Recently, I had the pleasure of talking briefly with the Ryan Sherriff. I informed him that I would take any info that I could. More specifically, about his personal life. Too often, baseball articles are stuck to stats, saber metrics, and predictions. While these are all great things, it can tend to get old after a period of time. That is specifically why I have created this segment, and reached out to Sherriff on a more ‘personal’ level. Knowing a player is very important if you want to study, or write about them. When a player performs as reliably as Sherriff did for the Cardinals in ‘17, you are almost forced to ask yourself, ‘how did they get there?’ Directly, I was given the answer. Ryan told me a paragraph worth of information that could have quite possibly spoken to me better than any other MLB player was capable of.
Sherriff: ‘Whats up man? From Los Angeles California. Came from a low middle class family so pretty much started from the ground up. Nothing was ever handed to me. I’m the literal definition of what they call the grind. Dad passed away when I was 21. He never got to see me play professionally. I was a 28th round draft pick and never a prospect. Decided to change my arm angle in 2016 because I had nothing to lose. Ended up a 2 time pcl all star and made it to the show.’
Through conversation, you can find out a lot about a person. Through these words, I knew the genuine person Ryan Sherriff really was. While my knowledge only extended to what I saw in his pitching, it was clear Sherriff was a hard worker. This, hit home to me. Working two jobs and attending college, I took every word to heart. He told me soon after our initial conversation to ‘keep grinding.’ Grinding, I shall do.
Sherriff was a ‘bursting onto the scene’ type of presence for the Cardinals in 2017. While the time with the team was brief in ‘17, he proved that he would make his time truly worth it. Ryan played a total of 13 games for the Cards last season. Posting a record of 2-1, with a 3.14 ERA. Sherriff pitched a total of 14.1 innings. All while recording an impressive 15 SO, and a WHIP of 1.19. Although (as I mentioned), the career of Sherriff has been brief, we can only expect great things going forward.
Within the Minor League System in 2017, Ryan had a reliable record of 5-1 and an ERA of 3.14. In 2016, he posted a record of 7-1 with yet another low earned run average. What we should notice here, is how consistent Sherriff has proved over the years.
SHERRIFF’S PITCH TYPES
(Per Brooks Baseball.) ‘From Sherriff in 2017, 258 pitches were tracked. He relied primarily on his Fastball, Sinker (92 MPH), and Slider (84 MPH.) As established early on, his sinker possesses great, heavy sinking action. His qualities are remarkable, and Sherriff is able to induce an above average number of ground balls.’
SO WHAT MAKES SHERRIFF SPECIAL?
Ryan Sherriff is a committed, hard working, genuine, and down-to-earth kind of guy. He is reliable day in and day out, and is a committed player to the St. Louis Cardinals Organization. With the degree of potential and body makeup, it will be very interesting to see just what Sherriff can do moving forward. It was my pleasure to speak to Ryan, and I personally wish him the best of luck.
We should not forget, nor overlook Sherriff’s potential and capability. This is a man that (if he stays healthy), can put up some great numbers. There are great people in society, but then there are great players in the game of baseball like Ryan Sherriff. Keep an eye on him Cardinal Nation, great things are coming. He will continue, to keep ‘grinding.’
Goodnight.
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