BY KEITH IDEC
STAFF WRITER | THE RECORD
HAWTHORNE – David Mascis made sure to throw Tyler Charles plenty of curveballs when they played against each other in youth leagues.
Mascis’ best friend struggled to hit breaking balls most of his baseball life. After a sophomore season in which he hit .226 for Hawthorne, Charles committed more time than ever to turning that weakness into a strength.
The Bears’ senior right fielder is now one of North Jersey’s premier hitters and a primary reason they have had so much success since the start of his junior season.
“When he came back as a junior, he just looked like a totally different player,” Hawthorne coach John Passero said. “He grew a couple inches more, grew into himself a little bit and he had confidence. He had a tremendous season. He and [the since graduated] Kyle Grofsick were the big reasons why we had such a good year last year.”
Hawthorne went 18-7 last season and reached the North 1, Group 1 final.
Charles hit a team-high .492 in 2015, had a .587 on-base percentage, drove home 24 runs and produced 11 extra-base hits (seven doubles, two triples, two homers) — despite missing five games early in the season due to an appendectomy. He was named to the All-North Jersey second team by The Record.
This season, the three-year starter has picked up right where he left off. Entering today’s NJIC Colonial Division game at Lodi, Charles is batting .500, has five RBI and has scored four runs for Hawthorne (4-0), ranked No. 12 in The Record Top 25.
http://www.northjersey.com/sports/h-s-baseball-hawthorne-s-tyler-charles-is-in-a-groove-1.1545426
