The truth be told, Gianni Zayas was ready to walk away from baseball a year ago.
“I didn’t want to play,” said Zayas, a senior on the North Bergen baseball team. “I had a bad junior year and I figured it was not for me.”
But Zayas wasn’t given the opportunity to give up the sport he played since he was a toddler. That’s because his older brother, Gil, a great baseball player in his own right, convinced him not to give it up.
Gil Zayas was a standout player at the now-defunct St. Joseph of the Palisades during his heyday. He was a two-time Hudson Reporter Player of the Year (2002 and 2004) and three-time All-Area honoree who went on to play at St. John’s University and eventually had a career in professional baseball. The elder Zayas now teaches at North Bergen and is an assistant coach with the Bruins’ varsity baseball team.
“My brother didn’t let me quit,” the younger Zayas said. “I’ve always looked up to him. He helps me every single day. He’s been my role model, who I want to be like. He’s been tremendous to me.”
The younger Zayas wasn’t even a baseball player growing up.
“I was more of a basketball player,” Zayas said. “I never even liked baseball. But when I got to high school, my parents and my brother convinced me to stick with baseball.”
It turned out to be a great decision, because Zayas was somehow able to secure a scholarship to North Carolina State over the summer.
While playing with a traveling AAU team based out of Freehold called the Pharaoh Builders, Zayas, a standout right-handed pitcher, played in some Perfect Game summer showcase tournaments, designed to get players recognized by colleges all across the country.
During one of those tournaments in Georgia, Zayas started to draw the attention of some major colleges. Thanks to a fastball that hovered around 92 miles-per-hour and excellent command of an assortment of pitches, Zayas was getting pursued by places like Seton Hall, Clemson and his brother’s alma mater, St. John’s.
“I was shocked I was getting recruited by [NCAA] Division I schools,” said Zayas, who won four games last season for the Bruins. “I had no idea that was going to happen. It was a big shock to me.”
N.C. State offered Zayas a scholarship based on his summer performances.
“I went to visit the school and I knew right away that it was the place for me,” Zayas said.
He signed his national letter of intent to attend N.C. State in the fall.
North Bergen head coach Patrick Brady thought that Zayas had the tools to be a good pitcher.
“I wasn’t as surprised as others,” Brady said. “I’ve never had a player improve as much as Gianni has over the years. He’s developed physically and developed mentally. He’s matured a lot. He’s taken his brother’s advice a lot and something just clicked over last summer. He’s become more and more of a pitcher. He does have big-time college stuff. His curveball is one of the best I’ve ever seen and he’s throwing in the low 90s. He’s just been able to put it all together. His stuff is electric.”
Zayas began the 2012 high school baseball season with a major Division I baseball scholarship tucked in his back pocket. He knew that the expectations would be raised significantly, because he was a scholarship athlete.
“I didn’t mind it,” Zayas said. “I love pitching against the better competition. I like the challenge of getting the ball in a big game.”
Zayas earned a save in the Bruins’ 4-2 extra-inning win over defending county champ Hoboken, avenging in some ways the loss to the Red Wings in the county title game last May.
Zayas then followed up his performance against Hoboken with a start against Randolph, one of the premier programs in the state. Randolph won two consecutive Group IV state championships in recent years.
“We knew that if he was on, he was going to be tough to beat,” Brady said. “He pitched a great game and beat one of the best teams in New Jersey. He was on, hitting his spots. His confidence has just grown from there. I just hope he can continue to build on it.”
Zayas surrendered only two hits, striking out eight, in helping the Bruins gain a 4-2 victory over Randolph.
For his efforts, Zayas has been selected as The Hudson Reporter Athlete of the Week for the past week. Zayas is the first honoree of the spring scholastic sports season.
“It’s a great feeling to have beaten a good team like Randolph,” Zayas said. “I definitely feel now that if I could beat them, I could beat anyone. I really believe in that. I just hope I can keep it going.”
Brady thinks it’s just the beginning for Zayas and his young team, which owns an impressive 5-1 record now, having won five straight since a season-opening loss to Elizabeth.
“His attitude and approach is so different now,” Brady said. “He’s more polished, more mature. There’s no question that Gil helped him. Gil went through all of this, went to St. John’s, became a pro. It’s nice to have your big brother around to help you through the ins and outs. I think it really helped with Gianni’s maturity level.”
One thing is for certain: Zayas has to be very glad he didn’t quit the game of baseball like he thought about.
“I made the right choice,” Zayas said. “It definitely helped having Gil as my brother. He always tells me how it is. I need that sometimes. I need that kick in the pants. I’m definitely glad I came back to baseball.” – Jim Hague.
Jim Hague can be reached at OGSMAR@aol.com.