‘Throwback guy’: Phillies’ No. 15 prospect Carson DeMartini is Riding Retro Playstyle on Quick Rise Through Philadelphia System

Carson DeMartini was initially questioned by his father, Tommy, when he dove headfirst into second base at just nine years old. While many players that age are still learning the rules of the sport, DeMartini was already developing his hard-nosed play style.

Tommy knew the recklessness could cause self-injury. It could even harm DeMartini’s opponents. Yet, DeMartini was building an artistry for the future.

“At first, I tried to guide him against it,” Tommy said. “But then I started to realize this is just who he is. And so then I said, ‘All right, well, let's embrace it.’”

Often sporting flip-down sunglasses, a tucked-in shirt during batting practice and a jersey smothered in dirt by the end of the night, DeMartini has established a throwback style. He’s become an anomaly in the modern game, where most find any excuse to take a play off.

The Phillies’ No. 15 prospect is cruising through their farm system after being selected in the fourth round of the 2024 MLB Draft, producing an .829 OPS across Jersey Shore and Reading this season, entering play on June 27. He understands his style is no longer the norm. But it’s what he thinks will get him to the Major Leagues.

“It's lost sometimes nowadays with all the flashy stuff,” DeMartini said. “That ability to be the ‘gamer,’ I really pride myself on.”

Former Virginia Tech teammate Eddie Micheletti Jr. sees DeMartini as comparable to Will “The Thrill” Clark in his workman-like attitude. Brewster Whitecaps head coach Jamie Shevchik looks at his “**-you mentality” as parallel to Pete Rose. DeMartini lives and breathes to compete, no matter the circumstances.

“He just has that aura about him,” Jersey Shore hitting coach Matt Snyder said. “When you watch him play, he's always dirty. He's running as hard as he can. He's trying to make every play.”

DeMartini said his approach has been the same since he began playing baseball. He doesn’t try to do it. It was instilled in him through his father, who taught him how to respect the game and play it the right way. Though a few other mentors helped, too.

DeMartini grew up in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and attended Ocean Lakes High School. But far before he was starring on the diamond, his father was a volunteer coach for future New York Mets third baseman David Wright and his three younger brothers. They were attendees of the camps Tommy ran with DeMartini’s high school coach, Pete Zell, building connections within the community.

Wright went to the camps during his younger years and just as he was set to go to Ocean Lakes, Wright’s father, Rhon, was promoted in Norfolk’s police department. The family moved to Chesapeake, but Tommy remained close with Wright as he became a Mets star and DeMartini grew up. They visited Wright and the Mets in New York, Chicago, Atlanta and other cities across the National League. Wright even came to DeMartini’s elementary school and high school to speak with the class.

Tommy was a catcher in college, which prompted DeMartini to do the same at a young age. Though as he grew up, modeling his game after Wright, he moved to the infield and stuck. While seeing Wright’s approach to the game as “the standard,” DeMartini built his personality off the field to pair with his playing style.

“He plays like a ‘90s All-Star and he lives like a ‘90s All-Star,” Snyder said.

Traveling up and down the East Coast with his father as a kid, DeMartini often took in the sweet sounds of classic rock legends like Billy Joel, Pink Floyd and Van Halen, among others. The music turned into his fuel during workout sessions in the batting cage and the weight room in high school, college and now professional baseball.

When he wasn’t working on his craft at Virginia Tech, he was often taking in more throwback music. The Hokies’ baseball house usually featured Guitar Hero sessions, which DeMartini played a large role in.

“He’s an old, free soul, and he's gonna be himself,” Micheletti Jr. said. “He's not afraid to be himself.”

DeMartini’s aesthetic even translated to his car. In the summer in Virginia Beach and Blacksburg during the school year, DeMartini whipped a 2010 silver Jeep Wrangler around. He popped the doors and roof off. The tires were 35 inches. The alignment was as DeMartini described it, “jacked up.”

“A lot of people say (the Jeep) describes me well,” DeMartini said. “Flying around in that thing and just rolling.”

DeMartini’s Jeep now resides at his home in Virginia Beach. He feared it wouldn’t be able to make the trips to Florida and Philadelphia’s affiliates, so he purchased a new truck to feel more secure. While trading in his old vehicle for a new one, he’s done the same with his swing at the plate.

Despite DeMartini’s retro style of play, he hones in on the new-age analytics needed to advance his offensive game. Tommy said DeMartini was into math and science in high school and the influx of information helps him on a daily basis, while other players might be “paralyzed” by the metrics.

He understands everyone has holes in their swings, and with data, pitchers can easily exploit those weaknesses. When he first entered professional baseball for 24 games in 2024, he messed with everything from where his feet sat in the box to where his hands were placed.

With Snyder in Jersey Shore to start 2025, DeMartini opened his stance more to create a more natural loading phase and stay through the zone longer. While Snyder provides drills to work on to improve specific aspects of a swing, he saw DeMartini implement changes immediately that often take other players a week or two. Handling fastballs at the top of the zone became a priority. Adjustability with solutions became a must.

DeMartini built success with the BlueClaws with his improvements and on June 8 against Bowling Green, he produced the best performance of his professional career. In his first at-bat, he plucked a 1-0 pitch for a home run. A few innings later, a home run again on an off-speed pitch.

“I asked him, ‘Were you sitting on that?’” Snyder remembers inquiring to DeMartini when he returned to the dugout. “He goes, ‘I swear I was ready for the fastball and I just had solutions of my own.’ That gave me chill bumps when I heard him say that.”

Later that night, DeMartini was called into Manager Greg Brodinzki’s office with Snyder and Assistant Coach Orlando Muñoz. Brodinzki broke the news to him: pack your stuff, you’ve been promoted to Reading.

Before joining Philadelphia’s organization, DeMartini’s sweet left-handed stroke first took center stage with the Hokies. As a freshman in 2022, DeMartini and VT were just one win away from a trip to Omaha for the College World Series. Trailing 2-0 against Oklahoma, he blasted a two-run shot to tie the game. Virginia Tech lost to the Sooners to end its season. But he had arrived.

As he surged through his high school years, COVID-19 limited his recruiting and forced DeMartini to have a strong fall of his senior season. He wanted to play at the highest level but was overlooked. Duke passed on him. Nearby UVA opted for alternative recruits. Tommy said mostly mid-major programs targeted his son until the Hokies kept him close to him.

Under head coach John Szefc, DeMartini slotted into the nine-hole in the Hokies’ lineup, a team that featured multiple future draft picks and won the Atlantic Coast Conference regular season title. After each home run VT hit, the team brought a sledgehammer out of the dugout and slammed it in celebration. It became a staple of the squad’s success, even earning the nickname “Hammerin’ Hokies.” With DeMartini’s 15 home runs as a freshman, he was at the forefront of it.

The NCAA moved to eliminate celebratory props from being on the field, limiting Virginia Tech’s hammer celebration and identity. When Szefc was asked about the ruling in the postgame press conference, DeMartini jumped in and wasn’t afraid to speak his mind despite being just a 19-year-old freshman. He said the NCAA’s move was “total crap,” citing examples of other teams’ celebrations and how the Hokies would proceed.

“It showed the strength of his personality,” Szefc said. “He's a bit of a throwback guy. He's got very strong opinions and thoughts on the game.”

Following plenty of success in his first year in Blacksburg, DeMartini made his way to the Cape Cod Baseball League to join the Brewster Whitecaps. He learned how to deal with failure early on, but eventually became the “heart and spirit of the team,” as former teammate Davis Diaz put it. He continued to blossom in his sophomore season in a more prominent role, but his hard-nosed play style caught up to him.

Midway through the campaign, DeMartini slid headfirst into second base against Georgia Tech, just as he had a decade prior in Little League. This time, the slide caused a shoulder injury, putting a major roadblock in his professional dreams.

He remained in the lineup, though as a designated hitter, and underwent surgery on his labrum in his throwing arm shortly after the season. DeMartini didn’t play at all in the fall of his junior year but rushed back in time for the season, playing nine months after the procedure. The return allowed him to lead the Hokies on the field, and now two years after surgery, DeMartini says his arm feels back to 100%. However, his time when he couldn’t play in the field allowed him to pick the brain of Szefc in the dugout, growing his already robust baseball knowledge.

DeMartini’s draft stock slid as he was set to be selected in 2024. The injury forced him to miss a second summer in the CCBL and a likely Team USA invitation after his sophomore season, limiting time to showcase his abilities. Tommy said the family expected DeMartini to still go higher based on the overall body of work, but dropping to the fourth round allowed for yet another opportunity to prove people wrong and prove himself right one headfirst slide at a time.

“I'm just doing whatever I can to push myself to the next level,” DeMartini said. “I’m not the fastest guy in the world, but I'm gonna try to steal as many bags as possible. I don't have the most power, but I'm gonna try to hit the most home runs as possible. I'm just trying to maximize my abilities and that’s a part of my game.”