Player Profile: Joe Masi
Junior Joe Masi up to bat for Fossil Ridge. Photo Credit: Joe Masi
April 5, 2018
Junior Joe Masi has been playing baseball for Fossil Ridge for three years. Not only does he play during the official spring season, but he plays with the SaberCats during the off season in fall and summer as well. He has shown a great deal of commitment and ‘buy-in’ to the program here at Fossil, and was willing to share a bit more about himself, his experiences with baseball, and his aspirations for the near future in a recent interview.
With thirteen years of experience under his belt, baseball has become a very big part of his life; Masi commented, “I grew up playing every single sport I could, but once I got into high school I dropped everything but baseball because it has always been my favorite. I even enjoy watching the game, which I know a lot people don’t like at all.”
Once Masi was competing at a competitive level, after playing recreational baseball for a handful of years, he found himself truly committed to the game. It wasn’t until the summer before his freshman year, that he took into consideration playing for Fossil Ridge; Looking forward three years, to right now, he is a critical player for the varsity squad, and couldn’t be happier with the experiences he has had thus far as a SaberCat. He was nervous trying out for the summer team prior to his first year, as he lived in Greeley at the time, “I didn’t know anyone so that was very different at first but it was awesome getting to know them and now they are friends and teammates that I have played with for four years.” He stated that a lot of his favorite memories have come from that summer season as well as the other summer seasons he has participated in.
Team dynamics are important in any sport, and this group of players that Fossil Ridge baseball has this year have literally grown up together. Their bonds are extremely strong, and it shows on and off the field. “In the summer I get to play with the same guys, for the most part, as I do during spring and we get to travel out of state and play in tournaments together. It’s hard to pick out a ‘favorite’ memory because the best experiences often came off the field in spending time with my teammates. I consider each of my teammates more as brothers, we are all incredibly close. I couldn’t be luckier to play with such a great group.” A few minutes later, Masi went on to say that if he had to choose a standout memory, it would be tied between when the team won a state tournament during the summer and their spring break trip in Arizona this year.
We all know, however, that you can’t have sunshine and rainbows each and every day in life, and Masi has experienced his fair share of hardships with baseball. “One of the hardest things I have a had to face is being afraid to fail; it’s something that any athlete can relate to.” In baseball, being successful is succeeding three out of ten times, as it is naturally a very mentally tough game.
On top of everything that a teenager has to deal with outside of school, athletics and academics take up much of their time if they choose to participate in said activities. Even with his packed schedule, Masi enjoys golfing, and wake boarding, “…there is not anything super interesting about me, all I really do is baseball.” With that said, his family has always been a very big part of his life, and baseball has always been a big part of his family. Masi commented in the interview, “My grandfather played and won the Little League World Series, my father played baseball at Colorado State University when they still had a division I program, and both of my brothers played ball throughout their young life.” Joe is the youngest of three boys in his family, and stated that his brothers have been incredibly influential to him. “When I was younger I remember wanting to be just like them. When my brothers were in high school I was about 6 years old, and since my father was the coach I was their bat boy, and because of that I have been around the game of baseball pretty much all my life.” He also mentioned, that even now as they have began their own adult lives, both of his brothers still play a big role in his.
Although Masi has played for many different coaches, many different teams, with many different people, he commented, “Playing for Fossil has been one of the best experiences I have had playing the game. There is something about playing for your school that you can’t get playing anywhere else. There are rivalries, students that come watch, and the fact that you’re an engaged member of something at your school, which I think is just really cool.” He along with the rest of the team are very excited for the rest of their season, and for playoffs, as they hope to make a deeper run this year than they did during the 2017 season.
Masi is not sure what he wants to do after high school. If given the opportunity to continue playing baseball, he would love to, but if that isn’t how the chips fall for him he said he would be fine with that too. If he doesn’t end up playing after he graduates from Fossil next spring, he knows that he wants to be a part of baseball or other sports in some way, shape, or form.
If you want to support the baseball team their next two games are tonight against Fort Collins at Fort Collins at 4:00 P.M. and Saturday, April 7, against Legacy High School at home at 11:00 A.M. Follow @frhssportsnews on Twitter for updates on all things Fossil-athletics!
