“That’s what we worked on,” Nocera said. “He almost cut them in half and still kept his power numbers up while also working on his pitch selection. He did a great job.

“He’s a very coachable young man.”

Izzo admits his power has become his forte.

“From what I hear, my two biggest assets are that I have a lot of power and I move well for my size,” he said. “I hear I run a lot better than other first baseman.”

Izzo originally planned to pitch in college.

“I went into college mainly as a pitcher,” he explained. “I had every intention of pitching, but I threw harder in high school.

“I had a shaky start pitching, so coach Nocera said I better start taking more swings during batting practice. We went to Florida my freshman year and I (served as the designated hitter) a couple of games.

“I’m glad I got to go to a D3 school and I’m very thankful that coach Nocera gave me the opportunity to hit.”

Nocera is keeping his fingers crossed for Izzo.

“I wish him well because he definitely deserves the opportunity,” the coach said.

“There are a lot of baseball players out there and even to be considered as a prospect to play professional baseball is quite an honor.”