2012 Draft Profile: - OF – Dario Pizzano

When you’re scouting a region and you’re looking for an outfielder, you spend your evenings in a hotel room, with your laptop, trying to find someone with a .654 slugging percentage. Well, scouts in New York City just have to take a subway to see that. Enter Dario Pizzano.

Pizzano is going into his big draft year and I expect he will continue to lead his team in most of the offensive stat categories. He’s that kind of prospect.

Here’s some history on Dario:

2009: Dario Pizzano has already had a lifetime of memories filled with notoriety. He has played his favorite sport on the biggest stage for Little League players, and was interviewed by ESPN — among many other media outlets — leading up to the 2003 U.S. championship game against Boynton Beach, Fla. on the hallowed grounds of LaMade Stadium in Williamsport, Pa. Now Pizzano is heading to the Ivy League, specifically Columbia University, where he’ll naturally play baseball, opting for even bigger dreams beyond that. But he hasn’t forgotten what it all means. http://www.wickedlocal.com/saugus/archive/x1373194432/From-Little-League-to-Ivy-League-Former-Williamsport-Saugus-hero-Dario-Pizzano-gets-ready-for-college#ixzz1YbKyeDlN

2011: First team All-Ivy League for the second straight season ... started 42 of 43 games he played ... voted team's most valuable player ... led team in batting average, base hits, home runs, RBI, doubles and total bases ... at the end of the regular season, led Ivy League in home runs and total bases ... hit safely in first 10 games and 16 of his first 17 ... went 4-for-5 with three doubles, three runs scored and two RBI at South Alabama ... had three hits in five at-bats, including two RBI in 5-3 win at Florida Gulf Coast ... was a single shy of the cycle at Rollins, with a double, triple and a home run and drove in four runs in 8-7 win ... batted .467 in four-game series vs. Holy Cross with six RBI ... went 3-for-5 in doubleheader sweep of Harvard with a home run, five RBI and three runs scored ... drilled a two-run homer in first inning of 6-5 win over Manhattan ... homered in each end of opening doubleheader at Princeton ... his home run in game one gave Columbia a brief lead in extra innings before the Lions went on to win, 8-5 ... in final home doubleheader vs. Penn, cranked three home runs, scored six times and drove in four. - http://www.gocolumbialions.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=9600&ATCLID=3749872

5-11-11: - Dario Pizzano, the former Saugus American Little League all-star who was a pivotal member on that 2003 team that played for the U.S. championship at the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa., is now all grown up and doing quite well as a sophomore outfielder on the Columbia University baseball team. Pizzano was officially chosen Team MVP earlier this week, and then after hearing the news he sat down and answered questions posed by the Saugus Advertiser. The award is named after former Lion and New York Yankee great Lou Gehrig. - http://www.wickedlocal.com/saugus/archive/x1058159050/Catching-up-with-Dario-Pizzano-Saugus-native-earns-Team-MVP-honors-in-baseball-as-a-college-sophomore#ixzz1YbLNsRQb

7-19-11: - link  - Dario Pizzano, Columbia, 5’11 L/R, solid hitter with occ power, gap type power for extra bases, 40 arm and 40 runner, gamer with good instincts and a baseball diamond rat, just enough ability to get to ML level perhaps, 13-20 round type guy.

He was also named the starting right fielder this past summer in the NECBL All Star game and a First Team NECBL All Star outfielder, while also being ranked the league's Most Improved Player. Baseball I was also ranked the 9th best MLB prospect in the league by Baseball America

We talked with Dario earlier this week and asked him about his preparation for the upcoming season:

This offseason we have our normal fall ball schedule, which consists of 3 team lifts and 3 team conditioning sessions a week. We also have 3 practices a week through October for our fall season. In addition to our 3 team lifts, I go to the gym 3 separate times and work on other parts of my body we don't always cover in our team lifts. I use the open hours for hitting on Mondays and Wednesdays in our indoor cage, also. I want to improve my speed and my arm strength, which are considered the weakest parts of my game. To do that, I practice the 60 yard dash a few times during the week while doing other speed and foot quickness drills. I am starting a throwing program with new and improved mechanics that will hopefully greatly improve my arm strength. My main goal this year is to be a team leader and help our team capture the Ivy League Championship and compete in an NCAA regional tournament. Everything else is icing on the cake. This is what I'm doing in the offseason.

He was the starting right fielder in the NECBL All Star game and a First Team NECBL All Star outfielder, while also being ranked the league's Most Improved Player. Baseball America ranked him as the 9th best MLB prospect in the league.

With a name like this, you gotta be drafted by either the Yanks or Mets, right?