Ryan Richards '22 Recruiting Profile

My name is Ryan Richards I am a 6’0” 150 lbs freshman at Joliet Central High School. As a freshman, I was a starting outfielder/pitcher on the JV team. Playing at that level faced me with an adversity that scared me but made me a better player at the end. I had secured my spot on the freshman team but at the second practice I was told to go with the sophomores. So I went from the top of the todem pole to the very bottom, but with my focus, drive, and determination I proved that I can compete at that level. I was able to  help my team get our first significant win by hitting a single down the right field line scoring 2 runs to give us the lead. Also, I pitched a full game against Oswego East giving up only 1 earned run. During my 14u summer season my team won the conference championship where I hit a double into the left-center gap to clear the bases and give us the edge we needed to win. That’s the season where I can say that I truly fell in love with the game because the seasons before I would always said that I didn’t want to play baseball anymore but ever since that season I can’t stop thinking about baseball. I think it’s to blame on the coach because his passion for the game rubbed off on me and he did it give me any slack at all he always made sure that I was on my A game and that I made a play on every ball hit to me, because he was also the first coach to let me know that there is always someone out there to replace me on the field. So, when I didn’t make plays that I should have he would pull me out and put someone else in. That changed the way I played a lot because now I always play like someone is gunning for my position