RYAN Joe

General
CLUB JOURNEY
While studying at California State University, Northridge he entered the 2016 MLB Draft but went unselected. In 2018 he transferred to California State University, Stanislaus and from there he was selected by the Tampa Bay Rays in the seventh round, 210th overall pick, of the 2018 MLB Draft. In 2018 and 2019 he played for the Rays' minor league affiliates, including three games for the Double-A level Montgomery Biscuits. In 2021 he was assigned to the Triple-A level Durham Bulls. (milb.com, 11 Jun 2021)

DISCOVERING SUCCESS
He views his time at the Advanced A level Charlotte Stone Crabs in 2019 as a turning point in his career. "As soon as I got there, I knew it was the perfect spot for me. Coaches Mike McNeil and Kenny Leonesio were amazing. I got to just pitch and work on my body and get better. I guess I learned what made me successful. Before it was like I was successful for a reason, but I couldn't tell you exactly why that was, or how I was doing what I was doing. I wouldn't say it was luck but I just did what I did, which was go out there and pitch, throw strikes, fastballs, curveballs, whatever." (mlb.com, 01 Jan 2021; marinji.com, 25 Mar 2021; baseballprospectjournal.com, 30 Jul 2019; yoursun.com, 14 Aug 2020)

WATER POLO AND BASEBALL
He grew up playing water polo and did not consider baseball as his main sport. He believes his pitching style has been influenced by his water polo career. "It allowed my body to mature a little bit more. That cross-training aspect was essential to my development. I didn't really go too crazy with pitching at a young age. I never considered myself a baseball player first. I played water polo year-round, even through baseball season. I'd get out of the water and then go play outside, which made pitching even more fun. Running, mountain biking, skiing, surfing - I just wanted to be outside as much as possible. In water polo you learn how to skip the ball. I spent 10 years trying to do it in water polo, and it's the same concept as throwing a fastball - get the shoulder in position and then let the hand work and get it out front. Throwing a baseball feels the same way. You get that zip right at the end. The ball just takes off. There's not a lot of stress on the body. There's nothing on the TrackMan to suggest that this pitch is anything crazy, but I guess it looks like I'm throwing harder than it is. I think that's been my biggest success - getting the spin rate there." (si.com, 24 May 2021; raysradrio.mlblogs.com, 21 Feb 2020; baseballprospectjournal.com, 30 Jul 2019)

LIFTING HIS HANDS ABOVE HIS HEAD
In 2018 he began lifting his hands above his head before he throws each pitch. "I was feeling kind of quirky last year [2018] and trying to get my timing back. Because I hadn't really thrown for a while [due to injury], I was playing catch with it and my coach thought I should try it off a mound. I threw two bullpens with it and then brought it into the game and did really well, I think I had 11 Ks. I've always had a really high leg kick, so it kind of helps me with my timing and getting extended with everything. The staff [with the Rays] really like it. A lot of people are going to that modified wind-up now, so I just decided to do the opposite." (baseballprospectjournal.com, 30 Jul 2019)