Chadwick to use slipping in MLB Draft as motivation, says adversity with Redbirds valuable experience

“People say he had my genes, but he didn’t have the talent and pure athletic ability that a lot of kids that are going to be playing with him and against him have,” said Ray, who was picked by the California Angels in the 16th round of the 1983 MLB Draft. “He really worked his butt off … only a few people around him know how much work he put in.”

The Chadwicks enrolled Tyrelle in dance when he was six years old to help with flexibility and co-ordination.

Tyrelle said he was much more nervous than expected on draft day and the pit in his stomach grew with each round that passed.

“My mom had asked me the day before, ‘Are you nervous?’ Tyrelle said. “I’m like, ‘No. I’ve done all I can at this point.’ And then the actual day came around and I woke up an hour before the draft even started. No alarm. My body was so anxious and so ready to go.”

The Chadwicks had intel that suggested Tyrelle could be picked within the first five rounds of the draft.

“We’re sitting there and the fifth round comes around, nothing,” Ray said. “Seventh comes around, nothing. Then we get to the 10th and he really starts to panic. He has an issue with this finger and I think that got out. Well, I know that got out. A couple teams passed him by because of that finger issue they heard about at the end.”

Colorado picked Tyrelle 527th overall.

“I wouldn’t say surprising because I think you can never go into something like that expecting too much,” Tyrelle said, noting he plans to find motivation in slipping in the draft. “You have to know there’s a million other players in the world and the scouts are talking to a bunch of guys. I get it. Getting a little later into the day and not having a call was definitely stressful, but I wouldn’t say I’m disappointed or upset about how it went.”

Added Ray, “They said his name and you could see the relief and he didn’t care how late. He just wanted to get in now. So, the whole day changed. It was a proud and happy time.”

Tyrelle began his tenure with the Illinois State Redbirds in the NCAA Division One ranks in 2023 and struggled with accuracy in his freshman and sophomore seasons, posting ERAs of 9.44 and 8.49, respectively.

Ray said his son dialled back velocity last season – often throwing between 93 miles per hour and 94 MPH instead of between 96 MPH and 98 MPH – in an attempt to temper control problems.

Tyrelle pitched a team-high 77.1 innings in his junior campaign, making 12 starts in 14 appearances, posting a 6-3 record and recording a 4.31 ERA to earn All-Missouri Valley Conference Second Team honours.

“It was huge,” Tyrelle said of the bounce-back season. “I think that failure played a big part in having that confidence that if something does go poorly, I know that I can pull myself out of it.”

Ray said the Rockies are likely to add a new pitch to Tyrelle’s arsenal, perhaps a slider, wipeout, sweeper or cutter.

“And now, hopefully, he’ll be able to progress to this next level, go back to that 96 [MPH] to 98 [MPH], but still be able to throw strikes,” Ray said. “And I think that’s going to be huge. If he does that, he’ll climb quickly.”

Tyrelle is expected to be in Scottsdale, Arizona, next week for a mini-camp with the Rockies before joining the club’s Arizona Complex League team.

Colorado is likely to assign Chadwick to one of its minor league affiliates, of which there are four – Albuquerque Isotopes (Triple-A), Hartford Yard Goats (Double-A), Spokane Indians (High-A) and Fresno Grizzlies (Single-A).

“I do genuinely believe I have the ability to be a big leaguer one day, but I think I’m obviously going to have to just take it a day at a time and I’ll get my first taste of professional baseball in a couple weeks and have a chance to really look at myself objectively and see what I have to work on,” Tyrelle said.

Tyrelle is likely to sign his rookie contract this month, a deal expected to include a US $125,000 signing bonus.

DID YOU KNOW?

Tyrelle holds a place in Kamloops NorthPaws’ history.

He was the opening day starter for the expansion club in the West Coast League ranks in 2022, and he threw the first ever pitch in NorthPaws’ regular-season history.

Tyrelle also recorded the team’s first hit and scored its first run in the same game.

“That was a blast,” Tyrelle said. “And we actually had two other Kamloops guys with some pretty big days. We had Nolan Austin get the first win on the mound and Jared Sucro walk that game off. That was really cool for the town as a whole.”

Tyrelle is a graduate of Westmount elementary and Westsyde secondary.

by Marty Hastings

Chadwick to use slipping in MLB Draft as motivation, says adversity with Redbirds valuable experience

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