I know right now it’s a crazy time. What are you doing to stay sane?
It’s crazy. I’ve just been trying to keep after it. Whenever it’s a nice day outside, I try to find a field to get some BP in – or I have a cage out in my yard. I have a tee in my basement for rainy days and I have a home gym, too. So, I’ve just been hitting that six times a week just as I normally would, and it’s been working well.
How has Coach [Keith Kobasiuk] been in keeping in contact with you?
Coach is good. He’s been keeping in contact with us, I’ve been texting him. He just wants us all to stay safe and just stay ready in case there is a season, and hopefully there will be.
You’re a two-sport star. It’s safe to say William Floyd is a premier football program in Suffolk County as you won another county championship this year. How does your training differ with football as opposed to baseball?
For different sports, there’s different sport-specific exercises. For me being a quarterback, it was kind of similar to baseball in regard to not wanting to do too many heavy shoulder things or things along those lines. Generally in football, there’s more powerlifts and just more explosiveness. Baseball is more controlled a little bit, where you want to make sure your arms are feeling right, and you don’t want to push it too hard.
You got your excitement from the football season whereas a lot of the baseball players that are one-sport athletes had this one last shot. Does that make you feel a little better knowing that this was the way you went out?
Yeah, football in general is just more hyped up. It was just a thrill every game to see everyone in the stands. The bond is a little different. Football is unlike every other sport with the fact that you really need every single player on the team to do their own job but for one main goal. So, you really need to bond together.
What is that atmosphere like for the Long Island Championship?
Playing at [Stony Brook University] was insane. I think there was close to 5,000 people. I scored a touchdown in that game and honestly, I couldn’t even hear anything. Everything is just buzzing around. There’s just too much going on. But when you’re in the game, you really don’t realize it. When you’re locked in and focused, the background noise is kind of just blurred out.
I know that Freeport has been your kryptonite. What do you think it’s going to take for William Floyd to get over a powerhouse like that?
Freeport is always loaded with talent. They’ve got athletes everywhere. Even their linemen are running faster than some guys. We had them at halftime last year, but in the end, they were just a little too much. [William Floyd] has just got to keep working hard and just get some athletes. When the right time comes, I think they’ll just do it. I think this year they’re returning a bunch of insane offensive linemen from last year and they have a great running back. They have a great shot.
Why did you choose to play college baseball over college football?
Football was definitely tough to let go because it was so much fun. That last season was one of the high points in my life. But baseball has always been my priority. I think that’s more my calling. Baseball’s more of my thing, I’ve been playing a little longer and am more consistent at it. I just felt that baseball was the right way to go.
Can you talk about the dynamic with your cousin A.J. in playing college baseball?
Ever since we were little, we were always together out there throwing and working out together. It’s grown all the way up. We’re still trying to get out there and long toss and work together. Just being able to play high school with A.J. and then a lot of the kids that graduated last year like Nick LoMonaco, Vance Carlo, Anthony Currao, and all those guys I grew up with and played with since I was a little kid, it was an amazing experience.
You made it to the playoffs last year and broke a drought for William Floyd. Can you talk about the composition of that roster?
I think we had some great pitching from Anthony Currao, A.J. [Verga], and Vinny Lyons. They were really solid as starters. But I think what really set us apart last year was our bats. One through nine, everybody could hit. I feel like most times with a high school roster, there’s a few weak spots. But we didn’t have any weak spots.
You guys were pretty confident going into last year thinking that you were a playoff team, right?
Yeah, we knew that it was our year. We played well, but there definitely was some tough teams. Like we had some great games against Sachem, Ward Melville – League 1 is tough overall. So, it was a grind and we had to stay focused and stay hungry. It worked out well for us.
So how would you rank your rivals in League 1? Who do you consider to be your biggest rival?
I feel like last year was definitely Sachem, just because of how much we played them. The games were a little more intense, maybe a bigger crowd. Usually Longwood is one of the main rivals. It’s in every sport because we’re so close – right across William Floyd Parkway. So, I would say Longwood and Sachem were probably the biggest two.
Who were some of the toughest pitchers you’ve faced since being on the varsity team?
Max Nielsen was obviously unbelievable, [Rafe Schlesinger] at Sachem is unbelievable, Roman Dorosh, I thought Justin Aviles from Brentwood a few years ago pitched really well, and also thought Steven Murphy from Longwood was phenomenal. He flies under the radar and I had a tough time hitting him last year. He was really good.
What kind of adjustments have you made to your swing as you’ve gotten older?
I work with Keith Osik, he trains at Steel Sports and played in the major leagues for about 13-14 years. Ever since ninth grade, I’ve been working with him. We’ve just been trying to elevate my swing to the point where I could get a little more drive on it. Into the gaps as opposed to just putting singles through. You want to turn those singles into major doubles and triples. We’ve been working on some drills that could really help with that. Personally, I love the one-handed drills.
Let’s talk about mentality. When you’re struggling, what do you try to do to turn your luck around?
You can’t be too critical. You have to know that even the best hitters in the majors are failing 7 out of 10 times. A big jump for me was my middle school coach. He really was the one that stressed the mental importance of the game to me. That’s where I picked up on a lot of mental stuff: concentration, confidence, etc. When you’re struggling, you just have to really focus on every single pitch to make sure you get the job done.
Do you feel confident in your ability to transition back to being a pitcher?
Yeah, I pitched a lot in ninth grade. Last year, we had a lot of pitching depth. They didn’t really need me as much. But this year, I’ve been listening, and I’ve been trying to get my velocity up. So, I think when the season comes, I’ll definitely be ready to hop on the mound.
Any pregame rituals?
I hate stepping on the lines, it’s a pet peeve of mine. I always used to jump from the grass near the dugout to the grass in the infield. I’d do that before every game.
Any hype music before the game?
I remember in ninth or tenth grade, Lil Uzi Vert dropped a song called “XO Tour Llif3” and that was the song. I played it before every game. That’s probably one of my favorite artists, and he just dropped another album recently. So that probably would’ve been the go-to in the locker room.
What was your favorite baseball trip?
When I was younger, I played 12U for the Long Island Sharks. We went to Cooperstown and won the whole thing. That experience was insane. We were 11-0, hit a bunch of home runs, and had a bunch of great players on the team. But as I got older, going to Georgia every year was always something that I looked forward to.
Are you going to be playing with MVP Beast this summer?
Yeah, I’m playing with Pete Kritikos and MVP Beast again. He does a great job; he cares a lot about his players.
What attracted you to [Fairleigh Dickinson University]?
Coach [Rob Ditoma] and the coaching staff. Ditoma was originally at [Fordham University]. He was the recruiting coordinator and assistant coach for the past five years. And I had always talked to him and he liked me. So when he got the job at FDU, he contacted Kritikos and said he was interested. He watched a few of my games in Georgia and he liked what he saw. I just felt that was the right place for me to succeed.
