Staff Report
Rich Iuliucci flew a little bit under the radar last year as a sophomore on an Eastern Regional High baseball team that won 25 games and the South Jersey Group 4 championship before seeing its postseason run come to an end with a 6-4 loss to Bridgewater-Raritan in the state championship game.
He hit a respectable .261 with 18 hits, 18 runs and 16 RBIs, but so far this season he’s been roping line drives all over the field to the tune of a .476 batting average that has raised his career average up above .300.
Iuliucci has put on some muscle, as he’s now 5-foot-11 and 180 pounds, and he plays left field with the speed and physicality of a football linebacker. There’s a lot to like about the way this kid plays baseball. He started coming on strong at the end of his sophomore year, as he had six hits in the Vikings’ final eight games, while adding a home run, four RBIs, five walks and a pair of stolen bases.
This season, Iuliucci has had a hit in seven of Eastern’s first nine games — all victories — and he’s scored six runs while adding seven RBIs and eight walks. He’s also running a lot more than he did last year, as he’s already eclipsed last year’s mark of five steals. Part of that is because he’s on base a lot more often this season. In 30 plate appearances, he’s reached base 19 times.
Look for all those numbers to continue to climb, as I don’t think we’ve even seen the best of No. 5 in Navy and cardinal red yet.
— Dave O’Sullivan, Staff Writer
