Geelong Baycats recruit Tanner Riley rediscovers love of the game Down Under

After narrowly missing out on joining the Major League, a Geelong Baycats recruit is hoping it will be a case of third time lucky.

Geelong Baycat Tanner Riley has come close twice to being picked up by a Major League outfit. Picture: Supplied.

For the Geelong Baycats’ new Texan pitching recruit Tanner Riley, everything in life comes down to a matter of faith.

The 26-year-old has come achingly close to being picked up by two Major League outfits, the San Diego Padres and the Arizona Diamondbacks, before fate and injury ultimately stepped in.

However, the considered Clyde product is very much a believer in being where a higher power wants him to be.

And right now, it’s in Geelong, competing against some of the state’s best baseballers.

“That was a big thing of coming down here (to Australia), I was just asking God to speak to me,” Riley said, who is just two months off attaining a Masters of Psychology.

“I just got the words ‘go’, so here I am.

“It gave me that confidence to come down here.

Geelong Baycats' US import Tanner Riley records a hit against Moorabbin. Picture: Jackson Geall.

“The bible tells if you seek you’ll find, and that’s definitely what it’s been for me.

“I just want to do his will, wherever I’m supposed to be that’s where I want to be.”

More specifically, Riley’s move Down Under came after sharing a post-match hotel hot tub with Werribee Giants player, Joe Jaco.

The relief pitcher had been playing with American Association outfit, the Cleburne Railroaders in native Texas before an elbow injury, while trialling with the Diamondbacks, robbed him of around 50 games.

Geelong Baycats recruit Tanner Riley was previously playing for the Flying Bison back in the US. Picture: Supplied.

Returning to the field for six fixtures, Riley was unable to recapture his form and was released, eventually joining new team, the Abilene Flying Bison west of his home town of Clyde.

It came four years after the disappointment of being passed over by the Padres, heading to Fargo in North Dakota instead.

However, aided by a burgeoning personal faith – Riley was raised a Baptist – he has learned to ride the ups and downs of sport with a more mature outlook.

“There’s been a couple of things of being really close (to being recruited), and almost being able to taste it, but not there yet,” he said.

“I wasn’t faithful then.

Geelong Baycats recruit Tanner Riley is hopeful of being picked up by a Major League team. Picture: Supplied.

“Now I feel more clear minded about the whole thing. Wherever I’m supposed to be I’ll be.

“These last few months, my brother and I baptised each other.

“We got to find it together along the same path, that was a really cool moment before I came (to Australia).”

So after a Bison game, Jaco suggested Riley reach out to an Australian contact, ultimately leading to him joining the Baycats for the 2024-25 summer.

“I didn’t really seek it out, it really stemmed from me getting hurt, so it was a blessing in disguise,” Riley said.

“It was just God the whole way and how he’d constructed everything to bring me here.

“This might sound a little radical, but I’m just trying to be where God wants me to be.”

Having pitched exclusively for so many years, Riley has enjoyed fresh flexibility at the Baycats, playing left field and second base in recent games.

“It’s been bringing back a little bit of love for the game, no doubt,” he said.

“In college and then professional (baseball), you don’t get to hit, if you’re a pitcher, you’re just pitchin’.

“It’s brought back an element of the game I’ve almost forgotten. Getting to be on offence and run bases.”

With the Baycats currently 4-0 and on top of the Vic Premier ladder, the team is clicking on and off the diamond.

“You can tell it’s a good group of dudes that didn’t really need me to jell, they’re all good friends and they all get along really well, which is a big piece of the puzzle,” he said.

“Hayden Peoples has been great on the mound.

“Hayden’s younger brother (Riley) has been pitching really well too.

“And the hitting, up and down the line up has been good, and Tanner Stack too has been working his butt off behind the plate.

“Everyone’s been executing their job.”

Riley has also enjoyed the more casual nature of Australian ball.

“Something I’ve noticed is that everyone’s way more relaxed, a lot more stress free,” he said.

“It just feels like a little weight off the shoulders.

“It’s not a total crazy change I would say, other than it just feels a bit more laid-back than home.”

Originally published as Geelong Baycats recruit Tanner Riley rediscovers love of the game Down Under