Byrne Ready To Help Winning Ways Continue At Fairfield

Jack Byrne OF / SS / Natick, MA / 2024

NATICK, Ma. - It was five years ago when Jack Byrne started to believe college baseball was in his future.

“When I started playing club baseball is when I started seeing this as something I wanted to do,” the 17-year-old reflected. “Through time I learned what I had to do.”

It is now a reality after the eighth-ranked 2024 outfielder in New England made a recent commitment to Fairfield.

“I reached out to them a while back but hadn’t heard much,” the incoming senior at Natick High School said. “But then I saw them at a summer game and I reached out after and said I saw them there. They said they’d like to see me again and to send them my schedule. A couple weeks ago I heard back from them. I ended up going on a visit and they extended an offer.

“I have family in the area so I had seen the school before, but to see it from the inside was great. It’s 21/2 hours away from home, and once I got home I called them and accepted. My grandma lives right down the street from there so it will be good to be close to other members of my family.”

There is more that attracted Byrne to Fairfield.

“I really like the coaches, (assistant) coach (Brian) Fay and head coach (Bill) Currier are great guys,” Byrne explained. “All the coaches talked to me on the visit and I really connected with them.

“I’m into an enclosed campus with that on-campus feel and they have a business school’” Byrne added. “I was surprised by the facilities, what I saw I really liked. The strength coach and everyone there was very enthusiastic.”

Fairfield found a lot to like in the 5-11 175-pounder.

“They really like my speed,” Byrne noted. “It’s something I pride myself on, tracking balls in the outfield, running the basepaths and putting pressure on the defense. I think hitting is something I can develop on and into their hitting style.”

A left-handed batter, Byrne had also taken visits and had “serious talks” with a couple other D-I schools and had offers from D-III schools during a recruiting process that has been ongoing since before high school.

“I went to the Junior Future Games the summer going into my freshman year where I got to understand what it takes at that level,” Byrne explained. “I had a couple of calls after that which was mind blowing. Not knowing what to expect, it sped up and slowed down at different points and became stressful at points. I just had to focus on myself and not others that have a different timeline than I do. I had to focus on what was happening to me.

“The Junior Future Games was huge and I also went to the Future Games last year,” continued the fifth-ranked 2024 outfielder in Massachusetts. “That was one of the best weeks of my life playing with the best kids in the state and against the best in the country. PBR does a phenomenal job sending out videos. They gave me the ability to send them out from a trusted source.”

There was a lot of learning along the way en route to becoming a college commit.

“I got better at understanding the process, I focused on becoming stronger mentally,” the 59th-ranked 2024 in New England said. “If you have an off day physically, if the mental side is there you can still have a good day. I also worked hard at getting stronger and working on specific movements to use in games.”

His parents along with Paul Everett and Joey Magnani of the MWS summer program and high school coaches Jason Hoye, Billy Gassett and Matt Lodi are credited with playing key roles in the journey to college for Byrne, who is confident he can play a major role once arriving at Fairfield.

“Speed and baseball IQ are things I’m good at that I can bring to the program,” the 30th-rated 2024 in Massachusetts said. “I like to use speed to generate extra bases which will help bring wins to the program.”

A 3.7 student looking at a major in the business field, Byrne is ecstatic to know where his college future lies.

“It’s unbelievable, a feeling I’ve wanted to have for such a long time,” Byrne related. “I didn’t know what it would be like, but it’s a huge weight off my shoulders. I feel so much lighter on the baseball field. And the support I got after committing, it’s great to know that people are truly there for me.”

Now Byrne looks forward to being part of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference program.

“Fairfield won the MAAC regular season the last three years,” Byrne concluded. “I can’t wait to go there and win another conference championship and go to the regionals. It’s a program where I can not see it happening.”