The baseball star plays for the Chicago Cubs, but he didn’t spend his childhood there.
Anthony Rizzo was born in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA. He grew up nearby in Parkland Florida, where he attended Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.
Read on to learn more about the personal life of Anthony Rizzo and how he made it as a professional baseball player.
The Personal Life of Anthony Rizzo
Anthony Vincent Rizzo was born on August 8, 1989, in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The baseball player is of Italian descent, with his family hailing from Sicily.
Anthony and his older brother, John, grew up in nearby Parkland, Florida, and attended Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, with Anthony graduating in 2007.
Tragically, the school was the target of a mass shooting in 2018, with 14 students and 3 staff members being killed.
Anthony attended a vigil in the wake of the shooting, where he emotionally told grieving attendees, “I grew up at Stoneman Douglas [High School]” and expressed his sadness for the events.
Anthony was diagnosed with a form of Hodgkin’s lymphoma in April of 2008 and had to undergo chemotherapy for six months. His grandmother was also battling cancer at the same time.
Fortunately, Anthony survived and was told by doctors he “could live a normal life.” In 2012, the baseballer founded the Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation, which exists to fund research into cancer cures and treatments.
The charitable organization has donated more than $4 million dollars to the Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago.
In 2017, Anthony proposed to his girlfriend, Emily Vakos, and thankfully she said yes! They married the following year, with teammate Kris Bryant acting as a groomsman.
In 2020, the married couple adopted a dog, which they called Kevin.
See Anthony Rizzo and his wife with their adorable pooch below.
How did Anthony Rizzo become a baseball player?
Anthony started playing baseball when he was a kid. He tried out for the Red Sox in his final year of high school. He had plans to carry on playing baseball for Florida Atlantic University but was selected by the Red Sox before that happened.
The young Anthony was given a $325,000 signing bonus for joining the Red Sox organization, which includes several teams at varying levels. His career soon took off, with the player hitting 12 home runs in 2009.
Anthony was traded to the San Diego Padres in 2010 and played for the team until 2012. The same year he was signed to the Chicago Cubs, which he has been loyal to ever since.
The successful player is estimated to have a net worth of $27 million.