Jacob Paschetto is a native of East Longmeadow, Massachusetts. (Photo Courtesy: Jacob Paschetto)
Oftentimes kids follow their father’s footsteps and play the sport their father played, but this was not the case for Dean College baseball right fielder Jacob Paschetto. Paschetto’s mother, Michelle Paschetto, was never into baseball, and his father, Joseph Paschetto, played soccer at Western New England University.
“I would say that we have always liked watching baseball. Whether it was little league, high school, or MLB, but we are probably more invested and loving the game because Jacob loves it. We love watching him play and try to get to as many games as we can. He plays with so much heart, how can we not love the sport now,” Paschetto’s mother explained.
Paschetto started playing baseball at the t-ball level when his best friend from back home convinced him to play with him. Other than occasionally pitching, Paschetto has always played in the outfield. He started in centerfield in little league before moving over to right field at the high school level. Paschetto grew up trying to model his game after Jacoby Ellsbury (while he was on the Red Sox, not the Yankees).
“Reading the ball off the bat is different in right field, especially with a righty since every ball hit to right field has more spin towards foul territory,” Paschetto explained. “In centerfield though, there is definitely more ground to cover, but you also have to take more charge with taking flyballs,” Paschetto continued.
Paschetto started his high school playing career on the freshman team but did not play at all during his sophomore year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Fast forward to his junior year, and he moved up to the varsity team. Paschetto explained how he believes that his approach at the plate in high school changed from being a contact hitter at the beginning of his freshman year, but once he got bigger, he added more power to his swing, which generated more extra base hits. “During COVID, I worked out every day and put on a significant amount of muscle, which is when I changed my swing,” Paschetto said.
When it came time for Paschetto to decide if he wanted to continue playing baseball at the collegiate level, he was initially unsure. “I wasn’t even sure if I was going to play college baseball until during my senior year of high school because academically, I am pretty sound, so I was debating if I wanted to go to school for just academics or still have baseball in my life. I got the offer from Coach May, and I like the small school environment, and I thought this was somewhere I can come play and succeed,” Paschetto explained.
Paschetto also looked at Springfield College, Western New England University, and schools in New York. However, being from western Massachusetts in East Longmeadow, Paschetto did not want to stay in his backyard in Springfield, but he also did not want to go too far away to New York, so he saw Dean College as a good option.
“We always told him to never underestimate his abilities and strengths. He is a talented athlete that can absolutely play at the college level while still doing well academically. We will always believe in him, cheer him on and support him along the way,” Paschetto’s mother mentioned.