Wheeling, W. Va. - After finishing his four-year career with the Wheeling University Baseball team, outfielder Chris Iazzetta found himself atop many of the team's leaderboards. He was a part of the team that set the single season wins record for the program, tying for the all-time home run record with 15, and finishing top 10 in team history in triples (4), RBI (93), Runs Scored (77), and Stolen Bases (27). He is now continuing his baseball career this summer, signing a contract with the Tuscon Saguaros of the Pecos League.
Over the team's first 20 games of the season, Iazzetta has played in 11 games and leads the team hitting .441 with a home run and 13 RBI while playing right field. Nearly half of his hits have gone for extra bases as he sports four doubles and a triple to go along with his lone home run of the season. His first professional home run came back on June 18th, a three-run home run in a game that his team won 18-8 over the Santa Fe Fuego. He made his professional debut back on June 3rd and is one of two teammates playing in the Pecos League this summer.
Iazzetta was a constant in the middle of the Cardinals lineup this past spring and finished hitting .273 with seven home runs and a team-leading 47 RBI in 49 games played. Along with leading the team in RBI, Iazzetta finished second on the team in home runs and fourth on the team with three triples. He helped the Cardinals stay in the battle for the Mountain East Conference (MEC) playoffs to the very end of the season, including delivering the key hit that helped Wheeling earn a sweep over West Liberty in its final home doubleheader of the season.
For Iazzetta, getting the chance to play professional baseball has been a dream come true and he wants to share his story for others in Division II baseball and in the Cardinals program who have similar aspirations.
"Playing for Tuscon has been an unbelievable experience," said Iazzetta. "It's the first step of a long journey and I'm excited to share my story moving forward to show anyone who may be second guessing themselves that if they want it bad enough and put in the work, they'll be able to find a way. The talent level out here is really competitive so being able to play alongside my teammates here and having the privilege to travel the country doing what I love is very humbling. I'm excited for the next steps in my baseball career and seeing where it takes me."
The Pecos League is an independent baseball league which operates in cities in desert mountain regions throughout California, New Mexico, Southern Arizona, Kansas, West Texas, and Colorado. Pecos League teams play in cities that do not have Major or Minor League teams and are not affiliated with either league.
