March 13, 2020

By Lukas Weese

Canadian Baseball Network

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla.— For every baseball player, the goal is to be the best at his position. Giordano Mezzomo is a rare case.

Not only can he pitch with velocity, he can hit with power.

At 17, the Coquitlam, B.C., native hopes to harness his two-position advantage as long as possible.

“Having success at both hitting and pitching allows me to be a well-rounded player in any situation,” Mezzomo said.

Mezzomo’s earliest memories are playing tee-ball with his friends and baseball in his hometown Hastings Little League.

When his game was showing evident progress, Mezzomo decided to try out with the British Columbia Premier Baseball League. Luckily, Coquitlam had the Reds, a team in the BCPBL.

“It’s turned out well for me,” Mezzomo said. “It was big because now I am playing for the BCPBL, where it is very serious and your name gets out there if you perform.”

Mezzomo was attracted to the Reds’ program because of its focus on recruiting players from the community. Developing homegrown players to be successful on and off the field is the model that Wes Taylor, general manager of the Reds, created in Coquitlam.

“We develop our players through a community mindset,” Taylor said. “Eighty percent of our guys will play college baseball. That’s our main goal for a kid that goes above and beyond.”

Mezzomo is a part of that 80 percent who will play college baseball. He recently committed to play for Sacramento (Calif.) State, whose well-structured baseball program focuses on enhancing work ethic and honing the skills that require improvement.

“Giordano has a great swing,” said David Flores, the hitting coach at Sacramento State. “He has tremendous projection with his power for his age. He will get more reps on the pitching side. When he comes to play for our program, he will be an impactful two-way player who can throw an 87-89 mile-an-hour slider and also hit.”

Mezzomo can be effective at Sacramento State playing both positions and doesn’t need to pick one or the other at the moment, Flores said, because he is solid at both.

For Mezzomo, his focus is on making an impact for the Canadian Junior National team. The young prospect has played well on big stages before, such as last year’s Tournament 12 Showcase in Toronto, where he selected to play in the All-Star Game.

He hopes to use his experience with the Canadian squad as a stepping stone to becoming one of the best two-way players in the country.

“You work hard your whole life and dedicate yourself for this moment,” Mezzomo said. “It’s an honour to represent Canada and when you put in hard work and see it pay off, it means a lot.”