From LA to San Francisco: Tyler Beede ’11

/ lawrenceacademynews

Former Spartans standout makes his MLB baseball debut

Even from afar, the emotion was palpable as former Lawrence Academy Spartan pitcher turned San Francisco Giants hurler Tyler Beede ’11 made his Major Leage Baseball debut on Tuesday, April 11 at AT&T Park in San Francisco, California.

Beede, now 24, graduated from LA in 2011 after leading the Spartans to an ISL flag and an undefeated season. The righty attended Vanderbilt University before being drafted by San Francisco in the first round of the 2014 MLB draft.

Selected out of LA by the Toronto Blue Jays with the 21st pick of the 2011MLB draft, Beede, then 19, opted to join the NCAA’s Vanderbilt Commodores rather than turn pro.

An admitted gamble, Beede’s decision to take the collegiate route has been fruitful, as the Commodores won the 2014 Collge World Series prior to his re-entering the draft and being selected by the Giants.

“A lot of thoughts come to my mind, but at the end of the day, I kept the team in a position to win,” said Beede to the Giants official website, and no doubt thinking back to his journey to the big leagues.

“I was nervous probably prior to the game,” he said. “Once I got out there, I settled in.”

He certainly did – particularly after the first inning.

In his MLB debut, Beede pitched four innings, allowed three hits and two runs (none after the first inning), and struck out three as the Giants won, dramatically, 5-4.

“A lot of thoughts come to mind,” Beede told the San Francisco Chronicle. “At the end of the day, I kept the team in position to win. It was an incredible win at the end.

“There are a lot of things I can break down about this start. I was not my sharpest. I was not efficient. I have a lot to work on, but I limited them to two runs.”