Roughly 28 hours from Columbia, Missouri sits one of the largest — and most isolated — cities in the world: Perth, Australia. The nearest city with a population of at least 100,000 is Adelaide, more than 1,300 miles away. It’s not a place typically known for producing athletic talent, let alone in baseball.
But that’s something the entire country is working to change. With Australia competing in the last four World Baseball Classic tournaments and producing the No. 1 overall pick in the most recent MLB Draft, Travis Bazzana, the sport is gaining momentum Down Under. Missouri Tigers first baseman Cayden Nicoletto is proof of that rise — making the journey from Perth to the NAIA ranks, and now to the SEC.
Growing up in Perth
Nicoletto grew up in a small country town a few hours outside of Perth, home to just over 20,000 people. With no local Little League program, organized baseball wasn’t readily available — so he didn’t start playing the sport until around age 8.
“My dad would drive five hours down to play a Little League game on the weekends and then drive straight back after those games,” Nicoletto said.
With two older brothers who also played, Cayden was eager to join them on the field. Once he was old enough, he, his dad, and his brothers would make the long drive for games — only to turn around and head right back afterward.
A two-sport athlete growing up, Nicoletto excelled not only on the diamond but also on the soccer pitch. He didn’t decide which path to pursue until his junior year of high school. As his baseball skills continued to develop, he chose to stick with the sport and “see where it takes me in the world.”
One reason professional baseball hasn’t gained widespread popularity in Perth is the time difference. With Perth 13 hours ahead of Columbia, Missouri, Major League Baseball games often aired in the middle of the night — around 2 or 3 a.m. For Nicoletto, that meant growing up watching highlights on TV rather than catching games live.
Despite the challenges, Nicoletto had one goal: to play in the United States. A year before his freshman season, he took his first trip to the U.S., playing games up and down the West Coast in hopes of catching the attention of college programs across the country.
“It was late in the recruiting class — I mean, I was looking to go to college that year,” Nicoletto said. “I had a couple months to figure it out, but I was always looking at JUCOs. Most of the time I was working with JUCOs, and that’s how I got connected with North Iowa Area Community College.”
While playing in the States, his coach had a connection with the staff at North Iowa Area Community College and helped get Nicoletto noticed. It didn’t take long for him to earn a roster spot for the 2020 season, marking his return to America — this time as a college baseball player.
The offer came as a surprise not only to Nicoletto, but to his entire family as well.
When asked about his family’s reaction, Nicoletto said: “Just all the work that we put in was really paying off, and I truly want to pay back what my dad put into us as well. Obviously, my mom was excited — she was a little more nervous sending her youngest son across the world. But of course, they were all pretty excited.”
While it wasn’t unheard of for players from his school to sign with colleges in the U.S., Nicoletto’s opportunity still came as a pleasant surprise. That year, he was the only student from his high school to make the long journey to America — all for the chance to play the game he loved.
NIACC
Just a few months after accepting the offer, Nicoletto found himself in Mason City, Iowa, ready to begin his college career. He had been to the U.S. once before — limited to the West Coast — so he didn’t know what to expect. All he knew was that he was there to play baseball.
Once school started, Nicoletto took full advantage of the resources around him to begin his journey toward becoming a great player. Having never had a true coach growing up, he embraced the opportunity to learn — and was fortunate to be surrounded by one of the best coaching staffs he could have asked for.
“We had our hitting coach, Shawn Schlechter, leave for the Twins. Our pitching coach, Brett Degagne, got a job with the Yankees, and our head coach eventually got a job with the Phillies that year,” Nicoletto said. “But just the knowledge I got from those guys before they left — it was unbelievable and invaluable.”
Nicoletto’s first year at school was cut short due to COVID, but he used the downtime to study the game and adjust to the differences between baseball in Australia and the U.S. One major realization that changed everything for him was the importance of weightlifting. Back home, lifting wasn’t a common practice — but in the States, he quickly learned it was a key part of player development.
So, he returned to Perth and used the year off to focus on building strength, spending countless hours in the weight room to prepare his body for the next step in his baseball journey.
When Nicoletto returned after COVID, he looked like a different player. Standing 5-foot-8 and weighing 190 pounds, he was stronger, more confident, and ready to make an impact both at the plate and on the mound. And he delivered. In the 2021 season, he hit an impressive .383 with 33 extra-base hits and a slugging percentage just shy of .700. He didn’t pitch that year — and for good reason. After the season, it was revealed he had played the entire year with a torn UCL, which required Tommy John surgery.
After the season, Nicoletto heard from one of his former coaches in Perth, who told him about an old teammate he used to play and coach with — someone who was now the head coach at a JUCO in Missouri. That coach turned out to be Darren Munns, the head coach at Columbia College. Thanks to that connection, Columbia took a chance on Nicoletto and offered him a spot on the roster.
Columbia College
When Nicoletto first arrived in Columbia, he was a bit nervous. He didn’t know the program, his teammates, or what to expect from the environment at Columbia College. But with guidance from Coach Munns, he settled in quickly and found his footing.
Hoping to contribute either in the outfield or on the mound, Nicoletto was determined to get back on the field. He hated the idea of sitting on the bench and had always been told to take it personally when he wasn’t out there — so he did whatever it took to earn a spot in the lineup.
“The games you don’t play — the ones where you wish you were out there — really push you to become a better player,” Nicoletto said. “Coaches will be honest and real with you. If you’re not on the field, there’s a reason, and personally, you just have to be better. That’s really what I focus on — practicing with the team and then putting in that extra time.”
Thanks to that mentality, Nicoletto became an everyday starter and made the most of the opportunity. In his first season at Columbia College, he started 53 of the team’s 54 games and earned first-team All-AMC and second-team NAIA All-America honors, finishing the year with a .385 batting average and a team-leading 24 home runs.
He somehow followed that up with an even better 2024 campaign, earning another first-team NAIA All-America selection and being named conference player of the year. Nicoletto broke multiple school records, finishing with 87 hits, 27 home runs, 81 RBIs and 193 total bases. He also posted a .412 batting average and a .915 slugging percentage.
After his record-breaking season, Nicoletto had his sights set on making the jump to Division I — and there was only one school on his mind: Mizzou. Not wanting to face the challenge of relocating to another new city, he decided to wait and see if the Tigers would reach out. Eventually, head coach Kerrick Jackson did just that.
Playing in the SEC had always been in the back of Nicoletto’s mind — especially with a program like Mizzou just across town. That dream became a reality the moment he received the message from the Tigers’ coaching staff.
It wasn’t an easy decision for Nicoletto at first, as he weighed the risks to his career. But after some reflection, he realized making the move to Mizzou was the best step forward.
“It took a long time to think about,” Nicoletto said. “I knew the safe environment — I knew I could go back to Columbia after the years I’d had there. People were pulling for me to stay. But I also knew that, personally, if I wanted to become the best player I could be after this year, I had to take the chance and make the investment in myself.”
Mizzou
Once he arrived on campus, Nicoletto wasted no time getting settled. After spending the summer training with the team to adjust to the speed of the game, he hit the ground running when fall practices began.
He and his teammates began training and scrimmaging daily in preparation for the season, receiving guidance from the coaching staff every step of the way. The intensity and attention to detail during practices were unlike anything Nicoletto had experienced at either of his previous schools.
That’s not to say the adjustment came without challenges. Nicoletto quickly realized it was a completely different ballgame at this level — faster, tougher, and more demanding in every way.
“Just a whole lot faster,” Nicoletto said. “The depth of guys is better, and the top arms we face are way better. It’s about managing that — knowing I have the talent to be here — and just putting my best foot forward and doing the best I can.”
Nicoletto said some tweaks had to be made — both to his pitching and hitting mechanics — but the biggest adjustment was mental, learning how to compete at this level of the game.
Nicoletto has become a regular in Mizzou’s lineup, appearing in 43 of the team’s 51 games and making 34 starts. He’s hitting a solid .276 with six doubles and six home runs. Defensively, he’s been one of the Tigers’ most reliable players, posting a perfect fielding percentage with over 150 putouts and 10 assists.
Nicoletto plans to build a life around baseball. As a senior, he knows he wants to keep playing after college — he’s just not sure where that path will lead. If the MLB doesn’t come calling, he’s confident he can return home and play in Australia’s professional baseball league, where he’d finally get the chance to compete in front of his family.