Cal State Fullerton lists freshman Jace Chamberlin—not “Chamberlain” and no relationship to Joba, that I can find record of—at 6-foot-4 and 240 pounds. The Los Angeles Times writes that he “got the nickname ‘Jumbo’ earlier this year on a trip to New Orleans due to his affinity for jambalaya.” Emphasis added.
It is the official policy of the Deadspin editorial team that Jace Chamberlin is a strapping lad, but we will not editorialize further. We disclaim speculation on his size or the origins of his nickname, and will instead stick to the facts. And the fact is that this Large Adult Slugger went yard in a pinch-hit appearance late Saturday night to give Fullerton a walk-off 2-1 victory over Stanford.
It was the first home run of Chamberlin’s college baseball career. While it would be natural if you were in awe at the size of this lad and the extremely clutch tater he mashed, please don’t sleep on his bleach-blond mohawk.
On Sunday, Fullerton beat Stanford, the national No. 2 seed, again to advance to the NCAA super regionals, which is basically college baseball’s Sweet 16. If we’re lucky, and if the Titans keep winning, we just might see more footage of Jumbo performing more heroic baseball feats in the days to come.
To quote the broadcast booth in the clip above: “It’s the greatest game in the world, Roxie!”