Being known as the third wheel is no slight against Oswego East’s Griffin Sleyko.
Playing behind two Division I pitching recruits, the junior right-hander is ready to prove his value in the Wolves’ rotation with poise, toughness and grace under pressure.
He certainly cuts the profile of an elite pitcher with his lanky 6-foot-4, 180-pound frame.
“I don’t really have a style,” Sleyko said. “I don’t throw super hard. I don’t really blow it past people. But my stuff moves.”
Naperville North saw that firsthand Wednesday. Two walks, two stolen bases and a balk put runners in scoring position for the Huskies in the bottom of the fourth inning.
Sleyko promptly struck out the side.
“My two-seam fastball was moving,” said Sleyko, who finished with nine strikeouts. “I kept throwing it to the outside and had to make an adjustment with my feet.”
Oswego East led 1-0 on a home run by outfielder junior Liam Mitchell in the top of the fifth when the game was suspended due to rain and unsafe field conditions.
It has been scheduled to be completed on April 6.
Sleyko demonstrated a strong command and disarming ability to mix off-speed pitches with his fastball. His flair for the dramatic only added to the mix.
His strong debut was more than a year in the making.
“I got moved up to the varsity to pitch at the end of last season,” he said. “I was only supposed to start once or twice and both games got rained out.
“Then we lost in the playoffs and I never really had a chance to do anything.”
Now, Sleyko makes for an imposing third starter in a potentially fearsome and dominant group.
Noah Schultz, a 6-9 senior southpaw, is committed to Vanderbilt. His fastball has been timed at 94 mph and his slider has been called the state’s best by scouts.
Ashton Izzi, another senior, is a Wichita State recruit ranked among the top right-handed pitchers in the country by Prep Baseball Report.
Adding Sleyko to the collection is just an embarrassment of riches.
“We hope to work him into the rotation,” Oswego East coach Brian Schaeffer said. “He can throw strikes and compete for us. It is going to make a very good 1-2-3 rotation.”
Sleyko said the two celebrated recruits are not treated any differently from the rest of the team. That has only eased the pressure on him.
“Literally, I think everybody just feels the same way,” he said. “It’s just two more teammates. Now, I am just eager to see where I can go from here.”
Mitchell’s first home run of the season immediately followed Sleyko’s dramatic effort in the fourth.
“That inning when Griffin came out and they had guys on second and third with no outs and he struck out everybody, that was crazy,” Mitchell said. “That was a big motivator for the team the rest of the game.”
Naperville North senior Harrison Cordeiro, meanwhile, was virtually untouchable until Mitchell homered.
“It was a fastball,” Mitchell said. “I was looking for it because the first pitch he threw me was a curveball. It was a guess and it worked.”
Mitchell also said Sleyko’s emergence is one more reason for Oswego East’s optimism.
“It’s just another guy we need,” Mitchell said.
The game was formally suspended one batter after Mitchell’s swing.
The open status means Sleyko has to wait out his first official varsity decision.
Even so, he definitely proved that he belonged.
“They did chase some bad pitches,” Sleyko said. “I don’t throw a lot of different pitches. I just do what works best for me.”
Patrick Z. McGavin is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.