Gig Harbor’s Zach Toglia, brother of first-round MLB pick Michael, commits to Utah
The last time a Toglia went to a Pac-12 school to play baseball, it worked out pretty well. OK, that might be selling it short.
Michael Toglia, a 2016 graduate of Gig Harbor High School, went on to a standout career at UCLA, where he hit .306 over his career with 33 home runs and 51 doubles in three seasons for the Bruins. He was selected in the first round of the 2019 Major League Baseball Draft with the No. 23 pick by the Colorado Rockies.
This time, it’s Zach Toglia — going into his senior year at Gig Harbor High — who is Pac-12 bound, verbally committing to the University of Utah last week.
“They showed a lot of interest in me last year,” said Toglia, who plays third base for the Tides and was named to The News Tribune’s 2019 All-Area second team as a sophomore. “I went on a visit last fall to the campus. That’s how things got started. They came up with an offer a couple months ago.”
UCLA, which surely would’ve loved another Toglia in the fold, never officially offered. With the COVID-19 pandemic presenting travel challenges, no one on the Bruins’ coaching staff ever had the chance to see Zach play in person.
“They showed interest but said it came down to not being able to see me play,” Toglia said. “It didn’t help me out there. I’m thankful Utah was able to see me before this all happened.”
His brother, a proud Bruin, is 100 percent on board with his younger brother playing for the Utes, for what it’s worth.
“He thinks I made a great decision,” Toglia said. “Obviously, he’d be happy wherever I went. He thinks Utah will be a great place for me to go.”
It could be difficult to live in the shadow of a first-round MLB Draft pick, when it’s your older brother. But for Zach, he doesn’t spend much time dwelling on that. For him, living up to his brother’s accomplishments has never brought any added pressure.
“I see it as a goal, something I can reach,” Toglia said. “Obviously, we’re family. If he can do it, I can do it just as well, if not better. I use it as a motivating factor to get to where he is.”
Toglia will have a reunion with former teammate Zane Skansi, who played shortstop for the Tides as a junior in 2019 during Toglia’s sophomore season. With spring sports cancelled in 2020 due to the ongoing coronavirus situation, the duo were denied a final high school season together.
As a sophomore, Toglia hit .397 for the Tides with 28 RBI and was a first-team selection to the Class 3A South Sound Conference, one of the state’s strongest leagues in 2019.
With Utah, Toglia said he felt at home.
“I liked all the coaches,” he said. “We all get along pretty well. There’s also the campus that I really like. That’s a big factor for me. I have to be happy where I’m going to school. I feel like I’d enjoy going to school at Utah. They have really nice facilities. It’ll make me into the best player I can be.”
Fingers crossed that Toglia — also a strong basketball player for the Tides — will be able to suit up for the Tides one more time as a senior.
“I can’t even tell you how disappointed I was (to have spring sports cancelled),” Toglia said. “Last year, my sophomore year, was one of the most fun teams I’ve ever played on. I’m looking forward to seeing most of the guys back. To see everything get cancelled, I feel for the seniors. High school baseball is one of the most fun times.”
