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FL New England Knockouts

From One Shore to Another: John Cristino

July 8, 2024 - Frontier League (FL)
New England Knockouts News Release


John Cristino of the New England Knockouts
John Cristino of the New England Knockouts
(New England Knockouts)

BROCKTON, MA.- Our athlete spotlight features New England Knockouts catcher John Cristino. Cristino spoke about his 15 game hitting streak, including getting a base hit in 17 of the past 18 games from May 21 through June 9.

During that time at the plate, Cristino discussed the things that were going right for him. "My approach was in tune every single at bat. Every single day I show up to the field and work something new even if I am having success or not. I locked in on my approach a lot the last couple of weeks and balanced things in, this is obviously my first time in professional baseball. The pitching has been really good and I had to make quick in-game adjustments but I think my approach and a little bit of a mechanical change. I added some rhythm to my swing and it has really been able to help me a lot."

The rookie expressed how looked in that he was against the Sussex County Miners as he went 9 for 12 during the series. "Very locked in, like I said that locked in that I had against Sussex is how locked in I am against every other team. Sometimes you don't get the result because that is baseball how far it is luckily I was getting the result that I wanted, the balls are landing, the ball is finding my barrel that was great like I said it all just come when I show down to the field. My preparation for the cage, my preparation for team BP and then discussing preparation with my coaches and fine-tune approach. If your approach is tuned-in and you are confident and you trust your abilities the world is yours, you are able to hit as much as you can."

During that period, the individual from New Jersey emphasized the significance of making meaningful contributions to the team. "We had a good series win there in that stretch. Just every single day I come out to the field and produce to do my best for my team to give the best chance of winning at the end of the day all it matters is that we do win baseball games and each one of us find our success no matter what it is throughout the game. If I am able to bring it with my bat that's great and if I have to bring it with my defense one day that is also great." The catcher discussed his specific goal for this season and what he hopes to achieve. "We all have our own personal goals. One of my biggest things is coming and learning as much as possible every single day. Every single day we giving the opportunity to do better and better ourselves in our baseball career and just us as a human been and one of my biggest goal is just to become and continue to gain experience and just getting better every single day and we all have our own personal goal but as an overall is just every single day learning how I can be the best player that I can be every day."

As of June 20, Cristino had hit seven home runs so far in the season. In an interview, the catcher discussed his hitting strategy, emphasizing that he is actively seeking pitches that he can hit out of the ballpark. "Every single time I step into the batter's box I am ready to drive a pitch hard. I look at a specific spot and if I see that pitch early on no matter where it is in the count I am trying to put my swing on it. I always hit the ball harder. I tend to have some power behind me, which helps me with the homerun but at the end of the day it comes to my approach and sticking to my approach and trusting myself and knowing that I am capable of doing that."

In the initial month of the season, he discussed several encouraging aspects that he anticipates will persist for the duration of the season. "Just my mental toughness and just staying true to myself and trusting myself. [Manager] Jerod [Edmondson] has been a huge help for me in the batting spot and we had two conversation about a month ago that has ultimately transpired me to the hitter that I am becoming right know and if it wasn't for Jerod helping me out with those little things who knows where it be. I know what I got to do, to create success and what routine I got to do, what I got to do and how I got to do my body to feel right... we should be alright and stay healthy."

The former University of Rhode Island alum, who recently finished playing at Towson University, explained how his experiences at these schools have contributed to his growth and development as a baseball player. "Going through the whole college ranks teaches you everything about just being a complete person not just a baseball player and handling business on and off the field but going to Towson University I had some great coaches. Shoutout to coach [Tanner] Biagini and coach [Matt] Tyner on me. Biagini was great to me because he understood who I was as a baseball player and he was really able to have a good conversation with me. Especially with hitting and catching we had very similar mindset so it was really good and have somebody who knows where I am coming from in certain aspect and have a coach that can support me which is great."

In 2021 and 2022, Cristino was a key player for the Trenton Thunder, a team in the MLB Draft League. Reflecting on his time with the team, he shared how the experience significantly contributed to his growth as a baseball player.

"That was a great time playing with an awesome group of guys who are in pro ball now. Coach Jeff Manto in the draft league has been one of my favorite coaches. I love him. It was ultimately a great experience and untimely got all my feet wet for pro ball and what is it all about and just how to go about your business as a professional and playing at a high level every single day as well."

Cristino, who has been dedicated to playing baseball since the age of five, recounted the moment he realized he had the potential to play at the highest level. "...I'd say probably when I was freshman in high school I really realized I can do something with this and I want to do something with it and then I fell in love with the game, the process and the work it takes to put into this. I love it all. I wanted to be a big league player my entire life." He also added the significance of playing at the pro level. "It's awesome. It's been a blessing every single day to be able to come out here and compete. I am 24 years old and I get to do what I love every single day. There are going to be tough days and hard days. At the end of the day I come out here every single day and get to play baseball and I absolutely love

it. Obviously we all want to be in different situations. We all want to keep advancing in our baseball career. You always have to be able to step back and put it into perspective of how wonderful our life all and how amazing our life are and how blessed we all to give the opportunity to play baseball every single day."

Cristino detailed his offseason training regiment and his day-to-day routine during the season. "In my offseason routine, I am in the gym by 10:30-11:00 every single day and I work out, I lift my weights, and do my speed training with my trainer. Coach Cristian Leahy, wonderful guy [and a] wonderful trainer...We would work out in the morning and from there we go to my BP segment and I hit for [about] an hour to an hour and a half typically every single day and then I progressed in the bullpen later on throughout the winter. I usually give myself a little bit from the catching. Catching takes a whole tear in your body throughout the whole season and once you get in season. I work out one to two times a week just to maintain the weight that I put in during the season to not fully lose it and then keep my body healthy. Once you get in season it is more about being healthy every single day and just being able to come here and perform because our body goes through the most. We play six days a week especially like a rookie like me this is the first time that I played every single day in my life... and able to find the balance of playing and working out and body maintains and being able to tune that all in and figure out what works how I can get myself getting ready every single day."

He spoke about the fans coming to the ballpark and supporting them day in and day out. "It is amazing knowing that we are not doing it for us: We are doing it for them. Having the support of the fans and having the whole group and the community around you. When they support you it make us be here more it make us want to win more and just a great feeling when you hear someone in the crowd saying your name and you here the team the whole crowd chanting Go Knockout it is an awesome feeling and the more fun we can bring in the more fun we going to have every single night as a team for sure."

He added what the word Knockout means to him. "I got to say I am blessed to be a New England Knockout. To be a part of the inaugural season truly for me my first professional baseball season with a brand new team is amazing.

What the word Knockout means to me is to win. To knock it out of the park and win.

His go-to meal is Chick-Fil-a, and his mother is the most influential person in his life.

He also added about the interns and the work they put in during the course of the season. "They do it all. If it wasn't for the interns what would we have? They are out here every single day busting their butts. In the heat, in the rain and the cold. It doesn't matter what it is. Everyday you're out here grinding for us and just to make it a better spot for us and make it more enjoyable for everyone. You guys are spending a full day at the field and you're going through everything that you are going to. Having interns that care and that want to be here just makes it more fun for us especially when you guys are trying to figure out new little things like creativity to bring to the game and to have more fun with the kids and with the fans is awesome."

Finally he added, "My younger brother is also a huge influence on me as well. I've seen the work ethic he is taking on a baseball field. My younger brother was a baseball player and he was an undersized kid coming out of high school and we were junior college teammates and he was able to learn from me and what it takes to be a successful baseball player. I was able to watch my younger brother who never misses a day in the gym, who never misses a day in the batting cages, who never skips a day to do better and to progress from 5'8 170 pounds to a 6'3, 213 pound monster. That quite frankly has been one of the amazing things to watch: Watching my younger brother and my mother as well. My father was able to instill the work ethic in me, and nothing comes free and you have to work your tail off for everything that you want in my life. Life is not going to be fair, but no matter what happens, if you work past the failures...you will be able to do whatever you want, and my dad was able to teach me that."

The Knockouts return to Campanelli Stadium on July 9th, beginning a six-game homestead against the Tri-City ValleyCats. Tickets for the week can be found at https://tickets.knockoutsbaseball.com/.

About the New England Knockouts: The New England Knockouts are a professional baseball team in the MLB-partnered Frontier League. The Knockouts are the newest franchise of the Frontier League, officially being awarded membership in the fall of 2023.

The Knockouts play at Campanelli Stadium, located in Brockton, Massachusetts. Fans and other members of the media can stay up-to-date with all Knockouts content through their social media channels @NEKnockouts.

Check out the New England Knockouts Statistics




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John Cristino of the New England Knockouts
John Cristino of the New England Knockouts
   

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