A plastic bat. A plastic ball. A casual game in the backyard with his uncle when he was just three years old. This is Curtis Washington Jr.'s earliest memory with the game of baseball, and one that prompted his official start in the sport at the age of five. Despite his early introduction to the game, as a multi-sport athlete growing up—playing football, basketball, and baseball—, this West Memphis, Arkansas native was captivated by the opportunity to play any one of those sports at the professional level. There were no limits. Throughout his time in high school, at West Memphis High School, Curtis continued to play baseball and basketball and strengthen his IQ within each sport. Particularly with baseball though, there was a powerful life-lesson he took away from his four-year journey in the program: the importance of growth. As he highlights, it was in going from "a team that didn't win much and gradually got better" to a team "that had a winning record and made it to the state tournament senior year" that he discovered the value of working to reach one's highest potential while encouraging others to do so as well. For Curtis, this was Lesson #1.
Upon graduating from West Memphis, Curtis began his collegiate career at the University of Arkansas and confirmed his interest in focusing solely on baseball with the hopes of one day playing professionally. It was up from there. After two seasons at Arkansas, Curtis transferred to Wabash Valley College in Mount Carmel, Illinois—where he not only had a breakout year, but also helped the team to a No.1 national ranking and Great Rivers Athletic Conference title. Shortly after his lone season of JUCO ball, Curtis entered the MLB Draft League and was expected to get drafted. Despite going undrafted, he remained committed to working towards an opportunity to play at the next level. He was on a mission. For his junior year, Curtis joined Purdue University's baseball program and elevated his game further—starting in all 50 games, leading the team in hits, runs and steals, and earning the team's Newcomer of the Year award. It was here where he learned another powerful life-lesson which can be summed up in one word: elevation. The rest is history! After his junior season, Curtis entered his name in the 2022 MLB Draft and was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 19th round. He had done it. He had achieved his dream of playing baseball professionally. Curtis hasn't looked back since. Throughout his rookie season, Curtis joined the Modesto Nuts—the Single-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners—and became a 2023 MiLB Champion after winning the California League Championship. As he progresses through this chapter of his baseball career, he is eager to make an impact on the game, foster his legacy in the sport, and inspire the next generation of athletes in the years to come. Through it all, he is reminded time and time again of those two powerful lessons he learned throughout his time in high school and college; ones that highlight the considerable feats that can be accomplished with growth & elevation in mind.
Let’s start with your journey early on in college! What were some challenges that you faced during your freshman season and how did you work to overcome them?
Challenges for me would probably be…when I was in high school, I would play with a team that wasn't really winning all the time. We really didn't have a lot of support—meaning fans—, it was really just the parents of the players. So I would probably say staying locked in when we were losing and there was nobody or not too many people in the stands (was a challenge). Another thing would be the time management part. When I'm in college, you know, baseball is like a part of it. Then, there's the books, there's social life, getting to know people, social media, and all of that. All of that together is a lot. It takes a lot on the individual to make sure that you have great time management to get everything done that you need to be doing instead of focusing on things that you maybe want to do. I would say that I specifically would try to not get on social media too much and take care of business first. For class, making sure that I get there on time and making sure that I go. With baseball, being in practice, putting in the work, and being everywhere on time.
Take us through your time at Purdue! What was that experience like of playing your final collegiate year with Purdue before embarking on your professional career?
I loved every bit of the time that I spent at Purdue. I met a lot of new guys. The coaching staff gave me an opportunity to fulfill my dreams from growing up as a baseball player. I've always wanted to start at a Division I school, Power Five, start in the lineup every game being center field—that's my favorite position and basically my position for good now—, and I've always wanted to be in the top of the lineup. That's what I put in the work to do, and they were able to put their trust in me to be able to set a great example of what it's like to put in the work, continue to stay focused, stay on my grades, and do whatever it takes to get that opportunity to be able to play every day.
You had an incredible journey throughout each phase of your collegiate career. During your time in JUCO, you guys won a conference title and you also helped the school earn that No. 1 national ranking. Then, during your time at Purdue, you became the Newcomer of the Year. What did earning those honors and achieving those milestones mean to you?