Fuscaldo boosts DJacks 15U Gold to strong Super 16 finish

By DN WRITING STAFF | July 12, 2024

Owen Keough scored for the Diamond Jacks 15U Gold on a double by George DeTorres. 

By Sean Reilly

Tyler Fuscaldo did a lot of running on Wednesday night at Diamond Nation, and it helped the Diamond Jacks 15U Gold finish strong at the Super 16U Garden State Invitational. 

He hustled home on a wild pitch to score the first run of the game with two out in the top of the third inning of the contest against Untamed Baseball 16U Gold.

The lead was three runs when an Untamed batter hit a deep fly ball with a runner on third with two out in the fifth. Fuscaldo, the left fielder, hustled to make a ranging catch near the fence to end the inning. 

The biggest use of his legs, however, came when he stepped into the batter’s box with one out in the seventh. Having already doubled and singled in the game, he produced another hit to center field. When the outfielder tried and failed to make a running catch, it skipped past, and Fuscaldo kept running.

The result of that play was an inside-the-park grand slam that was the final blow in an 11-2 victory.

The win also completed an excellent tournament for the DJacks 15U Gold, which went 3-1 with a 33-12 run differential playing against mostly older competition at the 20-team tournament. 

“As a team, we did really well, and for me, it was kind of a breakout game,” said Fuscaldo. “I was looking to hit the ball and make contact.” 

The DJacks took a 1-0 lead in third after Fuscaldo doubled to left-center with two out, moved to third on a passed ball and scored on the wild pitch. 

The lead expanded to 3-0 in the fifth. Owen Keough led off with a single to left and advanced on a wild pitch before scoring on a double to left field by George DeTorres, who scored when Jackson Groenveld hit a double into left field.

The DJacks added three more runs in the sixth. Evan Doty led off with a single to center, and Fuscaldo followed with a single to right which resulted in a second-and-third situation after he advanced on a throw. Peyton Keller followed with a one-run single to center, Stefano DiGeronimo was retired on a successful safety squeeze, and Keough had an RBI groundout.

Michael Rosales of Untamed Baseball pulls into third base on a single by James Santa Maria. 

In the seventh inning, singles by DeTorres and Ethan Huang and a walk to Groenveld loaded the bases with nobody out. Jacob Vasil had an RBI base on balls before a strikeout.

Fuscaldo then completed his 3-for-3 game with his grand slam. 

“I honestly thought he was going to catch it,” he said. “I wasn’t expecting it to go past him. Then I saw that happen and started sprinting. 

“It was great to have a game like this to end the week,” he added. 

Untamed Baseball 16U Gold scored twice in the bottom of the seventh. Lucas Blanco walked and later scored on an error, and Sean Dereka reached on a walk and scored on a ground out.

DeTorres finished 2-for-3 for the DJacks, who totaled 13 hits in the game.

Blake McCagg pitched the first five innings, allowing two hits with three strikeouts and no walks. Keough allowed one hit working the final two innings.

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