LI's Jason DeCaro, Matt Bolton make names for themselves in college
Jason DeCaro is a righthanded pitcher from East Northport who is currently playing at the University of North Carolina. Credit: /Ainsley E. Fauth
When his time playing for the University of North Carolina baseball program ends, Jason DeCaro wants to be known as a national champion.
The 6-5 sophomore righthanded pitcher from East Northport — a 2023 Newsday All-Long Island first-team selection at St. Anthony’s — has been vital to UNC’s success both this season and last.
If the Tar Heels — who went to last year’s College World Series and have played in 11 others, twice finishing runner-up but never winning it — are to make program history, DeCaro will be among the stars at the forefront.
DeCaro, a two-time All-ACC second-team pick, is 8-3 with a 3.38 ERA, 1.183 WHIP and 58 strikeouts in 69 1/3 innings. UNC (39-12) is ranked third nationally by D1Baseball.com and should host an NCAA Regional next week.
“The end goal is not just to get there, but to win there and to win our last game,” DeCaro said. “And that's been huge for us. All the returners, we kind of relayed that to the new guys, whether that was transfers or freshmen, that, ‘Hey, getting there was cool, but winning is cooler. It's more fun if you win.’ So that's the goal.”
He started last year’s CWS opener, a 3-2 win over Virginia, and struck out six and allowed one run in four innings.
DeCaro had an incredible freshman season, going 6-1 with a 3.81 ERA and 78 strikeouts in 89 2/3 innings. He was one of the youngest players in the NCAA, not turning 18 until April 24, 2024, and was named a Freshman All-American by both D1Baseball and Perfect Game.
His favorite pitch is a four-seam fastball that sits between 92-94 mph and has touched 97. He also has a curveball, slider and changeup. He describes himself as extremely confident, competitive and aggressive.
DeCaro started the season as UNC’s Friday starter, but his role has since shifted. After struggling to begin ACC play, he had a conversation with his coaches and his starts were ultimately moved to Sundays, the first being April 13 against Wake Forest.
In five starts since the switch, he is 4-0 with a 1.55 ERA and 28 strikeouts in 29 innings.
“I think that really helped me, kind of lit a fire for me,” DeCaro said. “Everyone coming into the year wanted to be the guy . . . Having someone tell you that you're going to have to take a step back really helped me, I think. It kind of gave me an extra little bit of motivation.”
UNC is playing in the ACC Tournament this weekend, its last test before the NCAA Tournament gets underway.
Bolton’s first season a hit
Binghamton freshman outfielder Matt Bolton is from Division High School. Credit: /Binghamton Athletics photo
Matt Bolton’s first collegiate at-bat set the tone.
The freshman centerfielder, batting seventh in Binghamton’s first game of the season at Texas State, worked a full count after taking a ball on the seventh pitch of his first plate appearance. On the eighth pitch, he drove one to the right-centerfield wall, beyond the outstretched dive of the centerfielder.
By the time the rightfielder picked up the ball and hit the cutoff man in shallow center, Bolton had already rounded third and was well on his way to an inside-the-park home run.
“That at-bat pretty much summed up all of college baseball, where it's just a grind,” said Bolton, a two-time Newsday All-Long Island selection at Division. “You got to fight for every pitch, pretty much. And then some of them you're going to fail, some of them you're going to succeed.”
That game also opened his eyes to just how different college baseball would be.
“The first game is when I realized, this was definitely more different than high school,” he said. “Facing low 90s with a lot of movement. It was a big wake-up call from high school.”
Bolton has been the Bearcats’ leadoff hitter for most of the season and is slashing .340/.451/.505 with seven home runs, 29 RBIs, 11 doubles and 11 stolen bases for Binghamton (26-23), the No. 3 seed in this week’s America East Tournament.
The All-America East first-teamer is amid a freshman year that has “very much” surpassed the expectations he had when he committed before his sophomore year of high school.
“It's been amazing,” Bolton said. “I don't think I could wish for anything better than this.”
Bolton credited Division coach Tom Tuttle’s player development in easing his transition to the Division I level. Resources such as Synergy Sports, which allows him to watch film on pitchers before facing them, have helped Bolton improve.
He will play for the Newport Gulls of the New England Collegiate Baseball League this summer.
“I used to ask players that played in their freshman year, ‘How did you hit this many home runs? How did you get a .300 batting average?’” Bolton said. “And then being in that situation now, it's just surreal because I put in all this hard work, and I know that it's paid off when I see the batting average on the scoreboards say three-something.”
Ben Dickson is Newsday Sports' general assignment reporter. He joined Newsday’s high school sports staff in 2023 after graduating from Maryland, where he covered several of the Terrapins' teams.
