Reds' Olson masterful in professional debut
Ryan Olson, out of action for more than a year, envisioned this outing many times."Every day," the 22-year-old right-hander said. "Every day I was going to the complex to rehab, I was on a quest to get back out there and have my first appearance. It was definitely a grind,
Ryan Olson, out of action for more than a year, envisioned this outing many times.
"Every day," the 22-year-old right-hander said. "Every day I was going to the complex to rehab, I was on a quest to get back out there and have my first appearance. It was definitely a grind, and there were days I didn't know if I was ever going to get back out there. It was a long time coming, definitely."
Finally making his pro debut, the Reds prospect gave up two hits and struck out nine over seven innings Sunday, pitching Class A Dayton to a 6-0 win at Lake County.
Box score
Olson (1-0) suffered a stress fracture in his lower spine last year during his junior year at Cal Poly Pomona and had not pitched in a competitive game since March 12, 2016. But after working with the 2016 13th-round pick at the Reds' complex in Arizona over the last couple months, Dragons pitching coach Derrin Ebert had no doubt Olson would be ready to go when he got the ball.
"For his first professional outing, you can't ask for much more than that. We did so much in Spring Training, a lot of our pitchers were actually shocked at how much they threw in Spring Training," Ebert said. "Our whole organization got every one of our starters an extra start in Spring Training so that their pitch count could be 80-90. It was almost like he already had a couple starts under his belt, so the nerves kind of wore away at the end of Spring Training."
A little worn away or not, Olson's nerves were definitely present.
"I definitely had the jitters going, this being my first professional appearance, but once I was out there, I felt great," he said. "I was commanding the zone and I threw all of my pitches for strikes."
That came as a relief to Ebert after the Dragons struggled with command.
"The way we started off season, 14 walks the first three games, the no walks was much more important than the nine punchouts to me,'" he said. "And [Olson] got the strikeouts so quick, his pitch count stayed down. If a Minor League pitcher strikes out nine, he usually didn't go very long. Usually, when guys throw complete games in the Minors Leagues, they only have four or five strikeouts."
Olson wasn't especially proud of not issuing a walk because it's a goal every time out.
"That's what I try to do, not give out any free passes," he said. "I was fortunate enough to pound the zone and challenge the hitters."
That approach is a good match for Olson's stuff, his pitching coach believes.
"The kid commands three pitches and he can't throw the ball straight to save a soul," Ebert said. "Everything has action to it. I was just looking it over, and five of his nine strikeouts were three-pitch strikeouts.
"You could tell, this being A-ball, that he's a polished college pitcher. He attacked and front and back, and he changed speed. You could see [the Captains] getting more and more frustrated. They were trying to get something early, which was fine with him, because he's not afraid to pitch to contact."
The efficiency helped Olson stay fresh deep into the game.
"I was even signaling my guy in the stands with the radar gun, and his velocity was same in the seventh as it was in the first," Ebert said. "He was at 91, 92 [mph]. He sits there, but he primarily throws two-seamers with a lot of run and he's got a plus change up with the same action on it. And he was throwing breaking balls for strikes."
The Southern California native worked 1-2-3 innings in the second and third, then retired the last 11 batters he faced.
"I'll tell you what: being hurt for all that time, missing the college season, missing half that pro season, I was fired up," Olson said. "I felt like I showed everyone what I can do. It was a really good experience."
He enjoyed his debut so much, he wasn't ready for it to end.
"One thing I liked -- after he finished, he came back to me and said, 'Do I have any chance of talking you into letting me pitch the next inning?'" Ebert said. "I said, 'No, just enjoy it.'"
T.J. Friedl, the Reds' No. 16 prospect, was 3-for-5 with a triple, two RBIs and a run scored.
Josh Jackson is a contributor to MiLB.com. Follow and interact with him on Twitter, @JoshJacksonMiLB.
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