John Silviano rediscovers love for baseball
Reaching the Big Leagues is a dream for most young baseball players. That dream wasn't any different for Hammerheads first baseman, John Silviano. Early on, John knew baseball was his passion and something he felt was a legitimate career path as his baseball skills began to develop. However, not all
Reaching the Big Leagues is a dream for most young baseball players. That dream wasn't any different for Hammerheads first baseman,
John grew up in Hypoluxo, Florida, roughly thirty minutes North of Jupiter and attended Summit Christian High School in West Palm. In his junior year, the lefty quickly became a player of interest in the minds of MLB scouts, but there was another plan in the works if the draft didn't work out. John had accepted a scholarship offer to the University of North Florida, pending the 2012 MLB draft.
As expected, Silviano was drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 13th round. "It's every kids dream in high school. Your No. 1 goal is to be drafted and play professional baseball," said John.
The 17-year-old was then placed in the Gulf Coast League with a bright future ahead of him. However, after batting just .155 in his first two seasons, the Blue Jays released Silviano in July of 2014. Having never been faced with this type of rejection, John was left questioning his love for the game and wasn't sure what was next in his life. "I didn't really know what to do. I was possibly going to play Independent ball, but I wasn't sure at the time."
Soon after, a scout from the Pittsburgh Pirates who pursued Silviano back in high school gave him a call to tell him about a rule that he should check into. The scout explained to John that there was a way he could still play collegiate baseball, even though he had been drafted and played two seasons of professional baseball. Through extensive research, the high schooler turned pro realized he was unable to play at the Division I or III levels as well as NAIA, but he could play for a Division II school if the proper procedures were taken.
Seeing another opportunity present itself, John's dad, a former NFL agent and MLB scout, called Coach Rudy at Lynn University in Boca Raton to discuss John's baseball future. Coach Rudy was intrigued and got the ball rolling. After what seemed like it was going to be "endless paperwork", the two-year pro was finally eligible to play college baseball, but did need to sit out one season. So he enrolled at Lynn University in January of 2015, sat out that season, and took business and sports management course work.
While away from the game, John had time to reflect on his past and how he wanted to represent himself moving forward. He knew things had to change in his life outside of baseball for him to regain his focus. "I deleted my Instagram, Facebook and Twitter because I wanted to get away and get back to focusing on becoming a better baseball player."
After one year off from organized baseball, John was determined to prove his talent once again. This was a turning point for the 21-year-old. Attending Lynn University rejuvenated John's love for the game after seeing how hungry his fellow teammates were to reach their goals. This pushed Silviano to work harder than ever before and set high expectations for the 2016 season. It was time for John to believe in himself again and he did just that by belting 31 home runs, setting a school, conference, and region record, which led him to receive the Sunshine State Conference Player of the Year.
Coming off his stellar collegiate campaign, John was ineligible for the draft because he had already been drafted, but was signed by the Miami Marlins in 2016 after the draft. "I think if I would have gone the route of playing college baseball first, that I wouldn't be the person I am today. Things that happened to me will either make you work harder or quit".
Now in his second stint in pro ball, Silviano has a different outlook for the game. "I realized the great opportunity I have each day to play this game. It can be taken away really easy."
The third year pro spent the 2016 season with Greensboro (A) and was promoted to Jupiter (A+) in 2017.
Silviano has put up respectable numbers through 30 games in 2018, batting .283 with four home runs and 17 RBI. In April, he helped Jupiter win two of three games in Daytona by crushing not one, but two grand slams in back-to-back games and recorded 10 RBI in the series. "The player I am now and the player I was coming out of High School are not even comparable and that just comes from hard work and dedication to become consistent in my game".
John has had help throughout this growing process and couldn't be more grateful for the opportunity he was given to play at Lynn University. "I sincerely thank coach Rudy and everything he did for me, because if I had not went there (Lynn), I wouldn't be where I am now".
Looking back on his journey, John has some advice for young ball players like himself. "Enjoy the opportunity to play baseball, be grateful, and don't take it for granted."
Despite his success, Silviano hasn't reached his goal just yet because he "truly believes he will be in the Big Leagues soon" and knows his time will come, but needs to stay patient until then.
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