Ryan Radmanovich: We Need Cuban Baseball to Be a Part of the Major Leagues
For seventeen seasons, Calgary native Ryan Ashley Radmanovich played professional baseball, including part of a season with the Seattle Mariners. In 1999, he took part in the Winnipeg Pan Am Games that finished the round robin undefeated and went on to win the Bronze Medal after falling to Cuba in the semifinals. He then went on to represent Canada in different tournaments, including two Olympic Games and the World Baseball Classic.
I met Ryan Radmanovich in West Hartford, Connecticut, he participated in a clinic with Cuban and US kids on July 13, 2016 at Hall High, featuring other former players like Luis Tiant, Bill Lee and Cuban leaguer Karel García. He was impressed that I knew some of the Canadian players who had been alongside him when he faced Cuba internationally, and he gave me the fungo bat he had used as a coach.
That day, we reflected on his baseball career, his experience with team Canada and facing the Cuban national team. Almost three years later, the former outfielder and team Canada cleanup man decided to share his smile and his good humor, and we met at the baseball field in Kingswood-Oxford School, where he currently works, and he shared some of those experiences with Universo Béisbol.
Universo Béisbol: What sparked your interest in baseball?
Ryan Radmanovich: Growing up in Canada I got the chance to watch Larry Walker play, as well as other Canadians, which sparked my interest. We also had the Triple-A team in Calgary, for the Seattle Mariners at the time, so I got the chance to see Danny Tartabull play there (he was my favorite player kind of growing up) in Triple-A. Growing up in Canada you mostly get, obviously hockey, but I just fell in love with baseball. Although I did play hockey for twelve years growing up, I preferred baseball, which was played in the very short summers that we had in Canada.
UB: You were signed by the Minnesota Twins and hit 21 homeruns in two minor league levels in 1994, your second season, did that give you enough confidence to face professional pitching?
RR: Coming from Division 1 in collegiate baseball, you don’t know what to expect when you get to the professional level. You get players from all different countries, of course, and the level increases. So, to have a couple of good seasons at the start definitely helped my confidence go up, and I realized that I had a chance to play.
UB: Do you have any claims to fame in baseball?
RR: I don’t think that I have any claims to fame. Of course, coming from Calgary was a huge milestone, and being kind of the pioneer for the city of Calgary… but being able to play and stay healthy for seventeen years of professional baseball — I didn’t get to play in the major leagues as much as I would have hoped, of course — sticking around and having the opportunity to play that long is pretty amazing to me.
UB: Nineteen-ninety-nine brought you to team Canada and the Winnipeg Pan Am Games. Do you find that team Canada to be the best you ever played in?
RR: That’s a tough question. There were so many great teams I played for internationally, at different levels… I would also mention the 2003 team that qualified in Panama for the Athens Olympics, which was amazing, and it was the first time Canada ever qualified for the Olympics, and we were fortunate to beat the USA in that qualifier. The 2004 team was also fantastic, as they all were in their own different way.
UB: What did it feel like to play against the 1999 Cuban national team?
RR: That was very exciting for me. I had only seen them on TV before, and all you could hear about Cuba was how terrific they were and what great ball team they always had, as well as the many great baseball players that had come out of Cuba. We all knew that, but seeing them first hand for the first time was very exciting for us.
UB: You managed to hit 271 homeruns in all levels of professional play. Is there any particular one you remember?
RR: It is tough to pick out one homerun. My first Major League homerun was very exciting, and of course my Olympic homeruns (which are not counted among those 271) were very memorable, especially that one against Cuba in ’04. Any time you are put up in the lineup and get the opportunity is amazing in itself, so to be able to come through for your team is of course very exciting.
UB: What is your fondest baseball memory?
RR: I had different ones in different levels. Getting called up to the Majors for the first time… stepping on the field in Cleveland, next to great players: Ken Griffey Jr. was playing centerfield, Alex Rodriguez was in shortstop, and Randy Johnson was on the mound. To be in that lineup for my first MLB start was pretty memorable. I would also add the opportunity to play in the Olympics, and not only the baseball portion, but also to walk in with all the athletes of the world. I still get goosebumps thinking about it… it was the highlight of my career in baseball. I was very fortunate that baseball took me to all kinds of different countries through my career.
UB: How hard would you describe the path of a professional baseball player?
RR: Incredibly difficult. People don’t understand: they go to the games and they see and they think how lucky we are and how much fun we are having… you enjoy the game but it is also your career. And it makes it so difficult to know that you need to perform night in and night out if you are going to stay with the team and continue to have that job. People don’t understand the daily grind. The way I put it is, it’s extremely difficult to play over 160 games in 180 days, and it is more so difficult mentally than physically.
UB: Who are your best friends in baseball?
RR: Many from the game… playing seventeen years puts you in a lot of different rosters, but my fondest memories are probably with the Canadian players because we spent so much time together and we played to win more than we played to keep our jobs. In all those qualifying teams that I was a part of I get guys like Stubby Clapp, Todd Betts, Kevin Nicholson… these guys who came up and played together for so many years formed something like a fraternity.
UB: Every pitcher is very hard, but who was the hardest you ever faced?
RR: I got to face Pedro Martinez in Spring Training when he was throwing 98 and 99 miles per hour with a changeup that backed up and he was definitely one of the toughest pitchers I ever faced. I remember facing Juan Guzman for the Toronto Blue Jays, and you wouldn’t think of him as the toughest pitcher out there but he had my number (chuckles) and it was hard to pick up the ball. Again, that’s a tough question because there were so many great pitchers.
UB: What can you tell me about coaching in the professional level?
RR: Coaching is completely different. When you are a player, you knew how to do it, you knew what you were doing, and sometimes it is very difficult to get that across to a young player… showing them the way that you would have done it but also looking for different ways that might be better for them. Coaching is definitely difficult (chuckles) but it is also very enjoyable.
UB: How about coaching kids?
RR: It is awesome. I enjoy it so much. It is very gratifying to see a smile on a kid’s face when they start to succeed. To hit a baseball is one of the best feelings in the world, and to help a kid get that feeling, to see the smile on their face when they see how far the ball goes or they find that little sweet spot on the bat is probably one of the best feelings about coaching kids.
UB: What advice would you give to young kids?
RR: The best advice is to have fun. Number one, you have to enjoy the game, and you cannot make it a job, you cannot make it something that you cannot look too far ahead. You need to enjoy the moment… it’s such a difficult game to play; there are so many times when you are striking out and there is so much defeat in the game of baseball. I think you need to keep your head up and have fun and always look forward to tomorrow.
UB: What is your opinion on Cuban baseball?
RR: Cuban baseball! (chuckles) Playing against them for so many years, I can tell you they are one of the most competitive teams that I have ever played against. They are fundamentally sound, they are great players, they play to win. More than anything, I think I have respect for the Cuban players and the Cuban teams. Being with Canada, after the game we smiled and we are friends with them, but during the games it was so competitive and I enjoyed those games more than anything. I admire their dedication to the game and how hard they play and how competitive they are… they are some of the greatest baseball players in the world.
UB: Who were the Cuban players you got along with the best and you admired the most?
RR: There has been so many rosters that I have played against… but the catcher Ariel Pestano is always in my memory. Looking back at him when he is framing a pitch, trying to steal a strike, and giving me a little smirk and smile through the mask, I’d say to him “That’s not a strike!” and he would chuckle. I loved the way he played and I loved his competitiveness and I got obviously close to him through the years. We became good friends, but were very competitive. He was without question one of the players from Cuba that I will never forget.
UB: What would you consider to be the importance of having an agreement between Cuban baseball and Major League Baseball?
RR: More than anything, on top of baseball, it’s the friendship that the countries need to make and it goes beyond baseball but I think baseball is a huge part of it; and I think that baseball can really help out with the countries coming together. There are so many great players from Cuba, and they deserve to be able to play in the best league in the world and that is the Major Leagues. Myself being from Canada, a different country, it is such an honor to have the opportunity to play in the majors and we need Cuban baseball to be a part of the Major Leagues as well. I knew these guys from the Olympics and the World Baseball Classic, and they deserve every opportunity to play here as well.
UB: Thank you very much for your time and I wish you luck with your team.
RR: Thank you.
Note: Special thanks to Teen Cultures Connect, Tim Brennan, P.J. Louis, John Wenz and Karel García
