Chris Sciambra traveled to Omaha with his father, Jay, in 2000 and watched LSU take home its fifth national title after defeating Stanford, 6-5, in Rosenblatt Stadium.
The Baton Rouge native dreamed of playing for the school that he watched dogpiling at the conclusion of the 2000 College World Series and wanted an opportunity to make the same impact one day as players before him did.
He attended games at the “Old Box” with his father and would run out for the National Anthem to stand next to his favorite players, aspiring to have a playing career at LSU like Blair Barbier and Wally Pontiff Jr.
“I was that little kid looking at those guys like they were gods out on the field,” Sciambra said.
Now, the senior is one of those guys that children look up to as they run onto the field for the National Anthem and admire from the stands.
Each morning during high school, Sciambra watched the progress as the new Alex Box Stadium was constructed, and he was starting to think he would never have the opportunity to play baseball for the Tigers.
Sciambra stopped by The Box one day after football practice during the fall of his senior year for a “really unofficial” visit.
“I had been here so many times that they cut to the chase. They brought me into Coach Mainieri’s office, and that’s when they told me he was going to give me an opportunity to play here,” said Sciambra.
“(Mainieri) told me, ‘If you don’t want the challenge, go somewhere else’,” he continued. “But, that was something that I looked forward to.”
During his freshman season, Sciambra had the opportunity to take over the starting job in centerfield. He started there for 16 games, but he soon found himself in a neck brace, rehabilitating after he fractured his C1 vertebra at Auburn.
His freshman campaign was over, but the senior said he did whatever he could to ensure a comeback.
He started his sophomore year back in centerfield, but after “hitting a lull,” Sciambra was moved to the bench.
“I kind of settled into that role as a bench guy. Once I kind of knew I wasn’t going to be an everyday starter, I guess I tried to accept it and make the most out of it and change the way that I looked at the game,” said Sciambra.
During the SEC Tournament championship game against Vanderbilt in 2013, Sciambra was called off of the bench in the top of the 11th inning to pinch hit.
After fouling off several pitches, Sciambra singled Jared Foster in from second base for the game-winning run. Sciambra stood on second base emotionless, taking it all in and watching the crowd.
Entering his senior season, Sciambra anticipated waiting for his opportunity to help the team succeed from his position on the bench.
“I came into the year with every expectation of being a bench guy and doing that as best as I could because I knew we had some studs out there that are going to get drafted really high,” Sciambra said.
“I knew that I couldn’t complain to coach that I should be playing when I look at who’s in front of me. I came in pretty content and confident with my role,” he continued. “With the way the lineup was evolving, it gave me an opportunity. That was all I needed.”
Sciambra started the second game at Arkansas as the Tigers’ DH and has rarely found himself out of the starting lineup since.
“Chris is a guy who has continued to work hard and stay positive the whole time even though he wasn’t playing every day,” said hitting coach Andy Cannizaro. “Now, he’s getting the chance to hit every single day and is contributing to a team that is ranked No. 1 in the country. He’s getting four or five at-bats a game and picking up some really big hits for us. He’s another one of those senior leaders that is having a really good year and having a big impact on our team.”
Even though he has multiple at-bats each game, he is grateful for each one and the opportunity that he receives.
“I’ll always be that guy that is going to come off of the bench and get that one at-bat a game. I have been treating it like that. Because I’m DH-ing, I’m just sitting on the bench between innings. It’s kind of cool. I get to relax and watch the game, just like I was on the bench,” Sciambra said.
“I guess I’ll always deep-down be that bench guy.”