James Schiavone ’25: baseball

With the baseball nestled in his glove, James Schiavone ’25 adjusts his stance on the pitcher’s mound for the final time, grounding his feet. Taking a steady breath, he pitches a fastball, watching as it cuts through the air, slipping past the batter, and landing in the catcher’s mitt with a solid thump. Strikeout.

Schiavone began his baseball journey at age four, when he played his first tee ball game. Growing up, Schiavone played both baseball and basketball, but ended up choosing to focus on baseball. His brother Kenneth Schiavone ’22, a former baseball player, was one of his biggest inspirations growing up.

“My older brother, Kenny, who played for the high school team for four years, taught me when I was younger how to play,” said Schiavone. “Even now, whenever he comes home from college, he comes to my [games] and gives me different tips.”

For Schiavone, baseball is a year-round dedication. Not only does he serve as one of the co–captains of the PHS baseball team, but he is also one of the pitchers for Princeton’s Post 218 American Legion team over the summer. The American Legion is a broad organization overseeing multiple baseball teams in all fifty states. Many players participate in the American Legion to improve their skills and as a stepping stone between high school and colllege.

“We play about 25 games in two and a half months, and then I go straight into Legion, which is another 20 games in 30 days,” said Schiavone.

However, even with the large amount of time and energy that baseball demands, Schiavone is able to find a balance between his athletics and his life as a student.

“I enjoy every minute of baseball, so I don’t see it as an obligation anymore, so that once I’m done with baseball, I still have a lot [of] energy,” said Schiavone. “I’m still ready to go, still [doing] all my school work, just got to find the balance.”

That mindset proved especially important to Schiavone after he suffered an elbow injury in sophomore year.

“We get in a thing called a slump. You’re not even supposed to say the word [it’s]—bad luck— but when you’re not hitting well, it’s really hard to break out of it, because it starts getting mental,” said Schiavone. “You start thinking about if you’re good enough. Then you need toughness, and just got to keep practicing [and] keep working.”

Through patience and hard work, he returned strong as a junior, earning a spot on the varsity team. That season, Schiavone helped the team defeat Hopewell Valley for the first time in over ten years, ending the game with a 2.33 earned run average, which prevented the opposing team from gaining runs and kept Princeton in the lead.

Like any sport, mastering baseball requires a diverse range of skill sets. Schiavone is always looking for ways to refine his game.

“Baseball is a game of failure. You can always improve,” said PHS boys baseball Head Coach Dominic Capuano. “We’ve worked on his hitting and how to stay more balanced pitching-wise. He [has] worked really hard to stay healthy the last two years and throw more strikes and be commanding. And the mental side of the game, we’re always working on.”

Schiavone’s drive for constant improvement and dedication has made him an effective leader on the team according to many of his teammates and coaches.

“He’s always been a hard worker. He’s always been someone who’s had success on the mound and at the plate, and he’s always shown leadership qualities, which have really been accentuated this year,” said Capuano. “He leads by example, he does all the right things. He really truly cares about the success of everybody around him in the program.”

Not only is he devoted captain according to his coaches, Schiavone’s positive attitude and encouraging words during games have also made a lasting impression on his teammates.

“My first year, when I was a freshman, [I was] really scared and I didn’t really know anybody, and James made me feel super welcome to the team,” said Matthew Akey ’26. “He’s always been the positive guy … and he’ll definitely push you to be better.”

After becoming a co–captain of the team this year, Schiavone hopes to continue acting as a role model for his team members.

“I just want to do everything I can to help the team and continue being the leader,” said Schiavone. “I hope that I can be a reason we are doing well.”

This year marks Schiavone’s fourteenth year playing baseball and his final year on the team. Reflecting on his high school career, Schiavone has not only grown as an athlete but also in mindset, and he plans to continue that passion in college.

“I want to, if the opportunity comes to me, play baseball in college,” said Schiavone. “If not, I would just like to play club baseball.