Sam Booth considers pursuing baseball and basketball after completing his first year at Saint Rose

January 24, 2024

Updated: February 22, 2024

ALBANY – Pursuing⁢ a ‍college baseball career, Sam Booth never ‍expected ⁤to miss playing basketball so much.

A ⁢recent ‌graduate of Niskayuna ‍High School, Booth⁢ is currently in his second ‍semester at The College of⁣ Saint‍ Rose.

Although the freshman certainly didn’t expect the school to announce its impending closure ⁣after‍ just a few months, Booth sees his current situation as an opportunity.

As he searches for a new school to attend next year,⁤ Booth isn’t ‌just looking at academics and baseball programs. He wants⁤ to⁤ play basketball too.

“I’m definitely⁤ looking to play baseball and basketball,” ⁣he said.

And he already has a ⁢few offers from Division III programs to do just⁢ that.

“It’s ⁢really just ⁢about time management,” Booth⁤ said on how to handle both sports. “People ⁤have done way ‍harder things and really it’s my dream. I’ve missed basketball a ton this‌ year, and it’s definitely going to be ‌tough.”

No matter what⁣ level, mostly any ⁢college basketball ⁢schedule has the ⁣potential to bleed ‍into late February and⁣ March, the‌ start of most college baseball seasons.

“It’s going to have to be a compromise‍ with the coaches and be on⁤ the same page with me,” ‌Booth said. “I don’t think it’s all‍ that crazy of a crossover though, especially if I go to a better Division III school.”

“I⁣ think Sam should do‍ both,” said Saint Rose baseball coach Wayne Jones. “I know how much ⁣he’s missed basketball and I’ve ⁢talked to a‌ few schools ‌about ⁢him already. There’s definitely places where he will be able to play both.”

Currently, Booth is far away from both ‌the ⁢basketball court and baseball field, as he recovers from knee surgery.

“My senior year, I had a knee injury the whole ⁢year ‌and I just didn’t pay as much attention to it as I should have,” Booth‍ said.⁣ “I realized I was playing through a partially torn patellar, and it was painful, but I played through it. I just got⁢ surgery on it three ⁤months⁣ ago.”

The ‍2023 Niskayuna graduate‍ plans to remain at Saint Rose and redshirt for the spring 2024 semester, continuing to work on his rehab and to utilize the extra ⁢time to ‍find‌ the best fit, as opposed to transferring to another⁢ school⁤ right⁢ away.

“I just don’t want to deal with all the ⁤transfer stuff ‌right now,”‌ he said. “I have a pretty good situation at ⁣Saint Rose, and I ‍don’t really want to leave all my friends here yet. I definitely want to finish it out.”

While Booth is ⁣now set on⁢ playing ⁢both basketball and baseball at⁢ whatever institution ‍he ends up transferring to, playing both sports was actually ⁢something he was hoping to do at Saint Rose ⁤— once he⁤ returned to full health.

“If Saint ⁤Rose ⁤had stayed open,” Booth said, “I told Coach Jones‌ that I was going to try to walk on to basketball next ⁣year, and he said he’d have been fine with it.”

Should Booth remain true to ⁣his ⁤intention to redshirt this⁣ baseball season, he’d enter his sophomore year with four years of eligibility remaining⁢ in both sports.

Beckett Nielson

Transitioning from a collegiate athlete to a sports journalist, Beckett O’Neal channels his passion for sports into engaging stories. A Boston College graduate, Beckett specializes in local sports coverage, from high school heroes to regional professional teams, providing in-depth analysis and an athlete's insight.