Congratulations to White Sox Elite’s Nick DeMarco

Named 2021 Gatorade Illinois Baseball Player of the Year

Nick DeMarco of St. Charles North High School and participant in the White Sox Elite 17U program has been named the 2020–21 Gatorade Illinois Baseball Player of the Year.

The first from his school to receive the prestigious honor, which recognizes not only outstanding athletic excellence but high standards of academic achievement and exemplary character demonstrated on and off the field, DeMarco credits training and tournaments with the White Sox Elite program for showcasing his skills amongst the region’s top talent.

With his time in the program drawing to an end, DeMarco is the state’s №4 draft prospect as ranked by PrepBaseballReport and the 2021 Dukane Conference, and he signed his National Letter of Intent to play baseball on scholarship at the University of Notre Dame this fall.

On Tuesday, July 20, the White Sox honored DeMarco and more than 20 of his fellow 2021 White Sox Elite baseball college commits (full list below) in a special pregame ceremony.

We took a moment to catch up with the 5-foot-11, 185-pound senior infielder and right-handed pitcher who posted a .423 batting average with 11 home runs, 55 runs scored and 37 RBI this past season:

Congratulations, Nick! What does it mean to you to earn this recognition?

“It’s definitely an honor to win the award. Even just finding out I was nominated made me really excited. To have my name in the mix of candidates in the state was exciting enough, and then I found out I had won it! I looked at the Gatorade website, and you can see all the past winners. Obviously the national names all stood out as guys you would know, but even seeing some of the guys who played in Illinois — all the big names — it’s cool seeing your name pop up in a group with all of them.”

Talk a little bit about what’s next and your excitement for Notre Dame.

“Notre Dame has always had an amazing program — last season, they were one game away from making it to [the Men’s College World Series in] Omaha — and I’m excited to be along for the ride. I think we’ll have a pretty good team for the next few years. There are some guys who I love watching and following on Twitter. Obviously, Nico [Kuvadas] put on a show last year, and I’ve been learning a ton from the infielders and really the entire roster. I came over for the South Bend Regional game against UConn last season, and they won 26–3. I think six different guys hit home runs, so it’s been really fun to watch.”

Do you have a favorite story from your time in the White Sox Elite program?

“I was a part of the program for two summers, and it was awesome to have elite tournaments throughout the summer with some of the region’s top talent. I’m not sure if I can pinpoint one story in particular, but the experience itself had me play with so many great guys — Alex Calarco (Northwestern), Grant Comstock (Northwestern), Adam Dowler (Louisville) and all those guys. They’re all really good players, and it felt different than competing against them in high school. The program has good people and traveling around, staying and hanging out in hotels, and getting to play alongside these guys is pretty awesome.”

“Also, Coach [Jim] Adduci has helped me out a ton with the Chicago Scouts Association, which I’ve played with as well. I saw a fair amount of overlap there with the White Sox Elite guys — Comstock and Calarco — which was great. Coach Adduci has been one of my biggest hitting tools in just two seasons working with him. He has a great philosophy that’s benefited me tremendously over the years.”

Do you have advice for young players starting out in the Elite program?

“Be a sponge! There’s a ton of knowledge in the program, and no matter what the coaching staff will take care of you and share that knowledge. You’ll have an opportunity to play alongside and against so many talented players and having this type of exposure can only help you in your game. The coaches understand how to win, but they also understand how to help you over time so you’re ready to play at the next level.”

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The White Sox offer Elite baseball travel team programs for the 15U-17U age groups. Since the program’s inception, White Sox Elite has helped over 100 students pursue their dreams of playing the game at the collegiate level.

For more information on the White Sox Elite program visit whitesox.com/play or email youthbaseball@chisox.com.