How’s this for good timing?

Last Thursday, Line Drive’s Carlos Arias did a spotlight on Charlize Masingale, the outstanding catcher from the San Diego area, in our weekday series “The Final Pitch.”

Click HERE to see the complete edition from that day, July 23, 2026.

Lo and behold, just two days later, Charlize would be the MVP of the PGF Futures All-American Game as she homered and doubled, the latter hit just inches away from a home run as it bounced off the top of the fence back into the outfield grass!

In case you missed it, here’s the detailed profile Carlos did on the outstanding 2027 grad who has signed with UCLA…

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THE FINAL PITCH: CHARLIZE “CHUCK” MASINGALE

UCLA-committed 2027 C Charlize “Chuck” Masingale, #3 in the 2027 Line Drive Hot 100, recently talked to Line Drive Media about Athletics Mercado-Smith, PGF Nationals, California players, UCLA, legal field, math, Avenged Sevenfold and “The Aristocats.”

THE FINAL PITCH Q&A

Name: Charlize “Chuck” Masingale

Hometown: Chula Vista, CA

High School: Mater Dei Catholic High

Club Team: Athletics Mercado-Smith 18U

Graduation Year: 2027

Height: 5-9.5

Position/s: C

Nickname: My nickname is “Chuck.” I got this name because my parents would always call me Charlie, short for Charlize, and specifically my dad would call me “Chuck-a-ma-loo” as a shortened name for Charlie. When I was in 8U, I would always play up with my sister’s 10U team and her coach, whom I was also close with, overheard my dad call me “Chuck-a-ma-loo” and said he liked it and started calling me Chuck. To this day, that name has stuck with me and is a part of who I am.

Social Media: @chuck_masingale74 on Instagram

Honors: #3 in the 2027 Line Drive Hot 100 and Academic Honor Roll (2024-26).

Travel Ball Fall 2025 Stats: .408 AVG, .435 OBP, .835 SLG and 12 HRs.

High School Spring 2026 Stats: .365 AVG and 2 HRs.

Travel Ball Summer 2026 Stats (So Far): .416 AVG, .505 OBP, 1.039 SLG and 13 HRs.

Tell us about your travel team/organization and how you became involved with them? I have been playing for Athletics Mercado for five years now. I first joined Coach Brian Tidd on his team after playing against that team in a tournament. I couldn’t imagine playing anywhere else. This whole organization has made me such a better person both on and off the field and continues to strengthen my journey every day.

Tell us about your experience at PGF Nationals? PGF is always such an amazing experience and I always have so much fun with my team. We grow closer together and elevate each other during the summer and especially during Nationals. I have been a part of the 2024 PGF Nationals where my team and I won the Premier 14U championship as well as the 2025 PGF Nationals where we won the Premier 16U championship.

What makes players from the state of California special? I would say the amount of great competition there is here in California and the great coaching all the way around is what makes players here so special.

What are you looking for in a future college? I am looking to attend a college that offers me a high-level education as well as being able to play softball at the highest level, which is exactly what UCLA has to offer, which is where I will be attending.

What college camps have you attended and are you planning to attend and why? I am verbally committed to UCLA.

What areas are you interested in future occupations and why? I am interested in entering the legal field. I want to be a prosecuting attorney in the future.

What’s your favorite subject to study in school and why? My favorite subject is math. I have always found that math has come rather easy to me and I enjoy solving complex problems.

What’s the best hype song and why? My best hype song is “Nobody” by Avenged Sevenfold. I really love the intro and the guitar riffs in the song. They really hype me up before games.

What’s your favorite TV show to binge and why? I don’t have one.

What’s your favorite movie and why? My favorite movie is “The Aristocats” because it always makes me so happy when I watch it and I grew up watching it and it brings back so many memories of when I was little.