Last night while making his Major League Baseball debut, Rangers pitcher Alex Speas struck out the first three batters he faced, helping the team secure the sweep against the Tampa Bay Rays.
This time last year, Speas was coaching youth baseball in North and South Carolina.
It's been a long journey for Speas, who was originally drafted by the Rangers in 2016 however, following the 2021 season retired from the game altogether, choosing to focus ion his mental health and family.
By the time Spring Training started rolling around before the season, Speas got the itch again.
He decided to give professional baseball another chance, and just a year removed from coaching kids, he made his professional debut.
Speas told MLB.com his time away coaching kids helped him relearn his passion for the game.
"A lot of things that came at once and led me into a year of just taking it off. I wasn't myself on a baseball field. So it was hard to do. I wanted to be out helping this team and organization win, but that was the best thing for me to do at the time.
"A year later after coaching and being around younger athletes and players and just seeing the joy for the game, it got me back to this point."
Speas came into the game with the Rangers holding a 1-0 lead against the Rays in the seventh inning.
He struck out the first three batters he faced, Wander Franco, Yandy Díaz, and Randy Arozarena, all of whom are All Stars.
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