WILMINGTON, Del. — When it comes to baseball, Nick Patten has a definite agenda.

Develop his tools as early and quickly as possible. Earn a shot in the professional ranks.

So far, he’s right on course.

Patten was a basketball and baseball standout at Butler through his junior year before deciding to attend the IMG Academy in Florida for his senior year.

“Pro ball is the ultimate goal for me,” the 6-foot-4 first baseman said. “That’s why I went to IMG. I knew I’d get the competition, the coaching and play a lot of games.”

It was at IMG that Patten moved to first base for the first time. He wound up leading the team with four home runs and received a number of Division I baseball scholarship opportunities.

Xavier, West Virginia, South Carolina and Bucknell were among them. He chose Delaware and is now starting for the Blue Hens as a freshman at first base.

“One of the things I was looking for was a chance to get on the field and play right away as a freshman,” Patten admitted. “I was looking for a place where I could compete, maybe be pushed by an older guy and develop as a Division I player as quickly as possible.”

Delaware fit the bill.

The Blue Hens are starting four freshmen and three sophomores this season, yet are 4-3 after seven games and defeated No. 28 Maryland Tuesday in their home opener. Patten had a double, single, RBI and run scored in that game.

He is hitting .316 with a homer and four RBI in the early going.

“Nick will bat anywhere from fifth to seventh in our lineup,” 16th-year Delaware coach Jim Sherman said. “He’s a big kid with a good swing. He’ll hit his share of home runs at Delaware.”

Sherman played at Delaware himself and has 23 years of collegiate coaching experience. Hitting coach Dan Hammer has been with the Blue Hens for 19 seasons.

“The coaches haven’t changed my swing at all,” Patten said. “They just changed my approach. I’m a big, tall guy and they want me to look for pitches up in the zone.

“They want me to hit pitches I can drive to the gaps or over the wall.”

Sherman said he learned of Patten through former Delaware assistant coach Greg Mamula, who has done some work at IMG.

“Greg clued me in about Nick. Otherwise, Nick wouldn’t be here right now,” Sherman said.

“He’s a young kid and he’s still adjusting to the speed of the college game. We’re working on his learning to play the angles better at first base, things like that.

“As a hitter, he’s seeing more velocity than he’s used to. The sliders, breaking balls and change-ups, he’s beginning to delay his hands on a little more. Nick is coming along just fine.”

Patten said the biggest adjustment he’s making is playing baseball with more mature competition.

“I’ve been used to being on the field with other 18-year-olds,” he said. “Now I’m, playing with and against 21-year-olds who have a lot more experience at this level than I do.

“The average fastballs are 89 to 92 miles per hour and off-speed pitches are sharper and located well. It’s a much bigger challenge, obviously, but it’s all part of the development process.”

Patten is majoring in criminal justice at Delaware. The Blue Hens compete in the Colonial Athletic Association.

“We’re young, but I like the talent we have on the field,” he said.

Sherman agrees.

“The top six out of nine teams make the conference tournament and we want to get there,” the coach said. “The top two get a first-round bye and we’d love to get that.

“Nick is becoming one of our cornerstones, to be sure. He works hard and is developing quickly.”

All of that suits Patten just fine.

“I just want to play as many games as I can — and win as many games as I can,” he said.