San Francisco reliever Ryan Walker proud to be one of three ex-Cougars in MLB

ARLINGTON, Texas – Ryan Walker has been throwing for San Francisco manager Bob Melvin for only a few months, but the former Washington State pitcher has already made quite an impression on his new skipper.

“What’s not to like, right? He throws hard, has got a great slider, he’s deceptive,” said Melvin, who has also managed Seattle, Arizona, Oakland and San Diego. “Gets righties out, gets lefties out. He’s pitching some of the most key innings. He comes in with guys on base. A lot to like. What he’s accomplishing right now is his best work and we’re putting more and more faith in him. Potential All-Star numbers if you’re looking at relievers, right? That’s how good he’s been for us. He’s been a very valuable piece.”

Walker, 28, debuted in May 2023 when the Giants were managed by Gabe Kapler, who was relieved of his duties just before the end of the season. Melvin, who managed the Padres in 2022 and 2023, is a Bay Area native who jumped at the opportunity to return home, a hiring which was popular with the players.

“It’s been awesome. He runs the club well,” Walker said of Melvin. “He really cares about the team and winning, which is awesome.

“The way he’s run the bullpen has been good. We’ve had to cover a lot of innings, but he’s handled those situations really well. He’s been a really good manager. I’m excited to see how the year is going forward. He’s fun to have around. It’s nice to have a manager who really wants to win and wants us to be the best players we can be.”

So far this season, Walker has appeared in 34 games, which makes him one of the game’s most called-upon relievers. And his effectiveness is apparent considering his impressive numbers (4-2, 2.62 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 45 K, 6 BB) in this, his first time on an opening day roster.

“Yeah, it meant a lot. Making opening day’s a big accomplishment,” Walker said. “Whether you play opening day or not, just being there is so awesome. (There’s) a lot of fans and everybody’s excited for the season to start. It was a big accomplishment for me.”

Last season, Walker was 5-3 with a 3.23 ERA in 49 appearances. In 13 games, he was the Giants’ “opener” who started and pitched an inning or two before being relieved by a “bulk” pitcher who would then pitch most of the innings.

Since the Giants’ starting rotation has been beset by injuries, he and the rest of the Giants bullpen have already pitched substantial innings in 2024.

“The workload’s a lot for the bullpen right now, but it is what it is and we’re up for it,” Walker said. “We’re not out there complaining about it. We get in there and help our team. It’s great to get the time and good to get the innings. Things will start clicking for us here soon (when our starters start returning) but right now we’ve got it.”

From 2015 to 2018, he called Pullman home. In addition to leaving WSU with a degree in criminal justice, his strong showing for the Cougars on the baseball diamond helped him get drafted by the Giants in the 31st round in 2018.

“I loved Pullman. Pullman’s a fun place to play and to go to college. We had a great group of guys, good coaches,” he said.

“You make the most of it there. People see it from the outside, they wonder who would want to go there? But they just don’t get it. Once you get there, you figure out how special a place it is and to be able to play baseball there is super fun. You get a lot of adversity being there with weather and stuff like that, but it brings the team together through all that. I really enjoyed that.”

And like many who played in the Pac-10 or more recently the Pac-12, he’s saddened to see his now former conference essentially extinct. “Yeah, it sucks. It’s been around for a really long time and the fact that it’s not going to be a thing anymore is a real big bummer,” Walker said. “Stuff happens and you just adapt to whatever happens next. The Cougs are going to make a name for themselves in whatever conference they go to and all the other teams as well.”

Along with fellow reliever Ian Hamilton of the Yankees and first baseman Kyle Manzardo of the Guardians, who made his big-league debut earlier this season, he takes great pride in being one of three WSU products currently in the show. “It’s awesome. It’s always cool to see Cougs be in the big leagues, especially Manzardo,” Walker said. “He’s young. He was a high-rounder and it’s really cool to see him coming out of Washington State. I’m excited to see how his career takes off.”

“Then, we have Ian Hamilton, I just saw him last week. It was really good catching up with him. He’s throwing the ball well. It’s just fun to have college teammates in the game with you. He (Hamilton) is a guy that’s gone through it, but he’s a guy that’s determined. He’s not going to let things like that stop him from playing. The guy’s a monster.”

Not only is he incredibly grateful to now be part of the WSU fraternity of big leaguers, but Walker never takes for granted how blessed he is to continue playing baseball for a living.

“ The competition’s always the best part,” he said. “You’re facing the best hitters in the world and they’re facing the best pitchers in the world.”

Stephen Hunt is a freelance writer based in Frisco, Texas.