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| Northeastern baseball commit Sam Jacobsak pitching for his travel team, NorthEast Baseball. |
Senior Sam Jacobsak, a hard-throwing, right-handed pitcher from Milton High School, has undoubtedly been the ace of the Wildcats staff this season. Sporting a fastball that tops out at around 90 mph, Perfect Game, rates Jacobsak as the 28th-overall prospect for the Class of 2017 in Massachusetts, and the 12th-best right-handed pitcher.
Jacobsak signed his National Letter of Intent back in November to play baseball at Northeastern University. The Huskies were actually one of the first teams to reach out to the 18-year-old, but Jacobsak knew that he wanted to join the program "the second" he stepped foot on campus.
He also credited Mike Glavine and the rest of the Huskies coaching staff for getting him to sign with the Boston-based school.
"The number one reason why I chose Northeastern was because of the coaching," Jacobsak said. "I also love both the field and the campus. The process was extremely smooth and stress-free."
His senior year at Milton High School is almost over with, as Jacobsak will join the rest of his classmates at graduation on June 4. However, his senior baseball season isn't quite finished. The Wildcats have a few more games left on their schedule and Jacobsak hopes to not have his high school career end in the regular season.
"My goal for the rest of the season is to make the tournament," he said. "Then, to make a run [in the playoffs]."
Even without a trip to the postseason, Jacobsak has throughly enjoyed his senior year at Milton, accruing a .327 batting average (18-for-55) at the plate. As a pitcher, he has posted a quality 2.25 ERA across 31 innings pitched, allowing just 23 hits and recording a 53/15 K/BB ratio.
"Senior year has been a lot of fun, both on the field and off," Jacobsak emphasized. "School-wise, it has been a lot of fun... The teachers and staff have made senior year enjoyable. Baseball-wise, it has also been fun... My teammates and coaches have made this season memorable."
Jacobsak has thrived playing for Milton High School these past four years, though his team has a 7-10 record on the 2017 campaign. Still, the Wildcats sit at 6-7 in a tough Bay State Conference, which is good for third in the Herget Division.
"Playing for Milton these past four years was the best decision I could have made," Jacobsak exclaimed. "I continued playing with my friends that I get up with and played baseball with since I was a kid... It doesn't get better than playing for your hometown."
Despite his stellar numbers, his school has a record below .500 on the season, and has work to do to qualify for the MIAA state tournament. The Wildcats have, however, played better than what their record shows. Jacobsak mentioned that Milton went toe-to-toe with a powerhouse Walpole team that is currently 12-4 (11-2) on the year for 15 innings.
He started that exhausting home game against Walpole, hurling seven scoreless innings, allowing a mere three hits, while striking out 12 batters and walking two batters. However, the game was long from being over, as his team couldn't uaster a run either against Walpole senior Brian Gaughan, who went nine shutout innings, striking out 19 batters and allowing just a single hit.
The teams' pitching staffs went back-and-forth for 14 innings, each side continuously putting up a goose egg. However, Walpole managed to scratch home a run on a sacrifice fly in the top of the 15th inning, while holding Milton to no runs in the bottom half of the inning.
Despite losing the game, Jacobsak loved the great pitching duel between the two schools, coining the game his favorite of the season.
"We ended up losing [the game], but with unbelievable pitching and defense, the game [kept] going."
Jacobsak admitted that he has a lot of work to do before he actually steps foot on campus as a student at Northeastern. The 6-foot-4 righty believes needs to change the way he looks and possibly more.
"I definitely need to gain weight and get stronger for next season," he added. "And possibly add a fourth pitch."
Jacobsak plays travel ball for NorthEast Baseball, which is widely known for their numerous amounts of players sent to the collegiate ranks every year. He most recently played for the NEB Rays. Milton will be thinking upset later today against reigning Super 8 champion Braintree. The Wildcats need to keep winning to qualify for the state tournament.
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