Ryan Rowland-Smith facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Ryan Rowland-Smith |
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Rowland-Smith with the Seattle Mariners
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| Pitcher | |||
| Born: 26 January 1983 Sydney, Australia |
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| Professional debut | |||
| MLB: 22 June, 2007, for the Seattle Mariners | |||
| CPBL: 26 March, 2015, for the EDA Rhinos | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| MLB: 14 April, 2014, for the Arizona Diamondbacks | |||
| CPBL: 15 May, 2015, for the EDA Rhinos | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 12–17 | ||
| Earned run average | 4.57 | ||
| Strikeouts | 229 | ||
| CPBL statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 1–4 | ||
| Earned run average | 4.70 | ||
| Strikeouts | 45 | ||
| Teams | |||
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Ryan Benjamin Rowland-Smith (born January 26, 1983) is a former professional baseball pitcher from Australia. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners and Arizona Diamondbacks. Ryan also played for Australia in the World Baseball Classic three times. He won a silver medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics.
Ryan Rowland-Smith was born in Sydney, Australia. He grew up watching MLB games on video. The Seattle Mariners signed him right after high school. He spent several years playing for their minor league teams. In June 2007, he joined the Mariners. He struck out the first batter he faced, who was former Mariners star Ken Griffey Jr..
In 2008, Ryan started as a relief pitcher for the Mariners. He later became a starting pitcher. In 2009, he had an injury but returned to pitch well. He made a career-high 20 starts in 2010. After that, he played in the minor leagues for a few years. In 2014, he joined the Arizona Diamondbacks. He was excited because they were playing in Australia. He later played for the EDA Rhinos in Taiwan. Ryan retired after the 2017 World Baseball Classic.
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Early Life and Baseball Dreams
Ryan Rowland-Smith was born on January 26, 1983, in Sydney, Australia. His father, Rob, is a well-known trainer. His mother, Julie, was a physical education teacher. Ryan was the third of their three children. His parents divorced when he was three. Ryan grew up with his mother and sister in Newcastle, New South Wales.
He loved baseball from a young age. He watched games on video cassettes because MLB was not shown on TV in Australia. He had videos of the 1992 World Series and 1993 World Series. Ryan started playing baseball when he was 12. He finished high school in December 2000. The Seattle Mariners signed him on November 19, 2000. They were one of the few MLB teams that looked for players in Australia. Ryan was very eager to sign his contract.
Professional Baseball Journey
Starting in the Minor Leagues (2001–2006)
Ryan Rowland-Smith began his professional career in 2001. He played for the Rookie level Arizona League Mariners. He pitched in 17 games and allowed only one home run. In 2002, he played for the Single-A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers and the Everett AquaSox. He had a good record with Everett.
In 2003, Ryan played for Wisconsin again. He had a very low earned run average (ERA) of 1.11. He also pitched for the Inland Empire 66ers. He had a combined ERA of 1.90 that year. In 2004, he played the whole season with Inland Empire. He pitched as both a relief pitcher and a starting pitcher.
In 2005, the Minnesota Twins chose Ryan in a special draft. But they sent him back to Seattle. He then played for the Double-A San Antonio Missions. He pitched a career-high 122 innings that season. In 2006, he split his time between Inland Empire and San Antonio. He had a good ERA of 2.83 with the Missions.
Making it to the Major Leagues (2007)
In 2007, Ryan Rowland-Smith played for the Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers. He pitched well enough to be called up to the Mariners in June. He made his first Major League game on June 22. It was against the Cincinnati Reds. The game was special because Ken Griffey Jr., a famous Mariners player, was returning.
Ryan's first batter he faced was Ken Griffey Jr. Ryan struck him out! He pitched 1.1 innings without allowing any runs. He earned his first career win on September 13. This was against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. The Mariners were losing 7–1 but came back to win 8–7. In his first year, he struck out 42 batters in 38.1 innings. He had a 1–0 record.
Becoming a Starter (2008–2010)
Ryan started 2008 as a relief pitcher. He made 32 relief appearances. His first Major League start was on July 1 against the Toronto Blue Jays. He pitched three scoreless innings. Later, he was sent to Tacoma to practice being a starter. He returned to Seattle's starting team in August. From August 21 until the end of the season, he had a great ERA of 2.56. In 2008, he had a 5–3 record and a 3.42 ERA in 47 games.
In 2009, Ryan started one game before getting injured. He had tendinitis in his arm. He went to Tacoma for rehab. In July, he rejoined the Mariners' starting team. He pitched very well in many games. Three times, he pitched a season-high eight innings. He finished 2009 with a 5–4 record and a 3.74 ERA.
Ryan started 2010 as the third pitcher in the Mariners' starting team. He struggled at first. The Mariners moved him to the bullpen. He returned to the starting team in June. On June 20, he earned his only win of the year. He pitched six scoreless innings against the Cincinnati Reds. He made a career-high 20 starts in 2010. He finished with a 1–10 record and a 6.75 ERA. The Mariners did not offer him a new contract after the season.
Playing for Other Teams (2011–2015)
In 2011, the Houston Astros signed Ryan. He spent most of the season with their Triple-A team, the Oklahoma City RedHawks. He became a free agent after the season.
In 2012, the Chicago Cubs signed him. He played for the Iowa Cubs, their Triple-A team. He was used more as a relief pitcher. He had a 3–6 record and a 3.94 ERA.
In 2013, the Boston Red Sox signed Ryan. He pitched very well for their Triple-A team, the Pawtucket Red Sox. He had a 7–0 record and a 1.55 ERA. But he never got to pitch for Boston because he got sick.
Ryan signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2014. He was very excited because they were playing two games in Australia. He was on the Diamondbacks team at the start of the season. This was his first time on an MLB team since 2010. He made his last Major League appearance on April 14. He pitched in six games for the Diamondbacks. He later signed with the Toronto Blue Jays and then the Cincinnati Reds minor league teams.
In 2015, Ryan left the United States. He signed with the EDA Rhinos in Taiwan. He played in nine games for them. He later pitched one game in the Dominican Republic. In January 2017, he played for the Brisbane Bandits in Australia. He helped them win their second championship. Ryan retired after playing for Australia in the World Baseball Classic.
Playing for Australia
Ryan Rowland-Smith proudly played for his home country, Australia, many times.
Olympic Games (2004)
He played for Australia in the 2004 Summer Olympic games. He pitched in four games as a relief pitcher. He had a 2–0 record and a very low 1.23 ERA. He helped Australia win a silver medal! They reached the championship game but lost to Cuba.
World Baseball Classic (2006, 2013, 2017)
Ryan was chosen for the Australia national baseball team for the 2006 World Baseball Classic. But he could not play because of an elbow injury. He played for Australia in the 2013 World Baseball Classic. The team lost all three of its games in the first round.
Before he retired, Ryan played for Australia one last time in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. He pitched well in the qualifying games. Australia won against the Philippines and South Africa to move on. He felt Australia had a very strong team. Australia qualified for the main tournament but did not advance past the first round.
Life After Baseball
After retiring from playing, Ryan Rowland-Smith became a baseball TV analyst. He appears on shows for Seattle Mariners games. He also talks about baseball on the radio for ESPN710 Seattle. He was also an analyst for the 2023 World Baseball Classic qualification event. Ryan says he loves talking and baseball, so being a commentator is perfect for him.
He also started a training camp for young baseball players called NxtGen Baseball. He co-founded it with another Australian player, Trent Oeltjen.
Personal Life
Ryan Rowland-Smith's grandfather was a government minister for sport in New South Wales. His older sister, Rhiannon, is a competitive surfer. Ryan also loves surfing as a hobby.
In 2013, Ryan married Amanda Aardsma. She is an American actress and the sister of his former teammate David Aardsma. Ryan became good friends with Ken Griffey Jr., the first batter he struck out in MLB. Ken Griffey Jr. even attended Ryan's wedding!
Ryan Rowland-Smith was the first player with a hyphenated last name to play in a Major League Baseball game. During his career, he wrote a blog to connect with fans. He was also one of the first Mariners players to use Twitter in 2009.
In June 2019, Ryan appeared on the TV show American Ninja Warrior. He said he wanted to enjoy the experience and maybe try again if he didn't finish the course.
