Tom Curtin Signs Professionally with St. Paul Saints

Recently graduated Central Connecticut baseball senior Tom Curtin signed with the St. Paul Saints of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball it was announced on Saturday. Curtin joined the Saints and made his first start against the Gary SouthShore RailCats on June 15.

In two appearances with the Saints, including one start, Curtin has struck out four in 6.2 innings.

As a senior, Curtin went 6-3 with a 3.86 ERA and a complete game shutout in 15 starts. He pitched a program single-season record 95.2 innings and walked just 25 batters, while collecting 53 strikeouts and liming opponents to a .283 average. Curtin helped lead the Blue Devils to their sixth Northeast Conference championship where he was named the Most Valuable Player. Curtin then pitched CCSU to its first NCAA win in a 7-4 win over #24 Cal at the Fayetteville Regional. He pitched a complete game six-hit shutout, while striking out five on May 23 against Wagner in the first game of the Northeast Conference Tournament. Two days later, he started the deciding game against Bryant and allowed two runs in 5.2 innings, a game the Blue Devils would win, 3-2. He then earned the win against Cal at the regional when he went 7.0 innings allowing just two earned runs on four hits, while walking two and striking out two.

In his four-year career, Curtin went 10-5 with two saves in 47 appearances, including 17 starts. In 144.2 innings pitched he walked 44 and struck out 76. Curtin was named to the Northeast Conference All-Tournament Team as a sophomore when he threw 3.2 shutout innings of relief against Sacred Heart in the Northeast Conference Championship game, earned him the win and the Blue Devils a spot into the Fort Worth Regional.

Curtin becomes the ninth Blue Devil over the past five seasons to sign with professional organizations. He is the fourth member of the 2017 squad to join the professional ranks, joining Dean Lockery (West Virginia Black Bears) and Nick Garland (GCL Pirates) of the Pittsburgh Pirates organization and Ryan Costello (Fort Myers Miracle) of the Minnesota Twins organization. 

ABOUT THE SAINTS
The St. Paul Saints are a professional baseball team based in Saint Paul, MN. The Saints are a member of the North Division of the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball. The Saints began as a member of the Northern League in 1993 before becoming a  founding member of the modern American Association in 2006. 

ABOUT THE FRONTIER LEAGUE
The American Association, with league offices in Durham, NC, was founded in October 2005 when the St. Paul Saints, Lincoln Saltdogs, Sioux City Explorers, and Sioux Falls Canaries announced they were leaving the Northern League. The Fort Worth Cats, Shreveport-Bossier Sports, Pensacola Pelicans, Coastal Bend Aviators, and El Paso Diablos joined the former Northern League teams and the expansion St. Joe Blacksnakes to form the American Association as a ten-team league. The new league began play in 2006 and is currently comprised of 12 teams in the central United States and Canada. The league has had several alumni move on to Major Leauge Baseball, including over 40 current players, which includes Washington Nationals pitcher Max Scherzer