Baseball Player of the Year: Louisville commit Jaden Fauske starred as hitter, pitcher for 3A champ Nazareth

In two years, Nazareth’s Jaden Fauske has built a memorable legacy.

The scary thing is he’s just scratching the surface of his immense potential.

A hitting and pitching star, the Louisville recruit helped power the Roadrunners to their second consecutive Class 3A state championship this spring. Fauske has won two baseball state championships and a football state title in his short but illustrious career. He played safety and wide receiver for the Nazareth football team, which captured the 5A title in November.

“It’s been really fun going on these runs with a lot of great teammates and winning,” Fauske said.

After a promising freshman season that started by coming off the bench, Fauske put together a dominating sophomore season at the plate and on the mound to lay the foundation for a memorable and lasting legacy at Nazareth – and in the state.

Fauske, the 2023 Suburban Life Baseball Player of the Year, crushed balls all over the field and mowed down hitters with ease in a dominating two-way performance. He batted .487 with 15 doubles, had 38 RBIs and scored 38 runs. On the mound, the right-hander was almost unhittable in posting a 4-0 record with two saves and striking out 49 batters over 33 innings while posting a 0.42 ERA.

Fauske credited his banner season to relaxing at the plate after attempting to live up to his lofty reputation last season. He committed to Louisville before the start of his freshman season.

“It was tough last season,” Fauske said. “Coach [Lee] Milano made me earn everything. He didn’t give me a spot because of who I was. We had a lot of talent on the team last year and won state. We had a lot of great players. There were only so many positions on the field. Playing time was tough.

“But this year I just relaxed and didn’t try to do too much. In my freshman year, I was trying to prove myself with one swing. I got anxious. I was swinging at bad pitches. I was more relaxed this year and let the pitchers come to me. Pitching-wise, I started to get the ball a lot this year and just attacked hitters and pounded the zones.”

The 6-foot-2, 195-pound Fauske added that he just worked on his craft to build off his promising freshman season.

“I think this year was a reflection of working hard and focusing in practices,” Fauske said. “Going into my sophomore year, I was hoping to have a big year. In my freshman year, I was on and off the field a lot. My sophomore year I was really trying to prove myself.”

On a team filled with Division I talent, Milano said Fauske managed to shine because of his ability to impact a game on many levels and play team baseball.

“Jaden had an incredible year on both ends of the game,” Milano said. “Offensively, going into the year, I thought he had a good freshman year offensively. From the mound, I knew he threw hard, but I didn’t anticipate he would be that dominating. His stats were pretty impressive. I find it hard to believe anybody could have a more complete year.

“Even though he committed to Louisville prior to playing in his high school career, he didn’t get to start early last season. He never complained, was a great teammate, but when he got a chance, he took advantage of it. He’s been extremely impressive.”

In the Roadrunners’ 7-2 win over Grayslake Central in the 3A title game, Fauske had two hits and scored a run to cap a stellar season. He had a hit and scored a run and pitched two innings of scoreless ball in Nazareth’s 3-0 state semifinal victory against Sycamore.

Milano said Fauske’s ability to curtail his emotions in tense situations is one of his strengths, especially on the mound.

“He has a very stoic personality when he’s playing,” Milano said. “You can’t get a read if he just hit a homer or struck out. His presence on the mound is really impressive, too. We put him in some tough situations, but he always took the ball and got the job done.”

His strong showing at the plate and in the circle was just part of Fauske’s contributions this spring. He played catcher, left field, right field, third base and first base to earn East Suburban Conference Player of the Year.

“I’ve always been a utility guy, able to play a lot of spots,” Fauske said. “I’m fine playing wherever as long as I’m on the field. My favorite position is catcher. You’ve got to have a strong arm to catch and that translates onto the mound. It’s tough having to catch games because you throw the ball a lot, but then have to pitch a day later. You have to take care of your arm.”

With the first two years wildly exceeding his expectations in terms of personal and team success in two sports, Fauske is focused on adding more titles and achievements.

“I’ve still got two more years so I’ve got more stuff to do,” he said. “I don’t want this to be my peak. I still want to keep getting better.”