Erika Piancastelli, the breakout star of HRDX, wants to help softball grow around the globe
Michael Clair
@michaelsclairIt's what they say about all the great hitters: The ball just sounds different when they connect. And at the first ever FTX MLB HRDX event in London earlier this summer, it was Yankees Superstar Erika Piancastelli who made the fans snap to attention and look up into the sky as she blasted home run after home run into the crowd at Crystal Palace Park.
Piancastelli was voted the MVP of the inaugural event after finishing with 15 home runs -- including a crucial 12 long balls in the Yankees' 42-41 victory over the Red Sox in the final. She tied teammate Richard Brereton with the most points (25) among everyone who wasn't a former Major League player.
But Piancastelli -- who is a catcher with her pro teams -- made her most crucial play while in the field. With the Red Sox trailing, 31-29, Red Sox Rookie Kennard Dawson called for a hot streak (doubling his points total on five consecutive pitches) and hit a dying liner. Piancastelli was there to make the diving catch, adding two absolutely crucial points to the Yankees' score.
"I just wanted to make a catch. I really did. I've been thinking about it the whole time, like, 'I just want to make a cool catch,'" Piancastelli said after the game. "I tried the first game and it popped out of my glove and I was like, 'I need to get another catch.' ... [Red Sox Legend Jonny] Gomes made a good point. He made a diving catch and I asked him, 'How'd that feel?' And he said, 'If you catch it, it doesn't hurt.' So, [my catch] didn't hurt, but it didn't look super graceful either."
That Piancastelli could hit was never a question. She basically obliterated the McNeese State record book while she attended. The two-time All-American posted a .401/.561/.868 batting line with 75 home runs across her four seasons with the softball team, setting the Southland Conference mark for most career walks (229), as pitchers decided they'd rather just put her on base than risk pitching to her.
"I went into college a young 18-year-old. I just wanted to play and going to McNeese is actually where I just found myself, I found my style of play, I found my passion," Piancastelli said. "I found my why -- why I wanted to play and continue to play after college."
In total, Piancastelli set 20 career or single-season school records, leading her former softball coach to gush about her abilities.
"I think when you talk decorated, you're talking about facts and not opinions and I think she is [the greatest athlete in McNeese State history]," coach James Landreneau said after her final year in 2018. "It's pretty impressive. It seemed like it was every offensive record that was out there every week. She was breaking them since last year. It's very unique. It's hard to argue about her talent. I think everyone in the country sees how special Erika is."
By the next year, her No. 16 jersey was retired, painted on the outfield wall that rarely kept her drives in the park.
Originally born in Italy before moving to California in her youth, Piancastelli then followed in her mother's footsteps when she joined Team Italy for the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo. Her mother, Loredana Auletta, was also a catcher and had played for Italy in the 2000 Olympics. It was a point of pride for Piancastelli to pull on the same jersey her mother had worn 20 years earlier.
"Just growing up with her and seeing her experience and how she talks about it always pushed me," Piancastelli said. "When softball got into the Olympics, I was like, 'OK, I want to do the same thing.' Being able to go follow my mom's footsteps, play for the coach that my mom played for, it all just kind of added up to the biggest honor. I wouldn't want to wear any other name across my chest."
Her talents caught the eyes of plenty of scouts and Piancastelli now plays professionally in two different leagues on two different continents. There's Athletes Unlimited in Chicago -- a unique league that re-drafts its teams every week and players earn individual points in addition to trying to record W's. Piancastelli hit .327 with nine home runs in just 52 at-bats this summer, finishing 15th among all players with 1,424 points.
Her time there came during the break between the first- and second-halves of the season with the SG Holdings Galaxy Stars in Japan, where she's one of the club's high-profile import players.
"Ever since I went to Japan for the World Championships in 2018, I always wanted to go play there. I've seen the level, I get mesmerized every time I see the Japanese play, take ground balls, or even hit, so I was like, 'I want to be able to play in Japan,'" Piancastelli said.
In her time with the Galaxy Stars, she's noticed her teammates' dedication to the sport and love for the game as they field 1,000 ground balls or are called to practice every day from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
"I think that just opens your eyes to the opportunities that you have, like, 'Yeah, I get to play softball as a job,'" Piancastelli said. "I think it just makes you really take it all in and enjoy it a lot more."
For someone who could always hit, no matter the country or competition, she found herself struggling in her first time to the plate at the HRDX London event. The field is compressed to a 45 degree angle -- batters who regularly pull the ball for power like Piancastelli does now had to focus almost entirely on the center of the diamond. Both the pitcher and batter were on festival stages more often used for bands and theater troupes, not baseball players.
So, Yankees team captain Nick Swisher called timeout, pulled Piancastelli to the side and whispered some words of wisdom. She stepped back into the box and immediately obliterated the baseball.
"He was honest. He said, 'You're here for the fans. You're where you're supposed to be, just have fun,'" Piancastelli said. "That allowed me to calm down. I didn't feel like I had to do something. That took a lot of pressure off of me."
The slugger went supernova from there, blasting home run after home run, en route to the Yankees earning all five points in the season standings and taking home the MVP Award.
"If you were to ask me this this morning -- I'm just here to have a good time, I did not expect to be MVP," Piancastelli said with a wide grin across her face as she played down the accomplishment. "But that's what happens when you're surrounded by such amazing people. You're surrounded by such an amazing atmosphere. I mean, London really brought it today."
The slugger has her sights set on so much more, though. She wants to help the Yankees win the next event in Korea before returning to play for the Galaxy Stars. She hopes that the growth softball has undergone in recent years -- returning to the Olympics in Tokyo, receiving more airtime on networks like ESPN, and seeing passionate fans of all ages and genders push through the turnstiles -- continues.
"America has a very high, elite level, especially now that the pro league's growing. Japan, I believe, is the highest level of softball to play in. And then you have Europe, which is just slowly growing. They just don't have the opportunities, they don't have the tools, they don't have the coaches. I think it's just a slow process right now. There are a lot of [positives] in Europe, as well: Their passion for the game. They don't just take anything for granted," Piancastelli said.
That's what brought her to Home Run Derby X: The chance to play overseas and hopefully spread softball and baseball to an audience that may not have seen it before.
"The fact that MLB asked me to be a part of this event, and the fact that it's in Europe is what intrigued me the most," Piancastelli said. "I'm big on trying to use my platform to grow the game overseas, especially in Europe. ... I just want to be able to do anything I can to grow that."