RIVERVIEW, Fla. — Ethan DeJesus is a senior pitcher for the Sumner High School Stingrays.
“I throw a fastball, slider, curveball, and change-up,” he said.
And that fastball is coming in hot.
WATCH: Sumner High pitcher DeJesus selected to Puerto Rico's U18 national team
“I ramp it up to 94 miles per hour,” he added.
DeJesus is coming off a season where he struck out 68 batters in 40 innings pitched.
“Every year he’s been here, he’s gotten better,” Sumner High coach Kennedy Duran said. “The fruits of his hard work are coming forward now. Every year, his velocity has ticked up a little bit more. That is due to the work that he does on his own.”
DeJesus is just one of 20 players selected to compete for Puerto Rico’s 18U national team in the World Baseball Softball Confederation World Cup in Okinawa, Japan.
“This is really exciting to be able to represent my country and my school,” DeJesus said.
He’ll be facing some of the best competition in the world.
“It’s crazy, unbelievable that I can do this,” DeJesus said. “I’ve seen people that I look up to play in these types of events.”
Some of those players are legends from the rich history of Puerto Rican baseball.
“Definitely Francisco Lindor, Roberto Clemente has always been one of my idols since day one,” DeJesus said. “I have his number on my jersey. So with me being able to represent like they do, it’s an honor.”
“We play a lot of great teams in the area; they now have to prepare for Ethan DeJesus on the mound,” Duran said. “Everybody knows, it’s a household name in this area. If Ethan is on the mound, you need to go watch it.”
The 12-country tournament begins on Sept. 5.
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