Allstar Experience A Testament to Hard Work and Perseverance
Allstar Experience
A Testament to Hard Work and Perseverance
I’ve used this forum most often to talk about Covid 19 and health related topics, but today I’m writing about family and one of those feel-good (GREAT) moments. A Cinderella story so to speak. One forged by natural talent but more importantly a lot of hard work, dedication to success and perseverance!
Anyone who knows me understands that I love and take pride in our entire family. Here is one of our family’s feel-GREAT stories. This substack is about Son in law Joe Mantiply, his long hard journey through the minor leagues and eventual path to success in Major League Baseball (MLB). While Joe was the one who put in all the time and work, his path to success was supported and celebrated by his entire family, his tremendous agent Mike Milchin, many coaches and friends.
Our youngest daughter Ella met her now husband, Joseph Newman Mantiply while both were athletes at Virginia Tech. Joe was a pitcher on the baseball team and Ella a member of the Hokie softball program. Although they became friends their freshman year, it wasn’t until after graduation in 2013 that they started dating. That summer, Joe was the 27th round draft pick for the Detroit Tigers (a round that doesn’t even exist today). They quickly fell in love and somehow navigated a long-distance relationship while Joe endured the (not so) glamorous grind of minor league baseball: long bus rides, zero-star hotel stays, and less than minimum wage; while Ella pursued a doctorate in physical therapy. Of course, they found time to be with each other every chance they got over the next three years.
Throughout their long-distance relationship, I heard plenty of stories that made me realize JUST how hard the road to the big leagues is. When Joe wasn’t on the road in a small unknown city, he was often sleeping on an air mattress in apartments shared by multiple teammates, some without air conditioning. One year he actually slept in the team club house the last month of the minor league season. In 2014, when he was called up from the West Michigan Whitecaps (Single A) to the Erie Seawolves (Double AA), the Whitecaps were on a road trip. Joe’s car and all of his belongings were back in Michigan. He took a taxi to meet the Double AA team in Erie with a suitcase of dirty clothes and no clue where he would be staying. His father then flew to West Michigan, gathered Joe’s belongings, packed up his car and drove to Erie, PA. That pretty much sums up the glamorous life of minor league baseball players.
2016 turned out to be a big year for both Joe and Ella. Ella graduated with a doctorate in physical therapy from Virginia Commonwealth University. Joe was thriving as a relief pitcher for the Sea Wolves not allowing a single run in his last 10 games. His performance earned a long-awaited major-league debut with the Tigers. In September Joe was called up to the majors when rosters expanded. I distinctly remember Joe calling me from an airport in New Jersey just before boarding a flight to Kansas City to meet the Tigers who were playing in Kansas City later that night. I stayed up to watch that late night game while our youngest son Henry and Ann got ready for bed. I was not expecting Joe to pitch that evening but was pleasantly surprised to see him trot on the field (and extremely excited). I hollered out for Ann and Henry to come quick, “Joe is coming in!” He entered the game in the bottom of the 8th, 2 outs with runners on 2nd and 3rd. While Joe has always been cool under pressure, sweat was pouring off his face as he took the mound. He was able to get Jarrod Dyson to hit a weak fly ball to shallow center field for the third out of the inning. The sense of elation we all felt at that time was tremendous.
The family’s emotional high continued through the fall. Joe and Ella were married that October in a memorable wedding ceremony on our family farm. What a fun event that turned out to be! Friends of Joe, Ella and our family gathered in a joyous celebration.
But the emotional high would soon give way to the reality of being a professional baseball player. After returning from their honeymoon, Joe was designated for assignment (DFA’d) by the Tigers. Being DFA’d is when an MLB team removes a player from their protected 40-man roster, allowing the player to be picked up by other teams or re-sign with the former organization as a non-MLB roster minor league player. Ultimately, Joe signed a 1-year minor league contract with the New York Yankees, one of the most storied franchises in all of professional sports. He spent the entire 2017 season on the Yankees AAA affiliate, the Scranton-Wilkes-Barre Rail Riders. The Yankees organization was loaded with unbelievable talent at all levels. Despite performing tremendously well, Joe never got his “call up” by the Yankees that we all were hoping for. It was tough for us all (and I’m sure especially tough on Joe and Ella) seeing many of his talented teammates getting opportunities in the MLB that year but never getting that opportunity himself.
That offseason Joe and his agent realized that he was not in the Yankees long term plans. The decision was made to sign with the Cincinnati Reds for the 2018 season. Joe worked hard all winter long in anticipation of a great opportunity to get another shot at the MLB with a new organization. One day that off season we were in the car headed to the gym when Joe got a call from the Reds manager. I distinctly remember Joe being asked if he preferred to be a starting pitcher or reliever. While I could hardly control my excitement, I was saying under my breath “STARTER, STARTER, STARTER!”, but that’s just not Joe. In his respectful and unassuming way, he simply replied he’d fill whatever role the team needed him to in order to win.
Despite the hard work and excitement, 2018 turned out to be a tough year for Joe and Ella. Joe injured his arm in spring training and was diagnosed with a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his left pitching elbow. He required a surgical procedure to replace that elbow ligament named after the great Dodger pitcher, Tommy John. This career saving surgery was pioneered by Dr. Frank Jobe in 1974 and named after Tommy John because he was the first baseball player to undergo this procedure. The rehab for such a procedure is 12-15 months. Thankfully the Reds had an excellent surgeon on staff who performed a masterful procedure on Joe’s elbow, followed by an outstanding rehab staff who led Joe’s recovery for the next year at the Reds spring training facility in Goodyear, Arizona. Joe was committed and attacked rehab like the competitor that he is while Ella worked as a physical therapist in a nearby town. Joe’s agent and close friend Mike Milchin had the foresight to get a minor league contract extension with Cincinnati through the 2019 season. This ensured Joe a full year of professionally directed rehab so he could put all his efforts into getting his arm and body stronger and better than ever.
In 2019, Joe continued his rehab with Cincinnati through spring training and into the regular season. After 14 months of hard work with no guarantee, he was finally cleared to return to pitching. Joe and Ella (4 months pregnant with their first daughter) packed up their truck and drove cross country to join the double AA affiliate team in Chattanooga, Tennessee. 48 hours later, they arrived at the Chattanooga Lookouts field and the very next night Joe was back on the mound pitching in relief. He had a clean 7th inning so the coaching staff decided to really test his endurance and brought him back out for the 8th - something he hadn’t done his entire rehab process. Well as you would imagine after 2 days of driving, Joe was fatigued, and things didn’t go as smooth as the inning before. I was on the phone with Ella getting the play-by-play as she and his parents watched from the stands. With runners on first and second the batter squared to bunt and popped it up. Next, I heard Ella cheer then gasp! Joe dove for the ball, caught it, but lay writhing in pain on the infield grass. I distinctly remember Ella (remember she is a physical therapist) say she thought he dislocated his right shoulder. She watched as Joe was rushed off the field, hunched over in agonizing pain while trainers were supporting his glove side arm. The Lookouts staff drove Joe to the emergency room where they sedated him and reduced his anterior shoulder dislocation. An MRI the next day revealed a labrum tear. So, it was back to Arizona for MORE rehab work. I personally thought he was going to require surgery to stabilize the shoulder. But Joe, once again, attacked rehab with all his focus, tremendous determination and was able to avoid another surgery. After 6 more weeks of rehab, Joe was assigned to the Red’s triple AAA organization, the Louisville Bats.
To be continued…..
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