Both JJ Schwarz and Mike Rivera had the kind of success in high school that most kids playing on little league field dreamed about. Both were wildly successful in high school, Rivera at Venice High School and JJ at Palm Beach Gardens.
Rivera won back-to-back state championships to end his high school career and Schwarz hit .361 with 33 RBI, 15 runs, seven home runs and four doubles as a senior. Both were named to the 2013 USA 18-U National Team, which repeated as World Champions, before becoming Florida Gators.
That’s where their friendship began. The two split time catching on Team USA and little did they know, their future coaches were already trying to figure out what to do with two catchers.