HOUSTON — Jeff and Marie Kurtz hope for one hit. They are self-described simple people watching their son, Nick, reach the pinnacle of his profession as a rookie with the Athletics. Expectations are growing with Nick’s every exploit, but his parents prioritize the present. One hit at least means Nick will be in a good mood.
“We don’t like to be up in the ninth with no hits on the night,” Marie said on Saturday. “It’s always nice when there’s hits early in the game, and then I’m not as nervous for his at-bats. I’m actually less nervous because I feel like, ‘All right, he’s had a good night. It’s OK.’”
On Friday night at Daikin Park, Nick had five hits by the ninth inning. Sitting in row 35 of section 114, his parents wondered whether there was any point to put such a prolific night in peril. Nick stood a triple away from the cycle but, as his mother noted, “it’s really hard for him to get a triple.” Her son does stand 6-foot-5 and weigh 240 pounds.
The Houston Astros summoned outfielder Cooper Hummel to pitch the final frame, a frightening thought to finish an otherwise fabulous performance. Nick had only taken one previous major-league at-bat against a position player. Hitters timed up for traditional pitching often struggle against the slow stuff lobbed by someone just trying to end a game.
“We just didn’t want him to look foolish,” Jeff said with a smile. “We were actually hoping they’d pinch hit for him. The score was what it was, let someone else hit.”
“Not hoping,” Marie interjected, “but we’d be OK with it. Again, no idea that there was anything big on the table.”
Their son emerged from the third-base dugout, swung at Hummel’s 70-something mph “slider” and made himself part of Major League Baseball mythology. As Nick’s fourth home run found a home in the left field seats, cameras captured Jeff standing and clapping, almost in a state of disbelief.
FOUR-HOMER NIGHT FOR NICHOLAS JEFFREY KURTZ 😲 pic.twitter.com/RXizy9tiFw
— Athletics on NBCS (@NBCSAthletics) July 26, 2025
“Unreal and surreal at the same time,” Jeff said on Saturday afternoon, still searching for an adequate explanation for his son’s place in the sport’s history.
Nick is the first rookie in the league’s 150-year history to hit four home runs in a game and the 20th man in major-league history to accomplish the feat. Among the other 19: Hall of Famers Lou Gehrig, Willie Mays and Mike Schmidt.
“Just associating him with any of these people who are on these lists is incredible,” Marie said.
At 22 years and 135 days old, and during his 66th major-league game, Nick matched a big-league record with 19 total bases. He became the first player in baseball history to have at least six runs, six hits and eight RBIs in one game.
“Our phones probably weren’t a whole lot different than his, probably, (with) the magnitude of texts and stuff,” Jeff said. “They’re asking us, ‘How did you feel and how did you describe it?’
“I’ve been up all night trying to figure out that answer. It’s hard to even put into words.”
Jeff and Marie still make their home in Lancaster, Pa. Traveling to the A’s temporary home in Sacramento can be challenging, so the couple tries to focus on East Coast trips to watch Nick play. They stopped at Yankee Stadium for a three-game series last month and saw him in Cleveland to open the second half of the season.
This trip, though, had been pre-planned. Nick’s godparents, Bill and Liza Liedholm, live in The Woodlands, which is 28 miles from Houston. The Liedholms had seen Nick play a plethora of travel ball games, but never once in the majors.
Nick Kurtz, middle, spent time before Saturday’s game with (from left to right) godfather Bill Liedholm, mother Marie, father Jeff and godmother Liza Liedholm. (Mike Bird / NBC Sports via Athletics)
Nick was nursing a hip flexor and unavailable to play when the A’s came to Houston in late May, so the godparents decided to see him on Friday. After the game, Nick joked, “They probably have to come (to my games) for the rest of the year.”
“They’re quitting their jobs and following along,” Marie joked.
Wherever this journey does take the family, it may be impossible to match what they watched on Friday night in Houston. Thirteen months after concluding his collegiate career at Wake Forest, Nick made himself a household name.
“This whole year has been a whirlwind,” Marie said. “It’s not even like we’ve had time to think about life in general. Every moment has been … I mean, I’m standing on the Astros’ field. This is insane to us. All of this is overwhelming.”
Moments to minimize it still exist. One arrived on Friday night, after their son’s sixth hit landed in the left-field seats. Jeff and Marie will often debate whether to greet Nick at the ballpark after his games or allow him to cool down and head to the team hotel.
“The (family area) is just kind of such a hectic environment, so we’re like, ‘Oh, he’s going to be in a great mood. Let’s go see him,’” Marie said.
Nick met them about 25 minutes after the game ended. He had not showered, a consequence of so many responsibilities. SportsCenter requested him for an interview. The Baseball Hall of Fame needed a photograph and one of his bats to put in Cooperstown.
When it all finished, Nick emerged from the visiting clubhouse, traversed two hallways and found them awaiting his embrace.
“Surreal is the word I’ve used a lot,” Marie said. “Like did that just happen?”
(Photo: Michaela Schumacher / MLB Photos via Getty Images)
