Getting To Know: Tommy Costello
January 18, 2017 | Baseball
The Husky Baseball team welcomes in a group of newcomers for the 2017 season that helped make up one of the nation's top-10 overall classes. Leading up to the season-opener on Feb. 17, GoHuskies.com will feature some of the newcomers online and through UW Baseball's social channels. Featured today is left-handed pitcher Tommy Costello.
You were a two-time baseball captain and a captain as a senior for your football team at Chaminade Prep? What makes you such a good leader?
I really care about everyone. Each individual. Not just on the team but at school. I really like to invest in relationships and I like educating myself in leadership. I like reading books about it and what not. Tony Dungy is a really good guy and I like to talk about leadership and his style, the Christian leadership. I really gravitate toward that. I'm Catholic and I have a really strong religious background so I just think leadership is not really like 'follow me' but more of supporting the other person and helping them with whatever they need. If you can make another person stronger that can lift you and the other person on the team better.
This past fall was your first not playing football. Was it weird to not be playing?
Totally. It was different. I laser locked in on baseball and specifically pitching now so it has been different. I love football. I watch the games differently than the average fan. I like looking at it in a quarterback's mindset. I get excited in different ways. If a guy makes a routine play but executes It perfectly, I get pretty hyped for the quarterback in that situation. I miss it but I don't miss it to the point where I'm like I got to go play football now.
From a quarterback standpoint, how would you look at Jake Browning's season?
Great. The kid is a stud. He put up crazy numbers and to be that young and to succeed that much is amazing. He did a great job. He's got it down it looks like. Looks like him and Coach Pete have a good relationship and they bring that on to the field too.
You backed up (Miami Hurricanes) Brad Kaaya and shared time with (UCLA Bruins) Dymond Lee at quarterback, plus a bunch of current Huskies played at Chaminade. What was that like?
We had a really talented team and kids that are going places now so it was cool. JoJo McIntosh, Jordan Chin, Brayden Lenius, all those guys. I threw to Lenius in practice. He was older than me so I didn't throw to him in any games but I threw a couple touchdowns to Chin last year. He is lightning fast. I see him the next two or three years being the next type of John Ross. He is that fast and he can play. He is getting bigger and stronger and he is going to do great.
You also played baseball with Blake Rutherford, who was a first round pick by the Yankees and also Nick Kahle from our team. What was it like playing with those two guys?
They were not only great players but they were my best friends growing up. For me and Blake, this will be the first time since we were five years old not playing baseball on the same team. We played on the same team from age five all the way through high school. He is a great competitor. He showed up with a different type of focus every day. I really admired him in that way. When the attention got really high last year he just put his focus away from that and on to the team and game, which really helped him succeed. That is something that I keep in the back of my mind. You know if success happens, it's good. You don't have to think about it too much and just focus on the game because there is enough to handle in the game. Blake taught me that just by watching him. We competed together our whole lives and that is what made us so good at this point. It was really fun to grow up with him.
Nick is awesome. As a catcher to look at him, that dude is so calm, all the time. You are getting the same thing out of Nick Kahle every day. He is going to show up with the same mentality. He is a real worker. He has worked himself to this point and he is going to work himself to the next level and then eventually he is going to be a big leaguer. He is just a grinder. He has the perfect baseball mindset. He doesn't get too high, doesn't get too low. He is always focused, always locked in.
How much have you improved since you have started concentrating on just pitching?
I think it has been tremendous. You don't really know how much better you get. If you look back at it, I probably made huge strides but every day you just try to chip away and get better each day, so you don't feel like you're getting that much better. I bet if I were to look back a couple of months, I would be like wow, I have gotten a lot better at this.
What is the scouting report on yourself right now?
I am a competitor. When I go out there I just really want to beat the guy across from me. I have a good curve ball, I can throw the change up when I need to and I will locate the fastball.
Do you have any personal goals for this year?
An individual goal for myself is to be a freshman All-American. To be a starter. To eventually roll into a starting position. Then just to be honest with myself and go out there to beat the guy across from me. If I can walk off the field and say, I really went out there and competed that day, I will be happy with that. Long term goals, I want to be an All-American and that will happen. I just have to go out there each day and chip away at that.
There are some open roles on the pitching staff this year. What is the group like?
The group is great. There are a bunch of great guys. We like going out to work with each other each day. It is a lot of fun. Nothing is really set yet. We are still in January. That is something that is so hard with sports. It's hard to look at the beginning of the season and say this guy is going to be that, this guy is going to do that, and really position guys that way. I actually take that from football because if you look at a football team in May, June, July, usually you have three or four guys at each position and you have an idea of who is going to play where. When you roll into October, November, it can be totally flip flopped and the same thing goes for baseball. Guys succeed, guys fail, guys get hurt. We don't really know what it's going to look like when we are in Omaha but I know we have a bunch of guys who are studs so we will be strong the bullpen.
Do you pay attention to the preseason polls and that stuff?
No. I mean it's great when people tell us we are top-20 but it doesn't really mean anything until we go out there and win some games. Our football team was pre-season ranked 14 and I was talking to JoJo (McIntosh) and he was like 'man, that is too high, we don't want to be that high.' Then you look at the end of it and they are one of the top four teams in the country, which is just unbelievable. It is great that we are recognized for our talent but we still have to take it out on the field and compete. It is not just like a reward.
What led you to commit to Washington?
I just loved the guys. I really felt like it was a good group. I felt like the coaches cared about the guys and the players cared about each other. That is what brought me up here out of Southern California. It took a lot to get me out of there. The commitment they had to each other and what Coach Meggs was building and now what I feel like he has built, it is really exciting to be a part of that from a good program to the best program. I feel like that is what this group can be, the best team in the country. To be a part of that transition is going to be cool.
I saw somewhere that Nick (Kahle) didn't tell you when he committed to UW, you had to learn from the coaching staff.
Yeah, it was so weird. I happened to be on the phone with J.K. (UW Pitching Coach and Recruiting Coordinator Jason Kelly), just checking in. We talked about once a month once I was committed and he goes, 'man, Nick just committed' and I was like 'what, man he didn't even tell me.' So I was like, 'J.K. I am hanging up on you' and I called Nick and was like 'bro, you committed you didn't even tell me?' and he was like, 'yeah, I was just driving down the freeway and thought I should commit.' That is just classic Nick. Just mellow and I was happy we were going to extend our baseball career together and also our life of hanging out. Back at home we hung out every day and it's the same thing here.
You're roommates with Jordan Jones. What's he like as a player?
He has got an arm. This guy can play long toss like I've never seen before. He throws the ball farther than I've ever seen a guy throw. He probably throws it like 340 feet, that's just a bomb. He can throw it from like one end zone to probably past two end zones.
Is there any advantage to having a local guy as a roommate?
The local guys have all brought in the California kids, which is really cool. Seattle is a pretty easy place to become familiar with but yeah, those guys take care of us. We go over to their house for dinner and their parents take care of us. It has been really nice. I hang out with Harrison (Goonewardene) too. He is a local guy. We go over to his house all the time and his mom cooks for us. It is really nice.
What do you miss most about California besides family and friends?
The weather, that's easy. The beach too. I love the beach.
Were you a surfer or beach bum when you were younger?
Not really. I never really surfed. I just loved going out and swimming in the ocean. It is just refreshing. Going out there and messing around, playing a little beach football, it's the best. We would use it a workout too. Have an excuse to go down there and run in the sand and what not and chill after.
Any final messages for Husky fans?
Just be ready for this team to succeed. We are going to be really successful and it is going to be cool to be a part of whether you are a fan, player, coach, or whatever you are. It is going to be fun to be a part of this team, so just watch out.
You were a two-time baseball captain and a captain as a senior for your football team at Chaminade Prep? What makes you such a good leader?
I really care about everyone. Each individual. Not just on the team but at school. I really like to invest in relationships and I like educating myself in leadership. I like reading books about it and what not. Tony Dungy is a really good guy and I like to talk about leadership and his style, the Christian leadership. I really gravitate toward that. I'm Catholic and I have a really strong religious background so I just think leadership is not really like 'follow me' but more of supporting the other person and helping them with whatever they need. If you can make another person stronger that can lift you and the other person on the team better.
This past fall was your first not playing football. Was it weird to not be playing?
Totally. It was different. I laser locked in on baseball and specifically pitching now so it has been different. I love football. I watch the games differently than the average fan. I like looking at it in a quarterback's mindset. I get excited in different ways. If a guy makes a routine play but executes It perfectly, I get pretty hyped for the quarterback in that situation. I miss it but I don't miss it to the point where I'm like I got to go play football now.
From a quarterback standpoint, how would you look at Jake Browning's season?
Great. The kid is a stud. He put up crazy numbers and to be that young and to succeed that much is amazing. He did a great job. He's got it down it looks like. Looks like him and Coach Pete have a good relationship and they bring that on to the field too.
You backed up (Miami Hurricanes) Brad Kaaya and shared time with (UCLA Bruins) Dymond Lee at quarterback, plus a bunch of current Huskies played at Chaminade. What was that like?
We had a really talented team and kids that are going places now so it was cool. JoJo McIntosh, Jordan Chin, Brayden Lenius, all those guys. I threw to Lenius in practice. He was older than me so I didn't throw to him in any games but I threw a couple touchdowns to Chin last year. He is lightning fast. I see him the next two or three years being the next type of John Ross. He is that fast and he can play. He is getting bigger and stronger and he is going to do great.
You also played baseball with Blake Rutherford, who was a first round pick by the Yankees and also Nick Kahle from our team. What was it like playing with those two guys?
They were not only great players but they were my best friends growing up. For me and Blake, this will be the first time since we were five years old not playing baseball on the same team. We played on the same team from age five all the way through high school. He is a great competitor. He showed up with a different type of focus every day. I really admired him in that way. When the attention got really high last year he just put his focus away from that and on to the team and game, which really helped him succeed. That is something that I keep in the back of my mind. You know if success happens, it's good. You don't have to think about it too much and just focus on the game because there is enough to handle in the game. Blake taught me that just by watching him. We competed together our whole lives and that is what made us so good at this point. It was really fun to grow up with him.
Nick is awesome. As a catcher to look at him, that dude is so calm, all the time. You are getting the same thing out of Nick Kahle every day. He is going to show up with the same mentality. He is a real worker. He has worked himself to this point and he is going to work himself to the next level and then eventually he is going to be a big leaguer. He is just a grinder. He has the perfect baseball mindset. He doesn't get too high, doesn't get too low. He is always focused, always locked in.
How much have you improved since you have started concentrating on just pitching?
I think it has been tremendous. You don't really know how much better you get. If you look back at it, I probably made huge strides but every day you just try to chip away and get better each day, so you don't feel like you're getting that much better. I bet if I were to look back a couple of months, I would be like wow, I have gotten a lot better at this.
What is the scouting report on yourself right now?
I am a competitor. When I go out there I just really want to beat the guy across from me. I have a good curve ball, I can throw the change up when I need to and I will locate the fastball.
Do you have any personal goals for this year?
An individual goal for myself is to be a freshman All-American. To be a starter. To eventually roll into a starting position. Then just to be honest with myself and go out there to beat the guy across from me. If I can walk off the field and say, I really went out there and competed that day, I will be happy with that. Long term goals, I want to be an All-American and that will happen. I just have to go out there each day and chip away at that.
There are some open roles on the pitching staff this year. What is the group like?
The group is great. There are a bunch of great guys. We like going out to work with each other each day. It is a lot of fun. Nothing is really set yet. We are still in January. That is something that is so hard with sports. It's hard to look at the beginning of the season and say this guy is going to be that, this guy is going to do that, and really position guys that way. I actually take that from football because if you look at a football team in May, June, July, usually you have three or four guys at each position and you have an idea of who is going to play where. When you roll into October, November, it can be totally flip flopped and the same thing goes for baseball. Guys succeed, guys fail, guys get hurt. We don't really know what it's going to look like when we are in Omaha but I know we have a bunch of guys who are studs so we will be strong the bullpen.
Do you pay attention to the preseason polls and that stuff?
No. I mean it's great when people tell us we are top-20 but it doesn't really mean anything until we go out there and win some games. Our football team was pre-season ranked 14 and I was talking to JoJo (McIntosh) and he was like 'man, that is too high, we don't want to be that high.' Then you look at the end of it and they are one of the top four teams in the country, which is just unbelievable. It is great that we are recognized for our talent but we still have to take it out on the field and compete. It is not just like a reward.
What led you to commit to Washington?
I just loved the guys. I really felt like it was a good group. I felt like the coaches cared about the guys and the players cared about each other. That is what brought me up here out of Southern California. It took a lot to get me out of there. The commitment they had to each other and what Coach Meggs was building and now what I feel like he has built, it is really exciting to be a part of that from a good program to the best program. I feel like that is what this group can be, the best team in the country. To be a part of that transition is going to be cool.
I saw somewhere that Nick (Kahle) didn't tell you when he committed to UW, you had to learn from the coaching staff.
Yeah, it was so weird. I happened to be on the phone with J.K. (UW Pitching Coach and Recruiting Coordinator Jason Kelly), just checking in. We talked about once a month once I was committed and he goes, 'man, Nick just committed' and I was like 'what, man he didn't even tell me.' So I was like, 'J.K. I am hanging up on you' and I called Nick and was like 'bro, you committed you didn't even tell me?' and he was like, 'yeah, I was just driving down the freeway and thought I should commit.' That is just classic Nick. Just mellow and I was happy we were going to extend our baseball career together and also our life of hanging out. Back at home we hung out every day and it's the same thing here.
You're roommates with Jordan Jones. What's he like as a player?
He has got an arm. This guy can play long toss like I've never seen before. He throws the ball farther than I've ever seen a guy throw. He probably throws it like 340 feet, that's just a bomb. He can throw it from like one end zone to probably past two end zones.
Is there any advantage to having a local guy as a roommate?
The local guys have all brought in the California kids, which is really cool. Seattle is a pretty easy place to become familiar with but yeah, those guys take care of us. We go over to their house for dinner and their parents take care of us. It has been really nice. I hang out with Harrison (Goonewardene) too. He is a local guy. We go over to his house all the time and his mom cooks for us. It is really nice.
What do you miss most about California besides family and friends?
The weather, that's easy. The beach too. I love the beach.
Were you a surfer or beach bum when you were younger?
Not really. I never really surfed. I just loved going out and swimming in the ocean. It is just refreshing. Going out there and messing around, playing a little beach football, it's the best. We would use it a workout too. Have an excuse to go down there and run in the sand and what not and chill after.
Any final messages for Husky fans?
Just be ready for this team to succeed. We are going to be really successful and it is going to be cool to be a part of whether you are a fan, player, coach, or whatever you are. It is going to be fun to be a part of this team, so just watch out.
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