He played as a catcher at
Pickerington High School in Ohio and
Seminole Community College, where he later served as an assistant while taking classes at
University of Central Florida. He took a summer job as a bullpen catcher for the
Chicago Cubs' Double-A
Southern League affiliate, which later became the
Orlando Rays under the
Tampa Bay Devil Rays (now the Tampa Bay Rays) organization. In 1999,
Larry Rothschild, then Tampa Bay manager, offered Cursi a job as bullpen catcher on the recommendation of Orlando manager
Bruce Kimm. Cursi went to the
2009 Major League Baseball All-Star Game with the Rays' coaching staff, as Tampa Bay was the defending
American League champions. ==Off the field==