DiGiorgio Thrilled To Be Playing College Baseball Close To Home

FRANKLIN, Ma. - Henry DiGiorgio had a decision to make at the start of high school.

“At the beginning of my freshman year I didn’t know if I wanted to play basketball or baseball in college,” the Franklin junior reflected. “But I had this gut passion for baseball and I thought there would be more opportunities with that so I stuck with it and decided that’s what I wanted to do at the next level.”

The assessment about the future proved to be correct after DiGiorgio made a commitment to Northeastern.

“It started off my freshman year when I ended up starting at shortstop for my high school team,” DiGiorgio explained. “They were recruiting Ryan Gerety, who was a senior at my high school at the time, and they began having an interest in me. I had sent out 25 to 50 emails to schools prior to that.

“In the summer I went to a camp there, but then there was the dead period. I began to send emails out more frequently at that point, seeing if I’d hear back from anyone. In the spring I had a great year and a bunch of schools showed interest in me. I ended up going to Northeastern and taking a tour.”

DiGiorgio, who also visited Boston College and had interest from UMass Amherst and Fairfield, liked what he saw at Northeastern.

“I enjoy being in the city and with it being close to home it was ideal for me,” noted DiGiorgio, who lives 45 minutes from the campus in Boston. “I went to a game there and there was a great atmosphere. The coaches were great. They gave me an offer and I gave it a month.”

One thing continued to stand out in the eyes of DiGiorgio.

“Northeastern recruited me for a year-and-a-half,” DiGiorgio said. “They showed loyalty. I really like the program and how (head) coach (Mike) Glavin practices and his coaching philosophy.”

The left-handed hitting middle infielder made an impression on Northeastern as well.

“Defensive wise, I like to think I can make every play,” DiGiorgio said. “I struggled offensively as a freshman but sophomore year I broke out, with a good year offensively and defensively.”

The 6-0 175-pounder pointed to “three huge people” playing a key role in his development.

“Zach Brown, my high school coach, is the best coach I’ve ever been around,” DiGiorgio related. “He understands guys and will do what’s best for them. He has a similar coaching style to Glavin. Nothing is guaranteed, you’ve got to come to practice and work hard. Live in the moment.

“Dan Sullivan, the recruiting coordinator at Nokona, and Jerry Carroll, the head coach at Nokona who has been big on giving advice on baseball and life, are others that have been huge for me.”

Improvement also played a part in becoming a Division I commit.

“It starts in the weight room,” DiGiorgio noted. “Training in the off season is a huge X factor where guys separate themselves from one another. I’ve also been eating well, trying to put on weight while working on my speed and staying fast.”

DiGiorgio is confident about his ability to make an impact in the Colonial Athletic Association program.

“I’m a guy that likes to work hard, I have a great work ethic,” DiGiorgio explained. “I play on both sides of the ball and do the little things well, situational stuff like getting the bunt down and stealing bases. I’ll be a great teammate that people love to be around.”

After making a commitment, DiGiorgio found life on the diamond a bit different.

“The two tournaments after I committed I felt much looser on the field,” DiGiorgio said. “I don’t know if that’s normal or not, but once I committed it was a big weight off my shoulders. Before I was trying to impress coaches and I would overthink things and get in my own head about it.”

Plans are to major in business marketing according to DiGiorgio, a 3.7 student at Franklin who is excited about what the future will bring at Northeastern.

“I’m looking forward to meeting new people, going to Red Sox games and being on the same team and playing with guys from around the area,” DiGiorgio concluded. “I’ll be playing with a purpose of getting drafted and getting to the MLB, that’s my goal. I’ll do whatever I have to do in college to meet my goal of doing that.”