Ryan Walker, like many other lesser-known MLB prospects, had to find a way to make ends meet during the COVID-19-canceled 2020 season.
Walker spoke with Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times before the Giants' win over the Mariners on Saturday, where Arlington, Wash.., native discusses his homecoming and his difficult MLB journey after being selected by San Francisco in the 31st round of the 2018 draft.
“I didn't start in the best spot in 2018, but it just goes to show that it doesn't matter,” Walker told Divish. “You just go out and do your job and pitch. That's all you can do and that's what I did. It's cool to see how the years progressed, moving forward every year was always a plus. There were always years when it felt like, well, if I didn't move on next year or something, I would start rethinking my career. But every year, I kept moving forward. I stayed true to who I was as a pitcher and it worked out.”
Walker had to, at least temporarily, rethink his career in 2020 when the MiLB season was canceled due to the pandemic. Walker told Divish he drove for Lyft for a few months in the Spokane area but didn’t like it, which led him to take a job at a local locksmith company.
“If you lock your keys in the car, lockout the house, re-key homes and businesses, that's what I learned to do,” Walker said. “It's a much better pay than Lyft or any other job I was going to do. It was really fun. We had to survive somehow. I definitely didn't have the money to survive a whole year without working, so it was a great time. It's a great skill to learn. My boss was great. I started out just doing car lockouts, and then he taught me how to do a lot more.”
While working as a locksmith, Walker had many strange experiences, including opening the doors of several moving cars, some of which even had children locked inside.
“I saw a lot. I have some stories,” Walker said.
Now, the 28-year-old Walker is shutting the door on opposing batters in the ninth inning as the Giants' new closer. Walker has appeared in 65 games this season, pitching 68 1/3 innings with 89 strikeouts with 15 walks and a sparkling 1.98 ERA.
It’s safe to say that if he continues to perform well, he won’t need to resume his locksmith career in the near future.
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