Nazareth's Mike Garzillo is The Morning Call's 2011 baseball player of the year

FROM THE MORNING CALL

After a fourth-inning fly out in the PIAA Class 4A quarterfinals, Mike Garzillo raced across the diamond and into Nazareth's dugout.

The Blue Eagles were in the midst of their most frustrating offensive game of the year, a 5-0 shutout loss to Manheim Township that ended their season. Garzillo endured perhaps the most vexing moment of the night, crushing a ball that appeared to hook inside the left-field foul pole for a two-run first-inning home run but was ruled a foul ball.

When he reached the dugout in the fourth, Garzillo remained collected as always. Throwing helmets and bats doesn't fit with his personality.

From wearing uniform No. 2 to serving as a team leader, Garzillo tries to emulate his favorite player, Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter. Garzillo even had a few Jeter-esque moments of playoff heroics during his breakout junior season, making him The Morning Call's 2011 baseball player of the year.

Garzillo did not finish the season with the area's best batting average or most RBIs. He didn't steal the most bases on his team.

Few players, though, did as much damage in big spots. Add in his speed and defense, and Garzillo shone in his first season as a starter.

"With his play in the field and his presence at the plate, just with giving us good at-bats, the home runs he hit during the district tournament, we never would have ended up where we did without him," Nazareth coach Jon Lock said.

Garzillo went from a varsity reserve a year ago to Nazareth's starting shortstop and No. 2 hitter this year. He grabbed the shortstop job when Nazareth moved Drew Hercik from short to second to reduce the stress on his arm (Hercik also pitched).

Despite missing a few games with an injury and playing on a team with three current or future Division I baseball recruits, Garzillo made people take notice of his abilities. He finished the season hitting .408 with nine doubles, four triples, six home runs, 18 RBIs and a team-best 34 runs scored, helping Nazareth reach the Lehigh Valley Conference title game and win the District 11 Class 4A title. He also stole 14 bases in 15 attempts and posted an .868 slugging percentage.

"I try not to pay attention to any of my stats," Garzillo said. "Every time I get up to bat, I just try to do something positive to help our team win the game. That's basically it."

Garzillo produced some of his best games in Nazareth's biggest contests. He went 5-for-9 with six runs scored, one double, two triples, three home runs and four RBIs during the Blue Eagles' three-game run through the District 11 4A tournament. He also jump-started a five-run fifth-inning rally with an RBI-triple in the PIAA Class 4A first round, helping Nazareth come back for a 6-2 win over Council Rock North.

"He's the hardest worker I've ever seen — in the gym, in the weight room, in practice," Nazareth catcher Justin Pacchioli said. "Wherever it may be that he's at, he's always working hard. He's so built on getting somewhere in life. He went out there every day playing the game as hard as he could no matter what happened."

Garzillo hopes his strong junior season and continued hard work will eventually land him a college baseball scholarship. He will spend the summer playing for Nazareth's American Legion team and would like to find a team to play with during the fall.

Lock said college coaches have started to contact him about Garzillo, but he considers the book on his shortstop just opened.

"He is absolutely the hardest-working kid and the best attitude kid I've been around," Lock said. "He'd do anything for you. He'll do anything to make himself better. He's just that character-minded.

"He's a kid that I would put all my stock in him being successful in life."