🚨 WALK OFF GRAND SLAM 🚨
Hauppauge junior Mike Oliveto crushes a walk-off grand slam as the Eagles overcame a late 7-2 deficit to win 10-7 and improve to 7-0 pic.twitter.com/aFHDWjUBaF
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) April 8, 2024
For most players, there’s one moment that stands out from the rest. Their most exhilarating moment on a baseball field that they’ll never forget. For Hauppauge catcher Michael Oliveto, it’s impossible to pick one – and for good reason.
Last season was filled with amazing moments for the Eagles, who captured their first Suffolk County Championship since 2000, and had plenty of signature wins along the way. Oliveto, who arguably had the most clutch season of any player on Long Island, hit not one, but two walk-off home runs which propelled the Eagles to huge wins. The first was a walk-off grand slam against East Islip, who entered with an undefeated record, and the second was a walk-off blast against Comsewogue to send the Eagles into the Class AA County Championship.
Oliveto’s HR being played on the marquee at Hauppauge HS on May 20, 2024
“The first one against East Islip almost felt more important because we were both undefeated and it was pretty much the biggest game of the year. We knew the winner of that was probably going to win the league. We were down 5 or 6 runs in the sixth inning. Ryan Schofield hit a homer and we clawed back. It was so cool. But of course the other one was really cool.”
Hauppauge went on to defeat Division in the Long Island Championship at Farmingdale State College and won on a walk-off in the NYS Semifinals before ultimately having their season end by Bethlehem Central, 11-5, in the finals. Oliveto finished with an absurd 1.328 OPS and tied for the Suffolk County lead with 8 HRs.
The last year has been a whirlwind for Oliveto who went from an under-the-radar player to one of the top draft prospects in the northeast. Every game features scouts behind home plate video taping his every at bat and timing his throws to second base.
Absolute moonshot by Mike Oliveto (Hauppauge 2025) pic.twitter.com/hDqnVNtAJJ
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) March 3, 2025
“Early on it was a little overwhelming,” said Oliveto in regards to the amount of attention he’s received this year. “But being that it all happened so quick, it helped me get used to it. It was either get used to it or it wasn’t going to go well. So it’s helped me out a lot.”
It makes sense that an Italian-American catcher would cite Mike Piazza as his favorite player; there’s no shortage of people that would say the same. But the list of people that represent the same to their team as Piazza represented to the Mets from 1998-2005 you can count on one hand.
“I wore #31 until high school once the sizes started getting bigger for higher numbers so once I got to high school I flipped it to #13.”
While it would be a stretch to compare any high school player to a Hall of Famer would be an egregious hyperbole, his numbers are rather astonishing.
Yale-commit Michael Oliveto (Hauppauge 2025) was the recipient of the @GetGameChanger Play of the Year pic.twitter.com/rMW3j6Y2ri
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) November 13, 2024
Oliveto has continued to excel, even though nobody wants to pitch to him. He is batting .467 (21-for-45) with a .667 OBP, 1.689 OPS, 4 doubles, 7 HRs, 23 RBIs, 27 runs scored, 24 walks (9 intentional) and is a perfect 9-for-9 on stolen base attempts.
His coach, Josh Gutes, had the following to say prior to the season:
“He’a the total package,” said Gutes. “He’s a true leader, he’s the best teammate, he truly cares about everyone’s success. He can go 0-for-4, but if we win, he’s okay with it. He’s just a star of a human being and a star of a baseball player. He is a professional baseball player on a high school field.”
There goes that man again – Yale-commit Michael Oliveto launches a 2-R shot and suddenly it’s a 6-3 game pic.twitter.com/yweJA1z2iP
— Axcess Baseball LI (@axcessbaseball) April 16, 2025
Pro teams seem to agree as he is certainly in strong consideration to have his name called on draft draft. Should that not happen, or if he decides to attend school, he will be attending the prestigious Yale University.
“I always worked very hard so that getting into a school would not be the problem. I wanted to be able to go to any school that I could, but the goal was to always play baseball. To be able to play high-level baseball and be able to get into Yale was a great mix.”
Oliveto comes from a very athletic family. His parents met at Binghamton University while they both played volleyball. His mother also played baseball and softball growing up. His father played basketball and baseball. His brother, Matthew, is a sophomore on the varsity team. His sister is a junior and plays basketball, volleyball and track. Michael has played just about every sport you can name; soccer, lacrosse, basketball, volleyball, golf, karate, swimming and even deck hockey.
Baseball is his true love, and he noted that his father has helped him every step along the way.
“My dad was always with me in the backyard, whether it was hitting a wiffle ball or hitting off the tee. That is really what helped me growing up. I’ve never had hitting lessons, I just try to find the most efficient way to hit. Without him and my mom, none of it would be possible. They really helped me.”
Oliveto also spoke glowingly about the support from the community.
“It’s been so awesome, we’ve gotten so much support from the town. Everyone seems to be following the baseball team. Teachers and parents are always asking me about the season. It’s been really cool. It’s a smaller town, and the community is very tight.”
While Oliveto has put himself on the fast track to professional baseball, he has a title to help defend. Hauppauge is currently in third place in League 5 – behind ESM and East Hampton. They will face ESM next week in their final series of the regular season before playoffs begin the next week.
