‘He loved watching us play baseball’

The co-MVP’s of the 2023 American Legion Baseball Mid-Atlantic Regional almost didn’t make the tournament.

Brothers RJ and Jack Mustaro had good reason to miss the tournament — and just as good a reason to take the field for Brooklawn (N.J.) Post 72 at the regional in Morgantown, W. Va.

Their father, Ray, died of cancer on July 28; regional play began Aug. 2.

“We were almost not going to go out there, we were just going to stay home and stay with the family,” said Jack, a senior-to-be at Gloucester Catholic High School. “But we knew he would want us to be here and come out and play for him. So we did and we made him proud.”

Jack batted .583 with 7 RBIs during the regional tournament, while RJ — a recent Gloucester Catholic graduate — batted .500 with 9 runs scored.

“I feel like it was just a sign, almost, from our dad,” RJ said. “He just passed away last week, and we decided to go down and play, and we both had great weeks. They said it was the first co-MVP’s in almost 20 years, so it was pretty special to have my family there to see that happen.”

Sports have forged a bond in the Mustaro family. “This year we played football, basketball and baseball,” RJ said of he and Jack. “We were the quarterback-wide receiver, we were the point guard-shooting guard in basketball and then we played baseball, he didn’t miss a single game. We knew he would want to be here watching, so we had to play for him.”

“He just loved to watch us play baseball,” Jack added. “Other sports, definitely, but baseball; he loved baseball, he loved watching us play baseball, he taught us what we know in baseball.”

Brooklawn coach Dennis Barth said, “It was touching, really, they did so well and to get co-MVPs is a neat thing. Ray’s watching them from up above. He’d be a proud papa right now. … There was a lot of tears when they got the awards.”

When asked about some of their favorite moments with their dad, sports were unsurprisingly at the top of the list.

“Just being able to have a great week like we did out in regionals, and knowing all year that was for him. What a great week, made me feel really good about that,” Jack said.

“I just remember hugging him after scoring my 1,000 points in basketball; that was a big moment. It made him proud, I know it did. And right after he passed, three days later was his birthday, I had a home run in my first at-bat on his birthday, so that was a pretty special moment,” RJ said.

Team tradition

Brooklawn’s Legion Baseball program has made more appearances in the ALWS (17) than any other, but this is their first trip to the series since 2015.

But players like the Mustaro brothers don’t seem to feel any pressure.

“We have a lot of guys from our high school, and it’s basically the same thing that goes for our high school goes for Brooklawn: you play to win, you don’t play to come in second,” RJ Mustaro said. “It’s just an expectation at this point.”

They are enjoying their first visit to Veterans Field at Keeter Stadium, however.

“This is the nicest field I’ve ever been at; I’m excited to be here. We came up short last year, so I’m glad to make it all the way this year,” RJ said.

“Beautiful here,” Jack said Wednesday. “We’ve been here two days, haven’t even played baseball yet, and it’s been a great experience so far.”

Brooklawn opened tournament play Thursday by rallying past Cedar Rapids (Iowa) Post 671. Iowa scored two runs in the bottom of the first inning, but Brooklawn’s six-run fourth inning lifted them to a 9-2 win.