Stack up Christian and Ian Nilsen whichever way you like. Virtually the same person emerges twice.
They’re twins after all. Fraternal by birth but identical in many ways. Both are 6-foot-4-inch, 215-pound baseball players recruited to play Division I baseball at Quinnipiac University. Both hit and throw right handed, wear sequential numbers — Ian 24 and Christian 25 — and play corner infield.
Their careers mirror one another, always playing on the same team. The two won high school state championships together and are now beginning their next chapter academically and athletically in Hamden.
What sets them apart? How did they end up here?
Seeing double
Under the surface, there are differences. Small idiosyncrasies exist that only close friends and family may be privy to. So is true for many twins.
“In my mind I feel like (there are) a lot, but in reality it’s probably not so much,” Ian said. “I mean I don’t know, we have similar interests, similar hobbies.”
Their core priorities remain the same. Play baseball at a high level. Eat healthy, stay in shape and excel in school. Win. What changes from time to time are more miniscule personality quirks. Ian might like slightly different foods, while Christian might have a more varied music taste. They describe their dynamic as a balancing act. Each one offsets the other. It creates equilibrium reflected in their deeper relationship.
“(Christian’s) more of, I’m not gonna say nice, but he’s kinder,” Ian said. “The nice guy that’s gonna pat you on the back. And it’s a good even because we cancel ourselves out. Sometimes I get a little frustrated and, you know, quick to temper. Which isn’t a bad thing, it’s just that he’s always like my best friend. He’s always there to calm me down, kind of cool the storm which is always nice to have from my perspective.”
“I’m more Mr. Nice Guy, I guess,” Christian said with a laugh in response to his brother.
Competition embodies the Nilsen twins. Clashes go down wherever there are bragging rights to claim. On the field or in the weight room, it’s all the same. Try as they might to one-up the other, the real benefit of twinship comes off the field. When one tinkers to alter his swing mechanics, the other is there to give pointers. When one gets ahold of a new pitch grip, the other is there to step in the box, just to see for himself if the changeup, slider or sweeper is any good.
Most importantly, when one needs advice, the other is always there to give it. When one needs to vent, the other is there with open ears.
“It’s almost like a built-in… someone that you can compete against, but also like a built-in best friend,” Christian said. “It’s someone on the field you can compete against, then in the offseason, it’s someone you’re pushing but he’s also pushing you. Which is such an advantage.”
“It’s really easy, especially when you’re off the field,” Ian said. “Definitely on the field but more so off the field just to talk about stuff, like how you’re doing. Baseball, life, school, whatever… Competing with each other but also supporting each other.”
Destination: Hamden
There is an alternate universe where the paths diverge. Yes, the twins considered going to different colleges after their time as two-way players at Redding, Connecticut’s Joel Barlow High School.
Ian’s Perfect Game profile ranked the young slugger as the No. 16 overall recruit in Connecticut for the class of 2024 and the state’s top third base prospect, who brought versatility with his additional ability to slot in the outfield. Christian had the edge on his brother, ranked No. 14 in the state and the No. 1 first baseman.
Interest in the two mounted. The offers came quickly after. Merrimack, Liberty, Maryland and UConn were just some of the schools looking to pounce on Connecitcut’s best corner infield duo. When the Quinnipiac offer came, the twins did not need long to make their decision. They were Bobcats within two days.
“We thought it was a no-brainer,” Ian said.
The recruiting pitch that brought the twins to Hamden included a few things. Head coach John Delaney boasted the school’s new turf facility. The twins say he recalled the underdog 2019 team that went 15-33 in the regular season but triumphed to win the MAAC, telling the young twins they could one day be a part of a team just as special. The skipper reminded the twins just how close to home Quinnipiac is — about a 30 minute ride to their hometown of Easton, CT — something that appealed greatly to the two. Christian and Ian saw Delaney, or Coach D as they call him, as a respectable leader who could give them what they wanted. Growth.
“We were just looking for a program that could develop us. Obviously we loved pitching in high school, and we were good at it. It’s just offense is a different thing. I want to be able to push runs across and hit the ball,” Christian said. “And we always wanted to stay closer to home. On our visit, we loved this whole place. The campus is so nice. Coach D is fantastic. The whole coaching staff (is). We already knew a couple of the guys so it was almost like a win win.”
Ian describes Delaney as having a good “track record” in bringing in freshmen and turning them into successful college players. He pointed again to the 2019 team. “Their offensive stats were insane,” Christian added. Ian’s thoughts on being a two-way player differed slightly from his brother, however.
“Hitting is like here,” Ian said, motioning with his right hand around his chin. “Pitching is like way down here,” now dropping his left hand down by his waist. “We were good at it, but it was never fun for us. I would so much rather hit a home run than strike a guy out.”
The final piece of the puzzle was the distance. Being close to home gave the twins an opportunity to settle into a new environment with comfortability 30 minutes down the road, if needed. As much as it meant to Ian and Christian, they say it meant even more to their parents. Mainly, the twins’ dad.
“I don’t remember the last time our dad missed a game. Until we got here and we were doing games like 15 hours away,” Christian said. “He was the guy who made us fall in love with the game. Even when we were slumping, like little league slumps, we’d go like 0-5 or whatever and we’d be like, ‘Damn, I hate this sport,’ or whatever. He’d always be the guy to chirp us, but looking back it was always tough love.”
Mass is gas
The twins are in the gym, again.
It is practically a daily occurrence for these two. Today, Ian incline bench presses while Christian rows dumbbells at the rack. They might not follow the same workout regimen, but the presence of one is enough motivation for the other to follow suit. On practice days, on game days, on off days and on essentially any other day of the week, the two lift heavy and lift often. Christian says they have too much free time not to be doing something productive.
Ian agrees.
“We’re not just gonna sit around,” he said.
After a walkoff win in the second game of an April 11 doubleheader against Merrimack, teammates jeer as they pass coming in from the field.
One voice quips: All they care about is lifting and hitting their protein goals.
“They do like to exaggerate it,” Ian said. “We do like to stay fit and eat healthy.”
Routines are critical to Christian and Ian’s daily growth. They worried, at first, that having two roommates who didn’t play a sport would disrupt that. But after settling in, they realized it was the opposite. In many ways, the twins’ relationship with their non-sport playing roommates is much like their own. It balances the other out. In their dorm, Christian and Ian can leave baseball at the door and relax their minds from the constant demand the sport requires.
All told, the Nilsen brothers have found a home in Hamden. The two balance school and baseball with each other’s help.
The question still remains. Who is the better baseball player?
They laugh.
“Me,” both say in unison.
