249 |
| Home runs | 24 |
| Runs batted in | 136 |
| Teams | |
Austin Kyle Nola[1] (born December 28, 1989) is an American professional baseball catcher in the Kansas City Royals organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners and San Diego Padres. He made his MLB debut in 2019 for the Mariners.
Nola was born and raised in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where he and his brother Aaron attended Catholic High School. The Colorado Rockies drafted Nola out of high school in 2008, but he declined their offer, instead committing to play college baseball for Louisiana State University, where he helped the Tigers win the 2009 College World Series championship. He was drafted after his junior year in 2011, this time by the Toronto Blue Jays, but chose to finish his college career.
The Miami Marlins then selected Nola in the fifth round of the 2012 MLB Draft, and he elected to sign with them for a $75,000 signing bonus. He spent the next few seasons rising through the Marlins' farm system, reaching the Triple A New Orleans Zephyrs in 2015. There, his career stalled, and Nola, worried that he would not make it to the major leagues, made the change from shortstop to catcher. He learned the position while playing in the Arizona Fall League, then began starting behind the plate full-time in 2017. A free agent after the 2018 season, Nola signed a contract with the Mariners. He made his major league debut with Seattle in June 2019. At the 2020 trading deadline, the Mariners traded Nola to the Padres, with whom Nola had his first MLB postseason appearance. He caught the Padres through the 2020 National League Wild Card Series, taking the team to the 2020 National League Division Series.