Allstar Experience A Testament to Hard Work and Perseverance
Part 2- Back to the Yankees
Part 1 ended with Joe completing yet another rehabilitation on a dislocated right (non-throwing) shoulder. I honestly thought that his shoulder dislocation would require surgery but, after consulting with his doctors he aggressively completed 6 weeks of intensive work with the Reds’ trainers and medical staff. It certainly didn’t hurt that he is married to a very supportive and loving wife (Ella) who happens to be a Doctor of Physical therapy! As with his entire career his hard work paid off. His shoulder mobility and strength returned to pre-injury levels.
After being assigned to the Reds AAA team, the Louisville Bats, Joe was traded to the Yankees for cash in August 2019. It really was difficult for me to understand why the Reds would put all the time and resources into his surgery and rehabilitations only to trade him back to New York. I’m sure Joe was puzzled as well. But the entire family was quite happy to hear of the trade. Joe and Ella would be returning to an organization that he loved playing for and back to teammates he was very familiar and comfortable with.
It was back to Scranton and the Rail Riders for Joe and Ella. That summer I told Ella that I had not seen Joe pitch in person near enough and was going to make a conscious effort to try and attend more minor league games. We planned a family vacation at the beach in Ocean City, New Jersey where Matt and Amanda (daughter number 1) frequent each summer. Ella would come down from Scranton and spend a few days with the family and we would also take a day to visit her and Joe and catch a game. The day before we were due to drive to Scranton, Ella calls and tells me Joe won’t be pitching that next day….......at least not in Scranton. The Yankees had had a few injuries to their pitching staff and Joe was going back to the SHOW 3 years after his MLB debut with the Tigers.
Wow, how things had turned on a moment's notice. There was an upcoming double header in New York vs the Baltimore Orioles and most likely Joe would pitch in one of those two games.
Side bar discussion here. Joe and I often talk about many things in life. Part of those discussions involve personal and clubhouse interactions on the many different teams he has been with. Every clubhouse locker room is DIFFERENT. With the Tigers clubhouse, there was a definite pecking order, and some veterans were quite hard on the rookies at times. I don’t think Joe ever felt completely comfortable in that situation. I’m sure part of it was the fact that it was his first time with an MLB team but, there was a certain veteran player that seemed to try and make the rookies miserable. From the outside looking in, I always thought that as counterproductive to the goal of winning. In contrast the Yankees organization did everything they could to make all members of the team feel wanted, needed, comfortable and important. (I particularly remember during spring training in Joe’s first stint with New York, Ella and I attended one of his spring training games when Joe was in big league camp. We were ushered in to the stadium by team employees and greeted and treated as stars.) When Joe received his callup from Scranton on this second stint with New York he was flown to meet the team in Toronto. As he walks into the Yankees clubhouse, he’s greeted by future hall of famer C.C. Sabathia with a “What’s up Joe?” Keep in mind that Joe had only spent part of a spring training several years before this most recent callup. But’s that’s CC and that’s the atmosphere the Yankee tradition fosters. It’s the attention to detail and things such as this that make the entire Yankees organization so very successful.
After a few days at the beach, we loaded up and headed to the BIG APPLE! We took the NY subway to Yankee stadium and were ushered in through the players’ entrance. To say we were in awe would be an understatement. Players and their families met in the halls of the basement in Yankees stadium, where larger than life photos hung on the wall of great moments in Yankees history as well as iconic players of the past. The best part was how well we were all welcomed and made to feel as we were all so very important to the Yankee organization. As a family we felt that warmth and I know Joe did as well
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Joe enters the game in the second inning of the second game to relieve his good friend, Chad Green, who opened the game. Joe pitches 3 full innings and the Yankees go on to win. He recorded his first major league victory, and it was in Yankee Stadium! I think we all will remember that day, the tremendous time we had, and the hospitality we were extended. Joe was interviewed by the media after the game and handled himself like a seasoned veteran!
Unfortunately, our euphoria was short-lived. Shortly after the game he received word that he would be sent back down to the minors to join the Rail Riders. This is a common part of the game that the normal person doesn’t hear much about, but for Joe it wasn’t unexpected. The next day we took in a few sites then headed back to the beach. Meanwhile, Joe was headed to the airport to catch a flight to meet the Rail Riders in Charlotte, NC. While on the tarmac he gets word he will once again be designated for assignment. This means that he must go through waivers and cannot be involved with the team for a few days. As soon as his plane landed in Charlotte, he got his things from baggage claim and hopped back on another plane to come up to Philadelphia, where we picked him up to spend a few days with us on the beach. While we were all so very disappointed, the silver lining was some great family time in Ocean City. After vacation Joe finished the season with AAA Scranton without another callup to the Bigs
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That following off season, Joe and Ella returned to Virginia and welcomed their first daughter, Katherine Brooke Mantiply on October 13th. The next month, Joe elected free agency in hopes of landing with an organization that would offer more major league opportunities.
In January of 2020 (just before Covid hell broke loose), Joe signed a minor league contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks and was invited to major league spring training. Joe, Ella, and Katherine all headed out to Scottsdale, AZ for spring training that February. Joe pitched very well, but we all know how this story gets sidelined. The infamous COVID-19 pandemic hit that March and the baseball season was postponed indefinitely. It started out with “2 weeks to slow the spread.” But, as a physician, I knew that it would be an extended lock down. Joe, Ella, and Katherine returned to the farm to wait it out. While at home, Joe had to get creative with his workouts and throwing routine. He built his own mound and threw into a net in the backyard. Thankfully, this type of training wasn’t completely foreign to Joe. After all, he had spent every off-season since 2016 on the farm in rural Virginia where access to state-of-the-art baseball facilities was not an option. It was a memorable time for our family for many reasons. During the “LOCKDOWN” Joe, Ella, and Katherine along with Matt, Amanda and Louisa moved back to the farm (Ginger Hill) and we “Quarantined” on 500 acres of the most beautiful landscape that God has ever created in Rappahannock county. We grew even closer as a family during this very strange and trying time!
Again, I’ll interject myself into the story as I find this humorous. I think you will as well. I occasionally would needle Joe telling him I could hit him and laugh that I’d take him long if given the chance. Well, it so happens that one of his best friends and college teammates from VA Tech, Chad Morgan, lives not too far from us. Chad and his future wife Alexa decided to come for a visit late that spring. He also brought along his catching gear to catch Joe for a “Bullpen” throwing session. I asked that Chad bring along a helmet and bat so I could back up my bravado. Needless to say, I was nervous for I’d never stood in the batter’s box against such high level talent.
We set some ground rules. First of all, Joe was not to hit me! Second, he would tell me the pitch as well as the location. With great anticipation and some angst, I stepped in the box. (I bat left handed and Joe is a lefty which is not a desirable matchup for a 60 year old ‘has been’.) Joe delivers a strike ( I have no idea what he threw pitch wise ) and to my complete surprise I fouled the ball off. Well, you’d have thought I just hit a walk off HR in the 9th inning of game 7 of the World Series! After some trash talking, I get back in the box. Well, that 1 fouled ball was the highlight of my day. About halfway though the bullpen I had barely tipped just one more pitch. Joe calls a fastball outside but to my surprise the ball comes well inside the plate. From then on, I was worthless as a potential hitter. Each swing ended up with me falling far away from the plate towards the first base dugout. Talk about total embarrassment. It wasn’t until this past offseason that I found out that Joe actually thought I was serious about being able to do anything but what I did against him at the plate. We both got a good laugh out of my absurdity!
That July, baseball resumed for the major leagues, but the minor league season was canceled. Joe, however, was invited to attend and practice at the “alternate training site”. This was basically a way for the top prospects and triple A guys to stay in baseball shape just in case the big-League team needed reinforcements. After a short spring training and long delay in games, I think they were expecting injuries to be at an all-time high. That September, Joe got the call again that he would be returning to the big leagues. This time, in an Arizona Diamondbacks uniform but, thanks to COVID, no family or friends cheering him on in the stands. He pitched in a total of 4 games over a span of 8 days, then was optioned back to the alternate training site. At the end of the season Joe was DFA’d yet once again.