Introducing: Brandon Gelpi
Welcome to the Steel City of Pittsburgh Pennsylvania.
Amongst the city’s blue-collar men and women, and just outside in a town called Monroeville, you will find Brandon Gelpi. Currently, Gelpi is a sophomore at the University of Illinois-Chicago. Gelpi is the son of Rafael and Leslie and Brandon credits them for making him the man he is today. Many of his family enjoyed success in sports, including an uncle who played collegiate basketball and a cousin who participated in track and field at the same level.
Growing up in Pennsylvania, Brandon took to the sport of baseball at a very young age. He professes to be a very competitive player and he says that pushes him to be the best he can be. Sports and religion are two of the entities that Brandon holds dear to his heart. He was raised Catholic and went to a local catholic school for his early education. He excelled in high school, earning high honor roll for all four years. He also started for his baseball team all four years and was a two-year captain. He attends church regularly and also enjoys going to bible study with his family and also even teammates.
Brandon is very much a family man and being away from them is tough, but he knows that they understand that it has always been his dream to D1 baseball. They always taught him to follow those dreams but to work hard at it. He hopes that he can work with his teammates and instill those very same values unto them.
When Brandon is not playing, practicing, or training, he enjoys watching movies. Quentin Tarantino is Brandon’s favorite director and Will Ferrell is one of his favorite actors. When asked about a favorite movie, Brandon spoke very highly of the James Bond series of movies. He went on to say that even with the unbelievable talent that has played the role, his favorite will always be Daniel Craig.
That does it for this edition of Charlie’s Corner. I’d like to take the time to thank Brandon Gelpi for giving me some of his time between games. Look for him this upcoming season as he patrols the outfield. Join me next week as I interview Luke Picchiotti.