Just over a year ago, Carson McCusker was unsure of his future in baseball. He was playing with the Tri-City Valley Cats in Troy, N.Y., a part of the Frontier League Independent League.
However, the 6’8” McCusker was tearing up pitching in the Frontier League, hitting .433/.480/.822 for a triple slash along with a 1.302 OPS, 17 home runs, and 51 RBI in just 37 games. His manager and 12-year MLB veteran Pete Incaviglia knew the right scout to call up with the Twins organization to see McCusker take the next step to obtain his dream to play in Major League Baseball.
“Billy Milos was the guy,” Incaviglia said. “He was the guy willing to take a chance on a guy like that. Billy’s always been, for me, by far the best Indy Ball scout I’ve ever seen. A lot of the credit goes to Billy Milos for taking a chance on a guy like that.”
McCusker signed with the Twins organization on June 29, 2023. He only needed 144 games between Low-A, High-A, and Double-A to make it to the highest level of the minor leagues, arriving with the Saints on August 24.
“It’s been a dream come true,” McCusker said. “From where I was a little over a year ago, not knowing what my future held and not knowing how much further I could take it. It’s been a huge blessing just being able to keep moving up and playing every single day.”
While Milos was the scout who offered him an MLB contract, McCusker credits Incaviglia for much of his development in Independent Ball. Incaviglia first saw McCusker play in college when he was still with Oklahoma State University, where he set the all-time record for home runs in NCAA D1 history with 100.
“I had just kind of marveled at a 6’9″ guy who could run, who was very athletic and had good feet,” Incaviglia said on his first impressions of McCusker. “The swing was a little long in college, but I thought, with some instruction, he could be something special.”
McCusker joined the Tri-City Valley Cats in the summer of 2021 after he completed his senior year of ball at OSU. Once there, he went to work on changing up his swing from hitting all corners of the field to developing more pull power while still maintaining his previously established strengths as a hitter.
“Just like all young hitters, it’s trial by fire,” said Incaviglia. “They make adjustments on their own and do things sometimes that put them in fundamentally sound positions to hit.
“Basically, I just kind of got him to be fundamentally sound, and then his talent took off, and I just got him to where he could repeat his swing on a regular basis. And boy, his second year with me, I don’t know what his numbers were off the top of my head, but they were off the charts.”
McCusker’s off-the-chart numbers resulted from the swing adjustments Incaviglia suggested in their three seasons together. The power took some time to settle into as McCusker had only 19 home runs in 108 games between 2021 and 2022 with Tri-City, but it all came together in 2023.
“It was just simple adjustments,” said McCusker. “There was nothing in particular. He wouldn’t come right at me and say, ‘Hey, you need to try this or try this.’ We would put our heads together. I tried doing a little leg kick, and he was on board with it, and from there, it took off for me.”
It wasn’t only the number of home runs McCusker was piling up that impressed Incaviglia and his teammates. Instead, it was how far they were traveling off his bat and into the stands.
“It was just incredible to watch,” Incaviglia said. “You know, I played with a lot of ballplayers, and I’ve seen a lot of balls hit far. But I will tell you that there is no one who has ever hit a ball as far as Carson McCusker; I can promise you that.”
Incaviglia played in the majors during the beginning of the Steroid Era, when Jose Canseco and Mark McGwire were drawing ticket sales for batting practice awe, so that’s praise Incaviglia doesn’t give to McCusker lightly. But the praise itself isn’t as impactful as Incaviglia’s mentorship has been for where McCusker’s career has brought him now.
“I couldn’t ask for anything more,” McCusker said. “All the experience in the big leagues he had, all the knowledge of the game, and him just being a players manager as well really helped me settle in, and he just took me under his wing.”
Having been with the Saints for only two weeks, McCusker is still adjusting to his new clubhouse and a new set of teammates and coaches. In his first 10 games with St. Paul, he’s already made an impact in the lineup, going 10-for-32 (.313 batting average) along with two homers and six runs batted in.
It’s no surprise to Incaviglia that McCusker has adjusted well to every clubhouse he’s been a part of in the Twins organization. He’s one of the best teammates he’s ever coached in his 15 years as a coach.
“He’s an off-the-charts human being, just a great kid,” said Incaviglia. “Loves to play, a great teammate is easy to coach, fun to be around, and it was just such a joy to be around him on a regular basis. I’m so happy for him because you like to see good things happen to people, and he’s just a really good person.”
With only 15 games left, players can only squeeze so much playing time in to achieve their goals. Still, McCusker is just happy to be where he is compared to just a year ago and hopes to make the most of the remaining playing time in the year to possibly begin his 2025 season in St. Paul for the first time.
