BOURNE, Mass. — Nick Groves (Illinois) was celebrating a special moment for his cousin when he got the call from field manager Scott Landers to join the Braves.

"I had my cousin's wedding," Groves said. "Then I got a call from coach Landers, like, 'hey, we need an outfielder. So can you get here tomorrow?' So me and my mom left at five in the morning. Got here at 5 p.m. So a 12-hour drive — it was long, but I'm glad I'm here."

The trek to Bourne for the Canadian native, who grew up in Bayfield, Ontario, made it the second consecutive summer he would be playing in the Cape Cod Baseball League, as he appeared in 24 games in 2024 with the Hyannis Harbor Hawks.

Before he became a high-profile collegiate baseball player, he had to adapt to living, learning and playing in the United States.

"I went to full French school my whole life, and my mom is from Quebec," Groves said. "Just learning the terms in English was tough. My English was always really good but since I went to school in French, it was really tough at first. It was an adjustment at first but with practice, and going to class and stuff like that, you get used to it."

So he got used to it, starting off his collegiate career at Niagra in New York, where his freshman year he made the All-MAAC Rookie Team. Following a sophomore season that earned him a second-team All-MAAC selection, he decided to enter the transfer portal where he took his talents to Illinois.

Through eight games he's dealt with some ups and downs, thriving in the field but struggling at the plate. Despite the tough times in the batter's box, he reached base four times in the 10-1 win over the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox on Saturday, going 1-for-2 with three RBIs, three walks and a run.

"Just trying to be on top for the fastball, and good things happen when you're on top of the fastball," Groves said. "You can hit everything else. So just being selective with my pitches and using count leverage."

Getting a trio of walks required Groves to work deep into the count, and there were a few tells from the pitcher 60 feet away from him that allowed him to find success at the plate.

"I'm pretty picky on what I want early in the count — make sure I get my swing off," Groves said. "With that guy on the mound, you could tell like they were kind of a little bit around the zone. I just want them to come to me and not try to be too aggressive, but also get my pitch to hit."

It was a rocky start for Groves, but the performance against the Sox is hopefully a sign of things to come for him moving forward. As it's now his second summer of the Cape, he's aware of the quality of competition, saying "you can't take a pitch off."

He also said that the competition is what makes you stronger. Between the coaches and players, "you learn so much."

With a positive showing behind him, and plenty of season in front of him, Groves is searching for the consistency in his game to improve during the summer but also going forward.

"Not the best first couple games for myself, so just kind of getting back on track," Groves said. "Not trying to give in with the ebbs and the flows of the game, right? Just being consistent in such a long season, and then just trying to get better and building
off the positive."