Joe Malagari wanted to do it. He couldn't do it when he was at Calvert Hall College High School. Now that he was at South Carroll, he could.
He wanted to grow out his hair.
Last season, Malagari's long brown locks were by far the lengthiest on his team, perhaps even any baseball squad in Carroll County. But this year, a few of his Cavaliers teammates, including infield partner Brad Haas, have followed suit.
"Whenever somebody else grew out their hair, people would be like, 'Joe's hair's still better,' or something like that, because I guess I was the first one to do it," Malagari said.
So, whose hair is the best on South Carroll's team this season?
"I don't like to be cocky," Malagari said. "If you want to think that, then I appreciate it."
Malagari certainly isn't overconfident. In fact, the South Carroll senior admits that last year, he may have even been lacking some.
He was leaving Calvert Hall, a storied program with seven MIAA A Conference championships between 2005 and 2013. He was joining a program in South Carroll that had just returned to county success.
It seemed Malagari would give the Cavaliers a nice boost. That's not quite what happened.
Malagari played in 11 regular-season games and collected just one hit in 24 at-bats. He was no longer in a starting role by the time SC clinched its second straight county championship and entered the Class 2A West Region playoffs.
"The main thing with Joe was he was always trying too hard to impress, and it didn't work out, and he probably got down on himself a little bit," Cavaliers coach Brian Zawacki said. "I don't think he wasn't trying. He's real quiet, he's a tense person. And he can be his own worst enemy. He strives for perfection. If it's not there, then it bugs him."
During the regular season of his junior year, Malagari had seven walks and three hit by pitches, so his on-base percentage was .324. That didn't change the fact, however, that he was batting .042, had an .041 slugging percentage and his only hit was a single.
They weren't quite the results Malagari had in mind.
"Right away, I knew I was in a major slump, and before I knew it, the end of the season was there," Malagari said. "It was rough."
Getting acclimated to his new bench role, Malagari ended his first season at South Carroll on a surprisingly high note. After mostly watching as his teammates captured the county title and then the 2A West title, Malagari had his chance to contribute in the state tournament.
With the Cavaliers trailing 3-0 to Southern in a state semifinal at Montgomery Blair High School on May 19, 2015, Malagari struck in an unexpected way. He entered the game as a pinch-hitter and immediately blasted a three-run homer that tied the game.
Even though SC went on to lose 6-5, the big hit, just Malagari's second of the season, helped him turn the page on a disappointing season.
"I just had to focus on getting more confident at the plate and just seeing the ball better, that's all," Malagari said.
After the season ended, Malagari opted not to play in a summer league. He played football for the county champion SC squad in the fall, taking a hiatus from baseball.
Before the 2016 campaign started, Malagari was working out in the gym and hitting off a tee. He was ready to try to move completely past what happened the year before.
"I don't want to say that it helped me at all, but summer ball stressed me out too if I wasn't doing well," Malagari said. "So I just needed a little break for a little bit."
When Malagari took the field for South Carroll's season opener at home against South Hagerstown on March 21, it was his first baseball game since the previous year's state tournament.
And it appears that break from the sport helped Malagari regain his confidence at the plate.
Malagari is hitting .428 (21-for-49) with 17 RBIs, two doubles and 12 stolen bases. He has played all around the infield, typically either at shortstop or third base, and is among the county's best hitters this season.
It doesn't surprise Zawacki, who knew last year that Malagari was capable of more.
"We could see his baseball talent. He obviously knows how to play the game of baseball," Zawacki said. "He just wants to hit, and this year he's doing a very good job. He hustles, he plays the game the right way. He's got a little bit of [Nationals outfielder Bryce] Harper in him with that intensity."
Haas, a two-time Times first team all-countian, has played mostly infield with Malagari this season. Also, Haas typically bats No. 2 in SC's lineup with Malagari right behind him.
From last season to this season, Haas has seen noticeable improvement in the batter's box from Malagari, with whom he has played since they were 8-year-olds in little league.
"He's hitting all the runners in, so it's a big help," Haas said. "He's staying back on the ball more; he probably moved up in the box. He was used to a lot faster pitchers, so he probably is just waiting for the ball instead of going out to get it."
The Cavaliers won't have the opportunity to win the county championship for a third season in a row, as they finished second in the Cowan Division behind Francis Scott Key.
However, they can still repeat as region champions. And once the playoffs begin, Malagari said he knows anything can happen.
"I believe the key thing we need to start doing to get on a roll here is we need to start hitting the ball and just playing a little better defense, that's all," Malagari said. "I feel confident that we'll do all right."
With his confidence back, his teammates copying his hair style, and newfound success at the plate, perhaps Malagari will contribute even more in this postseason than he did in last year's.
"I knew he had the potential. It's nice to see it all come together," Haas said. "He definitely did start the long hair at South Carroll."
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