On April 9th, Toms River resident Ron Marinaccio pitched in his first Major League baseball game, throwing a scoreless inning for the New York Yankees. Today, another Toms River resident will make his debut in the big leagues, but this one will be for the New York Mets.
Thomas Szapucki, born and raised until the age of 10 in Toms River, will pitch for the Mets in San Francisco on Wednesday. Though he lived in Toms River only until the age of 10 before his family got tired of the cold and moved to Florida, he still has deep roots in the town.
Marinaccio and Szapucki are not the first Toms River natives to make it to the pinnacle of the baseball world. Todd Frazier, who played for both the Yankees and the Mets, retired last year from baseball after winning a bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Since retiring, Frazier has moved back to Toms River, where he now resides with his family.
