Teal Tridents Up:  Josh Caron

Josh Caron is a catcher in the Seattle Mariners organization, currently playing for the Everett AquaSox. Caron, who grew up in Wisconsin, attended the University of Nebraska and was drafted in the 4th round of the 2024 Major League Baseball Draft by the Seattle Mariners (No. 121 overall). Caron had an amazing career with the Cornhuskers, breaking records while achieving semifinalist status for the Buster Posey National Collegiate Catcher of the Year Award.

Josh is an amazing young man who is respected by his teammates and coaches. During his final season with Nebraska, he hit .308 with 15 doubles, 16 home runs, 65 runs batted in and 46 runs scored. Seattle Sports Union was fortunate to sit down with Caron for an interview after an extra-innings walk-off win by the Everett AquaSox.

Seattle Sports Union: How did you become a catcher?
Josh Caron: Believe it or not, I used to play outfield — especially center field. I also played shortstop. When I was probably nine or ten years old, my coach said to me “I think you would make a good catcher." With that said, I quickly evolved into a catcher. I believe, in my first game, I threw out a runner trying to steal. I immediately fell in love with the position.

Josh Caron with a Gold Glove play in foul territory! pic.twitter.com/yk7fCjc7Vy

— Everett AquaSox (@EverettAquaSox) May 11, 2025

SSU: How cool is that? Awesome! Where did you grow up, and did you have a favorite baseball player?
JC: I am from Sun Prairie, Wisconsin. It’s a suburb outside of Madison, Wisconsin. There are about 35,000 people so it’s a pretty good size. I was a Green Bay Packers fan growing up and yes, I even was a Milwaukee Brewers fan. My favorite player was former Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy.

SSU: Excellent choices! After high school, you attended the University of Nebraska. How did that come about?
JC: I wasn’t a huge recruit coming out of high school. I had a few offers from mid-majors but when Nebraska came calling, I took a visit and fell in love with the place. I felt that it was a great spot and a great environment to play in. The fans there were pretty crazy about the Cornhuskers and that alone was a huge attraction.

SSU: Last season you put up some eye-popping stats not for only a catcher, but for any college baseball player. Tell us why it was such a great season for you.
JC: It was a great year — at least I felt like it was. It took me a couple of years at Nebraska to figure things out and get my feet wet. By my junior year, I felt that I achieved that status. College was a really great experience for me to just kind of mature and grow up. We, as a team, had a pretty solid year. I was a semifinalist for the Buster Posey award as well which was quite an honor. I can’t complain, that’s for sure.

SSU: Tell us one favorite high school or college moment on the baseball field.
JC: I would say winning the state championship my senior year of high school. That was very nice to be a part of and is something I will never forget.

SSU: Last year, you were drafted in the 4th round by the Seattle Mariners in the Major League Baseball Draft. Where were you on draft day, and did you know that Seattle was interested in you?
JC: My parents got us an Airbnb up in Central Wisconsin — the middle of nowhere. It was a really cool little cabin. There were a bunch of people (family and friends) that were a part of the festivities. As for Seattle showing interest, I had heard from several teams including Seattle. I heard that they were looking for a catcher in the draft — someone to hopefully draft early. Little did I know that was going to be me. It was a blessing in disguise and I am very fortunate.

We don't encourage running on Josh Caron's arm. pic.twitter.com/WPhRCPrQIH

— Everett AquaSox (@EverettAquaSox) April 12, 2025

SSU: What is one of your strongest parts of your game, and what is one area you want to work on to make you even better? Personally, I enjoyed being the “ring general out there."
JC: I personally take pride in all that I do — especially being the one who leads the pitching staff. Having a great relationship with my pitchers is important. I like to think those are some of my strong points. Being a “general” is a good call. One last strong point is that I would say that I call a great game out there. Sure, not everyone is perfect, but I feel I am blessed to be in the position that I am where I can learn from my mistakes as well. As for something I feel I need to work on, perhaps it is being consistent all the way around every day I show up to work (call a great game, treat everyone with respect, learn from the good things and the areas I need to improve). Anyway, I just need to build on that every day and my game will improve.

SSU: You were invited to big league camp this past spring as a non-roster invitee. How cool was that? Do share….
JC: That was so awesome — thanks for asking. I was pretty surprised when I got the call. I was not expecting that at all. It was a great experience getting to learn from the likes of Cal Raleigh and Mitch Garver. They are truly great guys and I learned so much. It wasn’t just the fact that they took me under their wing, it was also just being able to sit back and watch them on the field and in the clubhouse. Such a blessed experience.

SSU: You got the call to Everett. What was your first impression about Everett when you arrived?
JC: The landscape here is so beautiful. That is what stood out. Sure, I grew up in Wisconsin, but Everett, Washington has a bit more elevation. The trees and the greenery here are so beautiful.

SSU: We promise it will get warmer!
JC: That is what I was told, but remember that I grew up in Wisconsin where we had lots of snow. I am OK with it.

SSU: Besides Funko Field, what is your favorite place to play?
JC: There are so many but I would say Charles Schwab field in Omaha, Nebraska (home of the College World Series) is pretty cool to play at. Nebraska played the Big Ten tournament there and the fans came out in gigantic masses for us. The environment alone is insane.SSU: What was your major in college? What do you want to do when you retire in 20 years?
JC: I majored in Business Management. What do I want to do in 20 years? That is a great question. Hopefully it will be something in real estate but I know you need a little money to start out. We will see how things go.

SSU: Last questions: What is your favorite ice cream and your favorite sports movie of all time?
JC: I love Blue Moon Ice Cream (founded in Milwaukee in the 1950's and popular in the Midwest) because it’s a great flavor. As for my favorite sports movie, it has to be Field of Dreams!

SSU: You were invited to big league camp this past spring as a non-roster invitee. How cool was that!!! Do share….
JC: That was so awesome, thanks for asking. I was pretty surprised when I got the call. I was not expecting that at all. It was a great experience getting to learn from the likes of Cal Raleigh and Mitch Garver. They are truly great guys and I learned so much. It wasn’t just the fact that they took me under their wing, but just being able to sit back and watch them on the field and in the clubhouse. Such a blessed experience.

SSU: So, you got the call to Everett. What was your first impression about Everett when you arrived?
JC: The landscape here is so beautiful. That is what stood out. Sure, I grew up in Wisconsin, but Everett, Washington has a bit more elevation. The trees and the greenery here are so beautiful.

SSU: We promise it will get warmer!
JC: That is what I was told, but remember I grew up in Wisconsin where we had lots of snow, so I am OK with it.

SSU: Besides Funko Field in Everett, Washington, what is your favorite place to play?
JC: There are so many but I will say Charles Schwab field in Omaha, Nebraska (home of the College World Series) is pretty cool to play at. We played the Big 10 tournament there, and the fans came out in gigantic masses for us. The environment alone is insane.

SSU: What was your major in college? What do you want to do when you retire in 20 years?
JC: I majored in Business Management. What do I want to do in 20 years? That is a great question. Hopefully it will be something in real estate but I know you need a little money to start out so we will see how things go.

SSU: Last questions, favorite ice cream and favorite sports movie of all time?
JC: I love Blue Moon Ice Cream (founded in Milwaukee in the 1950s and popular in the Midwest) because it’s a great flavor. As for my favorite sports movie it has to be Field of Dreams!!

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