Alexander James Van Pelt

Being asked to describe Alex would require a novel of words and it still wouldn’t be enough to capture him truly, but love, compassion, camaraderie, courage, tenacity, and full authenticity are just some of the main attributes that have held true to his character from a young age. To know Alex is to know true love, both for him and from him; everyone who knows him has nothing but good memories with him. Bringing smiles and laughter to all those around - family, friends, and strangers, Alex has been a ray of light in everyone’s lives ever since he was a little boy. While being an extraordinary pitcher, Alex’s talents extended way past the baseball field and showed up in everything he did; from golfing to singing, dancing, and cooking - to simply always showing up to be the most genuine, honest, and inspiring person he could – and he never failed at that. Alex was always ready and willing to share the emotions with everyone around and in any situation – an attribute most reflected on the baseball field, continuously displaying pride and encouragement in himself and fellow teammates regardless of if they were met with victory or defeat. Alex never failed to show constant compassion and support for those around him, both on and off the field, on his “team” or not. Alex put his heart into everything he did – school, athletics, volunteering to help young athletes, or just being social with friends and family, not a thing was met with a mundane attitude.

Alex played a handful of sports growing up but founded a love for baseball by the age of 4. He always gave his all to grow and improve as a player, determined to fulfill his goals of playing division 1 in college, and eventually make it to the professional league. He started playing T-ball around 5 years old and continued to play with the Danville City Little League, the Virginia Reds, River City Redbirds, and the Dirtbags traveling up and down the East Coast. By sophomore year of high school, he became a part of Chatham High’s Varsity team, where he continued to improve his skills and knowledge as a player. In his senior year, he led his team in nearly every statistical category, accumulated 117 strike outs with a fastball running up to 94mph, was named District and Regional player of the year, was on the All-State team during the Spring 2024 season, and was ranked as the 46th baseball prospect from Virginia. After graduating from Chatham with Honors and as a Commonwealth Scholar, Alex spent his summer playing with the Sherrill Silversmiths (Sherrill, NY) of the NYCBL. The team was comprised of D1-D3 players, aged 18-23, with Alex being one of the youngest guys on the team. Nevertheless, he managed to obtain a spot playing in the NACSB Prospect Games at Liberty University in late June and achieved Pitcher of the Night during a game against the Rochester Ridgemen on July 9th. Over the summer, Alex pitched in 10 games, managing 35 strikeouts within 24 total innings, truly preparing and exciting him for his start at Mount St. Mary’s University in August 2024, a division 1 school he had committed to in January 2023.