Grayslake Central’s Jack Gerbasi is a tough out. Successful pitchers ‘should give yourself a pat on the back.’

It was the type of simple exchange between a coach and a player that happens routinely throughout a baseball game.

But the seconds-long message from Grayslake Central coach Troy Whalen to leadoff hitter Jack Gerbasi before an early season game in Florida had a lasting effect.

“It was right before I went up to bat, and he said to go up there and just be an athlete,” Gerbasi recalled. “I ripped a solid hit, and it reminded me to simplify things. Just go up to bat, see the ball and get the barrel on it.”

That has become a common occurrence for Gerbasi since the chat. His slow start over, his scorching-hot bat has shown no signs of cooling off. Entering the weekend, the 6-foot-2 senior left fielder was hitting .510 while leading the Northern Lake County Conference’s front-running Rams (10-3, 5-0) with 14 RBIs. He had also scored 21 runs.

Getting back to basics syncs nicely with the way Gerbasi approaches the sport. He has always believed in not taking baseball too seriously. He discounts statistics enough that he was completely unaware he was still batting above .500 in mid-April.

“I’ve always just let my play do the talking,” he said. “If you think too much, it doesn’t end well. And if you’re thinking about your stats, you get away from helping the team.”

With his team-first approach from the leadoff spot, Gerbasi often goes deep into counts to give teammates a better idea of what to expect — even if it means he has to hit with two strikes.

“I’ve gotten pretty good in those situations, shortening my swing, widening my stance and making sure I use quick hands,” he said. “I love setting the tone for us on offense and working the pitcher.”

He has also become proficient at anticipating what might come next in a sequence.

“He sees the ball really well and really battles at the plate on every at-bat,” Whalen said. “There’s a difference between playing chess and checkers, and he’s definitely at the chess table. The game slows down for him.”

That’s something his teammates certainly notice too. Senior center fielder Luke Mudd describes a general calmness in Gerbasi from the moment he walks into the on-deck circle to deep into an at-bat. Mudd said he has seen Gerbasi coax at least 10 pitches in multiple plate appearances this season.

Mudd also lauds Gerbasi’s base-running ability, particularly how he reads balls that bounce in front of or near the plate.

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“He reads the trajectory of off-speed pitches really well, and if it gets away from the catcher, he’s usually three-quarters of the way to the next base,” Mudd said. “He’s by far our hardest out. If you get him out, it’s almost like you should give yourself a pat on the back.”

Baseball only recently reoccupied Gerbasi’s time. He spent the winter season as a key perimeter player on Grayslake Central’s boys basketball team, which won a program-record 29 games and lost in a Class 3A supersectional.

“Man, was I rusty when baseball started up,” he said. “I hadn’t picked up a bat since the fall because of basketball. I got back into a groove pretty quickly, and I feel back to normal now.”

Of course, Gerbasi will encounter a new “normal” once high school ends. He isn’t planning to play sports in college and intends to study engineering at Michigan State.

So Gerbasi has one more postseason with the Rams, who lost in a 3A sectional semifinal last year.

“We know the stakes where we have one last shot to prove ourselves,” he said. “But this is a blast, and we all need to enjoy ourselves.”

Steve Reaven is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun.