Jackson Long clearly remembers the night he wanted to pitch full time.
The Guelph native went into a game for the Great Lake Canadians this past summer, and displayed such a dominant pitching performance against a top-ranked team that he wanted to ride the wave.
That wave, that focus, hasn’t stopped in the months that followed, and Long has parlayed that work into a full NCAA Division 1 scholarship at Canisius University next fall.
“I pitched two innings, I struck out every batter I faced, (but) I maybe had walked one,” he said. “At the time, (the opposing Ontario Blue Jays) were the number one team in our league, and I faced some big (NCAA) commits there.”
It gave him confidence to shed his role as an outfielder, and focus on the mound, even if he didn't play every day like he once did.
Long, 18, is the classic competitor, not wanting to sit back. He competed in a number of different sports growing up, and comes from a family of great athletes.
His dad Andrew won an OHL title with the Guelph Storm in 1996, and played in the AHL and ECHL before retiring. His sister Ava is the captain of Bishop Mac’s field hockey team.
Rather than going the hockey route, something clicked with Jackson and baseball.
He moved through the Guelph Royal baseball system, before playing with the Fieldhouse Pirates program in Burlington.
Making the move to the Great Lake Canadians a couple years ago was to utilize the coaching of the team’s pitching coordinator, former Toronto Blue Jays draft pick Shane Davis.
“We wanted him to work with Shane and (18U manager and former major leaguer) Jamie Romak, the guys at Great Lakes,” Andrew said.
“We felt like that was an opportunity. They really liked him, and we felt he had the opportunity to work with them one-on-one, and they would be able to guide him into the position.”
On top of that, Long also got in work playing for his high school team at Bishop Mac.
It seems like the work paid off for the big 6’4” righthander. Long got the official offer from Canisius shortly after he appeared at the Canadian Futures Showcase in September at Toronto’s Rogers Centre.
“I felt like it was a pretty good fit for me, considering it’s only an hour and a half away from home, and I like the facility there, and the coaches and everything,” he said.
Offers came in from a few different schools, and the callers were quite clear.
“It was very obvious that they wanted him as a pitcher,” said father Andrew.
Jackson brings a plethora of pitches with him, including a four-seam fastball that he throws like a two-seamer. He also has a curveball, a slider and a changeup in his arsenal, though the slider is “kind of like a (Jose Berrios-style) slurve,” depending on the release.
Speaking of the Blue Jays, Jackson said the week he spent at Rogers Centre was great for his development.
“It was awesome,” he said. “Walking out on the field, my adrenaline was going crazy but as soon as I got on that mound and I kind of settled in after the first inning, I felt good.”
He got into the 2024 Prospects Game as a reliever on the triumphant team managed by Blue Jays legend Edwin Encarnacion.
He was constantly hitting 89 mph on the radar, which his dad noticed drove Jackson crazy.
But Jackson isn’t worried about the velocity in the long-term, and focused on getting stronger.
“I think this offseason, I’ll for sure get up to the low 90s, hopefully 92,” he said.
How Canisius uses that velocity and his talent is yet to be seen. But Jackson hopes to be put in a starter's role eventually.
“I think my first year will be a little tough to get the starting role, but obviously I want that opportunity,” he said, adding he sees himself likely in a relief or closing role and building his way up with the Golden Griffins.
Building his way up to this point has been a challenge.
Andrew noted COVID came right in the middle of Jackson’s development years, and they had to find places for him to play.
“(But) I had a feeling that he was a kid that was determined to do this,” he said. “(He) had a love of the game since he was six, seven years old and to see him have this opportunity just to continue playing at a high level, I’m so happy for him.”
“It’s been a great experience,” Jackson added. “I’m excited to see what the future holds.”
