As West Essex’s Jackson Lodgek went back out to the mound looking to protect the 3-0 lead that his teammates had just provided for him in the bottom of the sixth inning snapping a scoreless tie vs. Lyndhurst in a May 29th North 2, Group 2 state sectional quarterfinal, the Knights right-hander was more than ready to confidently go about his business of closing the door on any potential comeback by the Golden Bears.
The strong 6-foot-4, 215-pound junior, whose sweeping slider was executing at a premium level to complement his fast ball, proceeded to strike out the side in dominant fashion needing just 13 pitches to finish the job in a complete-game, 4-hit shutout while walking just one and striking out seven.
In improving to 4-1 on the season with his economical and very effective 93-pitch effort against eighth-seeded Lyndhurst (17-10) for the top-seeded Knights (16-8), Lodgek continued to demonstrate just why he is one of the ascending mound talents to watch on the statewide scene.
For his latest efforts, which helped propel West Essex into the Tuesday, June 3, N2G2 state sectional semifinals vs. fourth-seeded West Morris, the Knights rising star from Fairfield is the latest Parisi Fairfield/Sideline Chatter Athlete of the Week.
Back on May 10 he had impressed Essex County baseball observers with his 5 1/3 innings of solid work while not allowing an earned run in what was an eventual 3-2 Knights setback in 10 innings to second-seeded Livingston in the Greater Newark Tournament semifinals at Seton Hall Prep’s Porcello Field.
“That was a tough loss, no doubt,” said Lodgek, who has a fine 1.74 ERA with 40 K’s in 40 1/3 IP so far this season. “But, we have a resilient team and we remained determined to get right back out there in the next game and look to try and play our best baseball.”
A week after that solid outing vs. Livingston he hurled six innings of 4-hit ball without issuing a walk and striking out five in a 4-3 win over Millburn in regular-season Super Essex Conference-American Division action.
It has all come together this spring for Lodgek thanks to a dedicated off-season regimen following his sophomore year when he threw 15 1/3 innings, mostly in relief; and behind a strong support system that includes West Essex’s superb coaches, the strong training staff at Rebel Strength Performance in Fairfield, and a baseball-rich family that includes a father and uncle who both pitched at a very high level for Atlantic Coast Conference schools, and a cousin in Jake Lodgek of Mainland Regional in Atlantic County, who is one of the state’s top senior pitchers this season and is headed to the University of Miami to play his college baseball.
For West Essex’s Lodgek, the rapid rise this season to become one of the SEC’s top pitchers has been the product of making good use of each day, week and month of the year while continuing to grow and hone one’s talent.
“Jackson made the commitment in the off-season to work on improving everything he does baseball-wise, including increasing his strength and developing an effective secondary pitch,” said West Essex third-year head coach Joe Cardinale. “And, that dedication has really made a big difference for him with the outstanding job he has been doing for us this spring.
“He got stronger while working with former West Essex pitcher Derek Talish at Rebel in Fairfield, who is a private trainer for a number of our players.
“His velocity has really picked up (82 to 87 mph) this season and he has developed a very effective slider after really not having a secondary pitch he could rely on during his sophomore season.
“He also has a very supportive baseball family, including a father who was a Division I pitcher at Wake Forest, along with an uncle (former North Carolina and Seattle Mariners minor leaguer Scott Lodgek) and a cousin who have also had a great deal of success in the sport.”
For Jackson Lodgek, who will not turn 17 until July 13, an improved mental outlook and increased confidence have led to bigger dividends each time he takes the mound.
“At the beginning of the year I was not where my head needed to be,” said the up-and-coming, talented young hurler. “I’m more relaxed and confident now, and I know that I can do my thing and I go out there and do it!”
And, his additional size and strength further indicate that how with hard work the growth from sophomore to junior year can bring with it enormous dividends.
“This past winter at Rebel training with Dave Talish was huge for me,” said Lodgek. “I put on 35 pounds while adding a lot of strength and speed.
“Last year I struggled with my slider and I made it a focus to fix it in the past off-season with a new grip and then just continuing to work on the pitch to the point now where it can have some nice drop to it, and a horizontal sweep which makes it much more effective in complementing my fast ball while hopefully getting outs in the process.”
Having strong support from the West Essex baseball staff, including veteran pitching coach Chris Checchetto, plus being able to go over different aspects of recent starts with his dad are key, daily boosts for a burgeoning Division I talent.
“Our West Essex coaches do a terrific job; coach Checchetto calls the pitches for me and always has a positive thing to say to me after each inning,” said Lodgek. “My dad is always there for me, and my entire family is so supportive in everything I do.”
There are two younger brothers at home along with mom and dad, with West Essex middle school 14-year-old eighth-grader Braydon being a football and baseball player, and Drew, a 12-year-old sixth grader, also heavily involved with sports while playing football, basketball and baseball.
“My family is heavily involved with sports and I love baseball,” continued Lodgek. My goal is to one day play DI baseball, but right now I just want to try and help our team win a state title, and I’m going to continue to go out there every start and look to keep being more effective with each pitch I throw.”
For Cardinale, who guided a 24-5 Knights team to the North 1, Group 3 state sectional title last year, knowing that among his underclassmen is a definite pitcher to watch statewide in 2026 makes his job a situation to relish being at the vanguard for.
“I really think that Jackson is just scratching the surface as far as what he can be as a pitcher,” said the Wessex head mentor. “We have a good group of juniors to build around moving forward and he is definitely a big part of a very positive outlook we can continue to have for this baseball program.”
Parisi Speed School has been empowering athletes for over 30 years, since 1992. As the industry leader in youth performance training in the country, they have successfully trained over 1,000,000 athletes to include schools, teams, youth organizations and individual athletes from 7 years of age to the Pros in MLB, NFL, MLS, NBA and WNBA.
Parents and coaches are invited to visit their website for additional information at www.parisifairfield.com or contact their Director, John Cirilo at 973 227-0199.
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