A's Jesús Luzardo found solace in baseball after Parkland shooting

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It was Valentine’s Day in 2018 when then-A's prospect Jesús Luzardo got a text from his old high school saying not to come to the Stoneman-Douglas High campus in Parkland, Florida.

There was an active shooter at the school, and Luzardo was supposed to be there to help out with practice at his alma mater. 

According to a Mercury News article published a few days after the shooting, Luzardo returned to his old school three times a week during the offseason to coach the current crop of high school baseball players.

“It was kind of a whirlwind of emotions -- I was actually running late,” Luzardo told teammate Marcus Semien in MLB’s new segment “Fitted” that debuted in April. “I was supposed to be there right when school got out.”

Luzardo was playing golf and was told by his coach not to come to campus, and he would detail the chaos that ensued in an interview with the New York Times back in 2018.

“The town definitely went into shock for a while, and it was tough,” he said. “I was glad I got baseball to kind of rely on.” 

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A gunman opened fire at the school in Luzardo’s hometown, killing 17 people and injuring 17 others. 

Stoneman-Douglas was also Chicago Cubs’ All-Star first baseman’s Anthony Rizzo alma mater, and the baseball field Luzardo played on would eventually be named after Rizzo. 

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