DANVERS– St. John’s Prep pitcher Joe Castrichini feels fortunate to be around a group of players who share the same goals. Castrichini and his teammates are dedicated to making the most of their high school careers and catching the eyes of college coaches in the process.
“It’s awesome,” Castrichini, a rising senior and Peabody native, said. “It’s really good to be around hard working guys like that and guys that are committed to the same goals as you. I really want to be around guys who put in the effort and have the same commitment. We all have the same attitude. It’s great to be a part of that. It’s really motivating.
“I’m really fortunate to have such great people around me who’ve supported me the whole way. They’ve been a big part of my life thus far.”
Earlier this week, Castrichini joined a growing group of current Eagles who’ve made their future plans official when he announced his commitment to play at Division II Stonehill. He also considered Merrimack and Holy Cross.
“I went to the campus and I really fell in love with it,” Castrichini said. “Coach Patrick Boen was a nice guy, really genuine. I just felt it was a perfect it. I wanted to make sure my family could come out to see games. I like the idea of being close to home.”
The Skyhawks, which compete in the Northeast-10 Conference, went 22-25 this past season. Stonehill’s roster features a pair of local pitchers in Swampscott native Luke Marshall and Lynn’s Brendan Powicki, a St. John’s graduate.
“I’ve heard the team’s pretty solid,” Castrichini said. “I heard they’re hard working and great guys. I’ve only heard good things about them. I’m excited to be a part of a team like that.”
Castrichini plans to major in business and minor in Chinese.
“I started taking Chinese my freshman year,” Castrichini said. “I’ve enjoyed it a lot. I feel like it’ll be good to have that in the business world.”
A right-handed reliever, Castrichini’s four-pitch arsenal includes a four-seam fastball, two-seam fastball, slider and change-up. His fastball tops out at 85 MPH.
“I try to keep hitters off-balance,” Castrichini said. “Sometimes I’ll try to start with the slider or get ahead with the fastball. You just have to keep batters off-balance and keep them guessing.”
The 2019 campaign was Castrichini’s first on the varsity team. He went 2-0 with a 2.11 ERA in eight appearances.
“Joe did a great job for us this year,” Letarte said. “He did a great job. He keeps control. He has a very good curveball that can keep guys off balance. I think Stonehill’s a great school for him. Coach Boen saw Joe pitch at Malden Catholic and followed up with him later. It’s just a great fit.”
After learning what it takes to pitch against some of the top teams across the state, Castrichini’s ready to continue his development during his senior year.
“I felt (last season) went pretty well,” Castrichini said. “We were pretty successful as a team. We fell short at the end but I felt that as an individual things went well. I’m excited and ready to improve next season. I really want to help us get to the ‘Super 8’ final and win it all.”