No-hit streak ends for Draft prospect

June 5th, 2021
Courtesy Suzanne Mozzicato

The unhittable run has come to an end, but Frank Mozzicato was still pretty tough to figure out on Saturday.

The left-handed Draft prospect and UConn commit, who followed four straight no-hitters with a 1-2-3 inning out of the bullpen on Wednesday, permitted a pair of singles and walked five but struck out nine over 3 2/3 scoreless innings in East Catholic's 19-1 quarterfinals win over Weston in Manchester, Conn.

Mozzicato, who turns 18 on June 19, has amassed 113 strikeouts over 46 2/3 innings -- including 101 over 42 innings before tournament play began this week. Absent from the MLB Draft Prospect Rankings coming into the year, the southpaw catapulted to No. 51 by mid-May, using increased velocity and a 60-grade curve to separate himself with a senior season bordering on the unfathomable. Lately, upwards of 20 scouts have been on hand every time he's gone to the mound.

His no-hitter streak -- which included a 17-strikeout gem reportedly attended by Padres general manager A.J. Preller -- amounted to 30 1/3 innings by the time Weston's Chris Amato poked a single up the middle with one out in the third on Saturday.

In the fourth, Michael Amato -- sibling of Chris -- singled to right, giving the Amato brothers and every other high school player in Connecticut a combined total of two hits off Mozzicato since April 26.

Mozzicato has not given up a run in 40 2/3 innings, with the only earned run against him coming in his first start of the season.