Steinert High shortstop Austin Constantini is the kind of player the old-time scouts would love. The guys who would sit behind the backstops wearing flannel shirts in 100 degree July humidity, smoking their cigars, using nothing more than a pad and pencil to jot down a few notes even though it looked like they were barely paying attention.
That’s because Constantini is a throwback. He is their kind of guy.
“He just loves the game,” said Hamilton Post 31 manager Rick Freeman, who will utilize Constantini’s talents again this summer. “He loves the game, he plays hard, he plays for the right reasons. He cares about the team and about his teammates. It’s not about the individual stats. It’s about what it takes to make the team better. “
The individual stats aren’t too shabby, however. Entering this year’s NJSIAA Central Jersey Group III tournament, Constantini led the Spartans with a .458 average out of the leadoff spot, and had 19 stolen bases in 19 attempts.
The senior also led the team in hits (33), total bases (44), slugging percentage (.611), walks (19) and on-base percentage (.590). Despite batting leadoff, he was also second in RBI with 18.
He is the epitome of what you want from your leadoff hitter.
“He works the count as deep as he possibly can go,” Steinert coach Brian Giallella said. “He understands it’s his job. He’ll get on base. He understands when we need to run. He’s aggressive on the base paths, and obviously he’s been really strong otherwise. He’s one of our leaders, him and (Ryan) Scholey are our two captains.”
Constantini takes pride in working a pitcher and being a pain in the butt as a leadoff hitter.
“It’s always good to do that, especially at the leadoff spot,” he said. “You gotta get on, maybe steal a base, get something going, get our team on the board and go from there.”
And while hitting leadoff is one of the “glory” positions in the lineup, Constantini takes his responsibilities just as serious in the less glamorous spots.
“He understands his role,” Freeman said. “He hit second for us last summer, and he understood that role. He just understands. He takes it upon himself to learn how to do the things he has to do. That’s a real credit to him.”
Constantini has a great role model to learn from in big brother Mike, who is currently playing shortstop for the University of West Virginia after two years at Mercer County Community College.
“There was a lot to learn from him,” Austin said. “Watching him and all his friends, it was easy to pick up the game. I liked going to his games to learn and take it all in.
“I’ve kind of followed his path. I’ve always wanted to be better than him. It’s a little competition. That’s what I’m working for, to try and be better than him.”
Freeman and Giallella both note that Mike had a little more size than Austin, but that the two have similar character traits.
“Mike is a little more lanky,” Giallella said. “But just to know how to be in a place and how to play baseball and how to know what’s going on, these are things you just can’t teach all the time. He’s just that coach on the field. “
Constantini didn’t arrive at varsity until his junior year, which is when he became a full-time shortstop. He immediately became a big part of the offense last year, hitting .368 with 20 runs scored and 13 RBI.
He has been a consistently solid fielder, sometimes making plays that border on spectacular. At West Windsor-Plainsboro North this year, he made a diving backhand stop of a ball and threw a runner out at second sitting on his butt.
“The guys up the middle of the field aren’t only your strongest players, they also have to be your smartest players ,” Giallella said. “With Scholey at catcher, and Austin and (Shane) Plunkett in center, they’re the guys that can run the game, they know what’s going on.
“He just has that instinct. They’re things you can’t teach. He has all those things. Defensively he’s sound, he’s just the anchor of our defense.”
Freeman feels what Constantini does is more than just instincts. Granted, he has those gifts, but he has built on them with hard work.
“He studies the game, he wants to be good,” Freeman said. “He wants to learn every day. That’s a good thing. And he’s learned a lot about positioning, he’s taken that on himself, that it’s something you have to work at.
“It’s not just an innate ability. He works on it. He works on his offensive game, on his base running. He’s just a kid who works hard and it’s gonna pay off for him. It’s paid off for him already and it’s gonna pay off for him even more.”
Constantini, who has also pitched some relief innings this season, credits Steinert JV coach Matt Wolski, a former middle infielder for the Spartans and Rutgers, as a major contributor in helping improve his defense.
“It was good having Mike and Matt helping me,” Austin said. “Matt taught the same stuff to me that he taught my brother so it was nice to have them both.”
As for being a student of the game, Constantini said “I think that’s the main part of my game. I have to be mentally ready every game. That’s an advantage for me and my team.”
Constantini plans on going to Mercer next year, which is the place to be these days, as the Vikings reached the NJCAA World Series this year and are playing in front of plenty of four-year college coaches and professional scouts.
The kind of scouts who, whether they are interested in Constantini or not, will love the way he plays the game.
Steinert High shortstop Austin Constantini has his hat flip up while throwing during an April game against Hamilton. (Photo by Suzette J. Lucas.),
