Scouting Report: Initially cut as a walk on at Santa Clara, Nava went to JuCo an excelled, ultimately returning to Santa Clara for his senior season. He went undrafted and again proved the doubters wrong by excelling in independent baseball in 2007, earning the spot as Baseball American #1 independent prospect. From what he's demonstrated in independent ball, Nava has a great bat with a little bit of pop, very good plate discipline, average speed, and a strong arm in right.

Nava Signs With Red Sox

Posted Oct. 25, 2007 3:34 pm by J.J. Cooper
Filed under: Daily Dish

After years of rejection, Daniel Nava is finally getting his shot at the affiliated minors, and he has a new team to root for during the World Series.

Daniel Nava, Baseball America’s No. 1 independent leagues prospect, has signed a contract with the Red Sox. He will report to the Red Sox spring training next March. The rookie outfielder was named the Golden Baseball League’s Most Valuable Player after leading the league in batting (.371) and on-base percentage (.475) while also ranking among the top 10 in virtually every other league offensive category. He helped lead the Chico Outlaws to the league title.
The standout season was a further step in what has been a long climb to get noticed. He was cut during walk-on tryouts at Santa Clara in 2003 so he went to junior college where he hit better than .400 for two seasons. He returned to Santa Clara for his senior season where he led the West Coast Conference in multiple categories and was named to the league’s all-conference team.

Nava is a switch-hitter with power from both sides, a tick above-average foot speed and a strong arm in the outfield. He likely will play a corner outfield spot in the Red Sox system.

1. DANIEL NAVA, OF
Chico (Golden)

Nava has been proving doubters wrong for years. As a walk-on, he was cut during tryouts at Santa Clara in 2003, so he played two seasons in junior college and batted better than .400. Those gaudy statistics convinced Santa Clara to give him a chance, and he responded by leading the West Coast Conference in 2006 in batting (.395) and on-base percentage (.496) and making the all-conference team.

That still wasn’t enough to get Nava drafted, so he turned to the Chico Outlaws, who added him when two other players failed to show up. The 24-year-old led the league in batting (.371) and on-base percentage (.475) and was among the league leaders in most every offensive category. He ended up leading Chico to the league title and was named the league’s MVP.

The switch-hitting Nava showed an advanced mindset at the plate with a good two-strike approach. Although his lefthanded swing is a little smoother than his righthanded swing, he has power from both sides. He led the league in outfield assists while playing right field, though his manager Mark Parent said he could play center field.

“He can hit. He has a major league approach to hitting,” Parent said. “If you watch batting practice you might wonder what is he doing, but he takes batting practice like Eddie Murray.”

Nava's contract purchased by Red Sox
By PATRICK KINMARTIN-Sports Writer
Article Launched: 10/25/2007 12:22:46 AM PDT

Daniel Nava's long anticipated call from the major leagues finally came Wednesday when the Boston Red Sox purchased his contract from the Golden Baseball League.
The switch-hitting Outlaws right fielder, GBL batting champion and most valuable player was tabbed Baseball America magazine's No. 1 independent league prospect two weeks ago.

Nava will report to the Red Sox's Florida spring training facility in March with the opportunity to make the regular-season roster for the Portland Sea Dogs, Boston's Double-A affiliate in Maine.

"You have no idea how excited I am," Nava said from his home in Los Altos. "I am so pumped ... all I really asked for was a chance, and now I'm going to do everything I can to take advantage of it."

The 24-year-old emerged as a nonroster invitee in spring training to become a driving force in the Outlaws' run toward their first league championship, becoming the GBL's youngest hitting champion and MVP in the process with a .371 average.

In addition, Nava led the league with a .475 on-base percentage and was fourth in RBIs (59), third in doubles (23), second in slugging percentage (.625), second in extra-base hits (38) and third in runs scored (70). He hit .308 in the four GBL championship series games.

Many felt he was still off the radar of many major league farm systems throughout the year — Nava was not among a host of GBL players picked up over the summer — because he only played one season at Santa Clara University.

AS A SENIOR IN 2006: First-team All-West Coast Conference selection ... led WCC in batting (.395), on-base percentage (.494) and fielding percetnage (1.000)... tied for second in triples (4), sixth in walks (31) and stolen bases (15), seventh in hits (79) and tied for eighth in runs scored (47) ... was a perfect 15-for-15 in stolen base attempts and handled all 102 chances in the field for a perfect fielding percetnage ... appeared in all 54 games in 2006, starting 53 ... hit safely in 32 of the final 33 games of the season ... ended the season on an 18-game hitting streak, hitting .493 (37-for-75) in that stretch ... tripled and drove in a pair of runs Feb. 12 against San Diego State ... had two hits and drove in two runs Feb. 21 against Sacramento State ... walked twice and scored three runs at No. 22 Cal Poly on Feb. 24 ... doubled and drove in three runs against the Mustangs the next day ... went 2-for-3 with a triple, home run and three RBIs March 8 at Sacramento State ... went 2-for-4 March 18 against Northwestern to begin a 14-game hitting streak ... hit two triples and a double with an RBI March 19 against the Wildcats ... homered against Hawaii-Hilo on March 25 ... went 2-for-4 with a pair of walks and three runs scored the next day against the Vulcans ... had three hits, including a double, and an RBI at Gonzaga on April 7 ... hit a three-run homer April 28 against Saint Mary's ... had two hits in each of the next two games of the SMC series ... batted .769 (10-for-13) with an RBI and three runs scored in a three-game series at San Diego from May 5-7 ... had multi-hit games in the final four contests of the season ... run was highlighted by a 4-for-6 outing with a double, three RBIs and two runs scored May 13 against Portland.

AT COLLEGE OF SAN MATEO: Played baseball for Doug Williams ... named All-American and All-Conference during freshman season ... batted .430 with six homers and 58 RBIs ... earned All-State and All-Conference honors his sophomore season ... batted .384 with five home runs while driving in 30 runs with an on-base pct. of .520 ... team won back-to-back Coast Conference titles.

HIGH SCHOOL INFORMATION: A 2001 graduate of St. Francis High School in Mountain View, Calif. ... named honorable mention WCAL player as a senior ... team won CCS Division I title his senior season.

PERSONAL DATA: Born in Redwood City, Calif. ... parents are Don and Becky Nava ... has two younger siblings, David, 20, and Rebekah, 15 ... hobbies include playing the guitar, hanging out with friends and lifting weights ... future goals include playing professional baseball.

For Nava, who led the WCC with a .395 batting average and a .494 on-base percentage, the first-team selection is due justice for a laborious journey to Stephen Schott Stadium. After being cut in tryouts and then serving as the team manager for SCU in 2003, Nava continued working on his game, eventually transferring to College of San Mateo to further his progress. After an All-American career at CSM, Nava returned to the Mission Campus for his final year of eligibility in 2006, starting 53 of 54 games in left field, leading the conference in batting and on-base percentage, pacing the Broncos in hits (79), stolen bases (15) and posting a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage in 102 chances.

Until the surprise blast, Jake McKinley had dodged damage during a fine pitcher's duel despite putting five runners on base while OC's Nate Holguin simply overcame Daniel Nava. Nava singled to lead off the second inning and doubled with two outs in the third — the Outlaws’ only two real hits at that point considering Steve Boggs was gunned down at second base trying to extend a single in Chico’s first at-bat.

Nava in right field also was a major player in the defensive duel, robbing Johnny Coit of a potential two-out, bases-loaded triple in the first inning by leaping to catch a fly at full extension against the wall before later on sliding to snag an Aaron Davis line-drive with a runner at second base and one out.

Several Outlaws members talked before the game how the wind was blowing out in the direction of third base and carried fly balls further than usual. That's often the case in Reno, but last night seemed to be another extreme. Daniel Nava's game-tying shot in the eighth inning was a shot to the right-centerfield gap that ended up clearing the fence in dead center.

"It hooked like a golf shot," Nava said. "I knew I hit it hard enough to maybe leave in right field and it jumped over to center."

And never mind that his first home run of the season Friday was also wind aided, struggling Outlaw catcher Ricky Bambino admitted he will take production however he can get it these days.

Cleanup hitter Daniel Nava — the Outlaws' leader in hits (39), RBIs (27), runs (33), home runs (6) and the reigning Golden Baseball League player of the month starting yesterday — is not in the lineup for the first time this season because of a commitment to be in a friend's wedding that he had prearranged with manager Mark Parent before he was even admitted officially on the 22-man roster.

Nava didn't quit: Look at him now
Article Last Updated: 10/31/2007 10:41:00 AM PDT

DANIEL NAVA was leaning toward rooting for the Colorado Rockies in the World Series. Not surprising considering his own story, Nava has always found it easy to root for underdogs.
But those rooting interests changed with a phone call he received Oct. 24, informing him that his contract with the Chico Outlaws of the Golden Baseball League had been purchased by the Boston Red Sox.

"I can't believe it actually happened," Nava said.

To recap the Nava story: Nava grew up in San Carlos and went to St. Francis High. While in high school he served as a Stanford bat boy. He enrolled at Santa Clara University, tried out for the team, got cut, and took over as team manager for two years. He decided to give playing baseball one more shot at College of San Mateo, and after hitting .426 and .383 in his two years with the Bulldogs, went back to Santa Clara on scholarship.

Now that would have been a nice story if it ended at that point, but Nava was not close to being done. He won the West Coast Conference batting crown in his one year of eligibility with the Broncos, then won the GBL batting title and MVP award in his year with Chico. The kind of year Nava had with Chico (.371) caused Baseball America to rate him the No.1 independent league prospect.

Now his dream of a contract with a major league team has become a reality. Nava doesn't mind being held up as an example to others of dreams sometimes actually coming true.

"Something I really want to do is tell guys in my sport to stick with it," Nava said. "Stick with it, and you might get a shot." Since receiving the news that he's Red Sox property, Nava has increased the intensity and tempo of his workouts. He wants to make a good impression in Fort Myers when he shows up for spring training with the world champs.
"I want to make sure there is no doubt in my mind that I'm in the best shape I can possibly be, physically and mentally," Nava said late Monday after an evening batting session in the cage at Santa Clara. "This has made me focus a little more. I can't wait to get going.

"But then again, I waited for years. I can wait a few more weeks."

Nava succeeds with grip it, rip it mentality
Jeff Larson-Sports Editor
Article Launched: 11/22/2007 01:00:00 AM PST

It's the bottom of the ninth, one on, two outs, down by one, and you are about to approach the box - not an actual box, but a box shape drawn together by chalk lines. Just as soon as one of your cleats is about to enter that ever so sacred area for baseball players, millions of thoughts and emotions starting entering your brain, almost making it impossible to focus on the task at hand.

This may seem like a fictional tale only told in Hollywood, but for recent Boston Red Sox prospect Daniel Nava, it's what he has grown to love about the game.

"When I was younger, I played baseball because my dad (signed me up), and then I stayed with it because it was all I knew, (however), growing up I realized the moment when I walk up to the plate, and I'm about to step into the box, I have a ton of thoughts and emotions going through me," Nava said.

"Then I realized that once I figure out to control what is going on in my head, this pitcher will have nothing on me. Then when you conquer the challenge like let's say with a double off the wall, you think to yourself when standing on second that you beat the odds because only three out of 10 times, the average hitter gets a hit," Nava said.

"I love that feeling."

Nava may soon be pelting balls off the 'green monster' in Fenway Park as Boston invited Nava to training camp for a chance to play in the 2007 World Champions farm system.

This past season, Nava obliterated the Golden Baseball League as a member of the Chico Outlaws accumulating a .371 batting average on 95 hits, 12 home runs, 23 doubles, .625 slugging percentage, not to mention three triples all in only 72 games.

It's hard for major league players playing in 162 games to accrue these kinds of statistics, and Nava accomplished this stat line in less games.

According to Nava though, stats on his baseball resume don't mean anything in less he can achieve the dream of running onto the same outfield that Ted Williams once played on.

"Right now with getting picked up, my goal is to make it to the 'bigs', but in order to do that I have set up little goals of making the squad, and then working my way up the (farm system)," Nava said. "If it does ever happen though, I'll probably just break down crying because it's been a long road with a lot of stuff happening along the way."

The topper of Nava's long journey through life would have to be when one of his closest friends died in a motorcycle accident on August 22, 2004.

Benji Cantwell was only 25 years old.

"When I heard about my friend, we were about to start fall ball at my JC, and I called my coach to say that I don't know what's going on except for the fact that I'm a mess - I don't even know if I will return to the team," Nava said.

"I ended up dedicating the season to (Benji) wearing number thirty-three, which was his old high school football jersey number."

With this tragic accident, Nava put everything in perspective and realized how lucky he truly was.

"You never think your closest friend is going to die, so I realized that if he could go no one really knows what's going to happen. This made me grateful every day, every game that I am able to step into the box," Nava said. "Nobody can say they really know till it has affected you personally.

Now I know and I am just so grateful for this opportunity."

This opportunity didn't come without paying a price as Outlaws broadcaster Rory Miller said Nava got cut from Santa Clara in 2001.

"Daniel is the ultimate Cinderella story because he was a very good high school athlete (St. Francis Mountainview), but entering his freshmen season, he was cut from the baseball team resulting in him becoming team manager for the Broncos for two season," Miller said. "Where this was a huge slice of 'humble pie' for Nava, it did allow him to transfer to College of San Mateo to play two seasons of JC ball."

In 2004, Nava lit up the junior college ranks batting .430 hammering six home runs and compiling 58 runs batted in, Miller said.

The following year was basically a repeat of the previous season as Nava batted .384 with five home runs and 30 runs driven in.

Miller said playing at San Mateo was the ultimate 'sacrifice bunt' for Nava when it came to keeping his baseball career alive.

"After JC ball, Nava earned a scholarship at Santa Clara where he won a West Coast Conference batting title in 2006 batting .395," Miller said.

The numbers Nava put up are a tremendous accomplishment, but it's one that Nava cannot fully take credit for with Doug Williams, his coach at College of San Mateo providing the tutelage for a young, budding star in the making.

"He really believed in me and sat me down to tell me we believe you have the skills to get to the next level - prepare to be pushed," Nava said. "I thank him a lot for that."

More recently, Mark Parent, former coach of the Chico Outlaws also instilled confidence in Nava.

"My first year playing pro ball, I didn't know where I stood with the other guys, and (Parent) sat me down to say that I'm not going to blow you up by saying you are the best player I have ever seen in my life, but I do like what I see," Nava said. "That gave me the confidence knowing that this guy likes me and that's all I needed to know."

However, just getting inviting to the Outlaws training camp was an ordeal in itself.

"It was good that I wasn't on the roster in (preseason) because it kept me on edge and focused, which allowed me to not get complacent," Nava said.

As the season went along, Nava, like so many baseball players hit a slump, which caused him to have sort of an epiphany where he looked back on his junior college days.

"I looked back to my days at (San Mateo), and decided that instead of worrying if I was going to get picked up, I'm just going to 'grip it and rip it' from this point to the end of the season," he said.

This type of philosophy relates to the way guys like Eddie Murray and Cal Ripken Jr. approach the game.

"I love players who have the (mentality) that this is what I'm paid to do, and anything I don't do that I'm paid for would be deemed a failure," Nava said.

Nava hopes to take this mentality with him to Fenway Park someday.

"If that day ever happens, (Boston Red Sox sign him to a major league deal), I would first off pinch myself, then probably start crying," Nava said. "After that, if no one was around, I would jump up and down (followed by) running all around like a four year old at Christmas."

Ummmm I am so taking him in the MiLFA draft next year