Don Lang Diamond Award winner: Farmingdale's John Franco
John Franco of Farmingdale poses for a portrait after winning the Don Lang Diamond Award at the Nassau County Baseball Coaches Dinner held at the Long Island Marriott in Uniondale on Wednesday. Credit: James Escher
John Franco is a famous baseball name, of course, as the former Mets closer. But there’s someone else around here with that name who’s good at the game.
“Everyone always says it,” the other John Franco said. “They always make it a dream for me to play for the Mets also, so the Mets can have two players with the same name. It’s always fun talking about it.
“Let’s say I’m playing ‘MLB The Show.’ I’ll see him in the (video) game and everybody points it out, and it’s a lot of fun”
This John Franco — no relation — indeed wants to be playing in The Show someday. The Farmingdale senior made a name for himself in high school baseball this season.
The five finalists for the 2025 Don Lang Diamond Award for Nassau County’s best high school baseball position player were named Wednesday night during a dinner at the Long Island Marriott. And the winner was …
“I heard ‘shortstop’ and ‘Farmingdale,’ ” Franco said. “My heart just started racing.”
John Franco of Farmingdale finishes off a double play with an assist from second baseman Justin Ortiz in Game 1 of the Nassau Class AAA baseball final against Massapequa on May 29 in Farmingdale. Credit: Michael A. Rupolo Sr.
The Nassau County Baseball Coaches Association bestowed this honor on a 6-3 senior shortstop who helped the Dalers claim the Nassau Conference AAA regular-season championship and reach the Class AAA county finals.
“He does a lot of things well,” coach Frank Tassielli said. “He’s a leader. Last year, he was an all-league guy and he just matured so much as a person and then obviously into a player. His numbers were off the charts this year.”
Try a .585 average. Twenty-five of his 41 hits went for extra bases, including eight homers. He drove in 44, owned a 1.592 slugging percentage and had an indeed off-the-charts 2.442 OPS.
“John’s always even keel,” Tassielli said. “He’s never one to get too excited, never one to get too down in the dumps. He tries to regroup. He leads by example.
“The kids, the team, they just followed him all year long. He’s just a special player that just rose to the occasion this year. He led us to a conference title.”
Franco closed in addition to starting at short these last two seasons.
“I think what most people can say about me is that I’m very coachable,” he said. “I do what I’m told. I do what needs to be done. … I put in the work at home. I put in the work when nobody’s watching. And that’s what matters the most.”
Tassielli made a call to Molloy. The D-II program turned out to be interested, and Franco committed Thursday.
“The ultimate goal is just to get to the professional level, to be able to provide for myself and my family,” Franco said. “Just do what I love and be rewarded for it for the rest of my life.”
