In everyday life, Crown Point senior Aslyn Farinelli carries the lessons he learned from his father.
Rob Farinelli, a renowned tattoo artist in the Region for more than a quarter-century, died on Nov. 17, 2021.
“He’s definitely someone to look up to, just a hard worker,” Aslyn Farinelli said. “He built his business up and did it all himself. You don’t ever expect anyone to do something for you; you always try to do it yourself. The thing I love about him was instead of harping on others and making them feel down, he always helped. He was always there to listen and talk to others.
“Like with his clients, when he tattooed them, he would always talk to them and see how they were doing, just have a nice conversation. That’s what I try to take into account when I talk to anyone. You never know what anyone is going through, so if you can help them, you do it.”
Farinelli, a pitcher and third baseman, said his father was 49 when he suffered a fatal heart attack.
“It’s tough, but you have to get through,” he said. “It gets easier, but it never goes away. Losing a loved one is always tough for anyone.
“When it first happened, you’re asking yourself, ‘Why? Why did this happen to me?’ But then you realize it could happen to anyone. God has a plan, and you have to go with it and just think ahead. You can dwell, but at the end of the day, there’s always others there for you, and you have to push ahead.”
Crown Point coach Steve Strayer, whose father died in 2017, can empathize.
“My dad was 73 years old, so I can imagine Aslyn losing his father at such a young age,” Strayer said. “It’s tough on him. But he has faith, and that’s a big part of it. He’s very grounded.”
Farinelli and his brother Dillon, who played for the Bulldogs before graduating in 2017, learned a lot from their father on the baseball field too.
“Me and my older brother grew up playing baseball, with my dad coaching,” Farinelli said. “When I got old enough for travel ball, he coached me until the last year before he passed. He gave it a rest so he could be able to watch from the sidelines. I was lucky to have 15 years with him. That’s more than other people get. You have to be thankful.”
Strayer recalled Farinelli cheering for his brother at games and participating as a kid.
“Aslyn came to our baseball camp when he was about this high,” Strayer said, indicating waist level. “He was chunky, out of shape, but he had a big ol’ smile on his face, loved the game. He still has a smile on his face, still loves the game. But now he’s very well-built.”
Indeed, Farinelli has developed into a key two-way player for the Bulldogs (7-1, 3-0), who continued their hot start with a Duneland Athletic Conference win against LaPorte on Tuesday ahead of the second game of the series on Wednesday.
Farinelli, whose first name is a combination of Aslan from “The Chronicles of Narnia” and his mother Joyce’s middle name, Lynn, has put into practice what he preached about raising people’s spirits.
“He’s one of our big energy guys,” Crown Point senior left-hander Jackson Fronek said. “He always keeps us up. Especially people who are down, struck out or had a bad inning, he’s the one who picks them up.
“You can tell he’s really focused on flushing away a bad inning. He’s gotten a lot mentally tougher, even from January until now, and that’s affected other people as well.”
Farinelli has welcomed that responsibility.
“I’ve been on varsity since sophomore year, and we know I’m one of the leaders,” he said. “The most important thing is just to be a good teammate. If I don’t succeed, I try to work on myself and just try to uplift others and stay out of my head as much as I can.
“That mental part, that’s probably the hardest part. If I look at myself as a leader, if I make a mistake, I just have to try to shake it off. But that’s always hard when you put a lot of pressure on yourself.”
Farinelli has been handling any such pressure well. Before the season, Strayer noted Crown Point lost seven starters. Junior catcher Jase Horton pointed to Farinelli as a player who has helped fill the gaps.
“He’s definitely one of the guys who stepped up to take their place,” Horton said. “He brings a lot of leadership. He leads us in our stretches and things like that. He’s a hard worker.”
That work has paid dividends for Farinelli this season. Through Tuesday, he hadn’t allowed an earned run in 9 2/3 innings while striking out 18 and walking four.
Last year, Farinelli went 4-2 with a 2.48 ERA, 39 strikeouts and 22 walks in 31 innings over 10 games, including seven starts.
“I’ve just been finding it this year,” he said. “I’ve been focusing on throwing strikes, and it’s been working — just having a simple mind. I’m just glad my talent and hard work are finally working well toward it.”
Horton has noticed a difference with Farinelli.
“It’s impressive,” Horton said. “He’s come a long way. His location is better. His velocity, his arm speed, he’s really had a nice jump this past year. He was around 86, 87 (mph) last year, and now he hit 92.”
Strayer also has seen an improved version of Farinelli, an Ohio Northern commit.
“He’s throwing well,” Strayer said. “He’s throwing strikes. He’s found some things with his mechanics that he’s embraced. He’s throwing a lot harder. He’s locating his pitches a lot better. He’s an absolutely hard worker. He comes from a great family.”
Farinelli has several tattoos, including one on his left calf, a tangible gift from his father.
“He was able to do it two months before he passed,” Farinelli said. “It means a lot to me.”
