With his phenomenal high school career in the rearview mirror, York graduate Ryan Sloan can finally take a look at what’s ahead for him.
The 6-foot-4, 230-pound right-hander has committed to Wake Forest, but he is expected to be a first-round pick in the MLB draft, which will be held July 14-16. Sloan is ranked as the 18th-best prospect by MLB.com.
“It’s something that’s super fun,” he said. “Me and my parents like to say it’s a win-win no matter what, whether I go to college, get a great education at a great baseball program, or go through the draft.
“Everyone’s dream is to go to MLB, so that’s definitely a step in the right direction.”
But Sloan plans to take a step back first and get some rest after a whirlwind senior season.
“I’ll play a lot of golf, just kind of relax,” he said.
It will be a well-earned break for someone who has been the center of attention. York coach Dave Kalal has been impressed with the way Sloan handled the hype.
“It’s been fun to watch his growth and his maturity,” Kalal said. “He’s a great teammate, he’s super humble and I think he’s actually looking forward to not being in the limelight anymore and not being the center of attention anymore.
“Wherever he goes, whatever his decision is, either with Wake Forest or the draft, he can just go be one of the guys again and not have everybody watch him and everybody wanting a piece of him.”
Before last season, the Dukes hadn’t been to state since winning the Class AA championship in 1993. Sloan’s father, David, who played at Austin Peay, was the catcher on that team.
But Sloan has helped York finish fourth in Class 4A in back-to-back seasons. As a junior, he posted a 4-1 record and a 0.91 ERA, allowing just six earned runs and 28 hits while striking out 88 and walking 14 in 46 innings.
He started to get the attention of pro scouts.
“I was kind of on the radar but didn’t really show much,” Sloan said. “But then last summer kind of did a lot for me. I developed a change-up, which has been huge, and then I kind of flourished and kept showing myself at different events. Eventually it turned into something good for me.”
Sloan’s development was also good for the Dukes, who lost to Edwardsville 6-1 in the 4A third-place game at Duly Health and Care Field in Joliet on June 8. York (31-11) was one win shy of tying the program record set by the 1993 team.
Sloan was even more dominant this season. In 12 appearances, he went 2-3 with a 0.30 ERA, allowing just two earned runs and 19 hits and while striking out 90 and walking five in 46 innings.
One of the earned runs came in Sloan’s final appearance, the Dukes’ 1-0 loss to Conant in the state semifinals on Friday. He pitched a three-hitter, striking out eight and walking one, in a complete game. He threw 61 of his 88 pitches for strikes. But the Dukes managed just two hits.
“He’s really fun to watch pitch,” Kalal said. “He’s a super competitive kid, can command the strike zone. He raises the level of play of not only everybody on our team, but the opponents as well, because when opponents face him, it’s a big deal to foul a pitch off or get a base hit or to win a game like Conant did.”
Sloan was dominating whether he was starting or relieving. He had one fastball clocked at 100 mph during a game against Oak Park and regularly hits the high 90s.
“When he comes in the game, it’s electric,” Kalal said.
Sloan pitched the seventh inning of York’s 9-5 win against McHenry in the Kane County Supersectional on June 3. According to Kalal, Sloan’s fastball was between 97 mph and 99 mph and his slider hit 85 mph.
“He threw 15 pitches to get three outs, and the whole crowd was standing on their feet,” Kalal said.
What’s it like to be in such a spotlight?
“It’s definitely surreal, just the fact that you have a lot of MLB personnel coming out to specifically watch you,” Sloan said. “That’s definitely really cool to see, but you’ve just got to kind of take it for what it is. I’m still going to go out and throw. I’m going to go pitch and do my thing.”
Sloan tried his best to ignore the attention, but he’s taking the draft process seriously.
“Now I’m at a point where I start to think about that because my mindset throughout the year was just like ‘focus on baseball,’” Sloan said. “I didn’t really care about (the draft). It will take care of itself.
“Now it will be getting together with a lot of different people, see what their opinions are, and then we’ll make a decision.”
It’s rare for high school pitchers to throw as hard as Sloan does and even rarer to have his command. While his big frame helps, that’s not the only factor.
“I would say it comes naturally, but I’ve put in a lot of work in the offseason,” Sloan said. “I have a really good, solid routine for myself, so I think that allows me to go out and be at my strongest every time I go and pitch.
“And I think over the years the amount of work I’ve put in has kind of translated the velo and performance I’ve had the last couple years.”
Facing such a pitcher can be a little intimidating, according to York outfielder Chris Danko, an Illinois State recruit.
“I haven’t had many ABs against him, but when you’re up there, it definitely flies,” Danko said. “It’s got giddyup on it, and it comes in on you fast.
“I usually tell him I’m lucky if I make contact. I’m not worried about him hitting me, but it’s hard to hit him. I don’t know how teams do it.”
Danko trusts Sloan’s control, which has steadily improved.
“One thing that I’ve showed that was kind of a question mark was control,” Sloan said.” I think fastball control has been really solid.
“I’m a three-pitch guy, which is a huge thing. A lot of high schoolers you’ll see have a good fastball, really good curveball and that’s really it. So that’s kind of what sets me apart.”
Sloan’s work ethic helped his teammates too. Even senior Noah Hughes, who finished 8-2 with a 1.32 ERA and would be the ace of nearly any other staff, learned a lot.
“He knows so much about his routine, what he can do to prepare for the games,” Hughes said. “Just watching how he goes through doing things, I’ll take some things that he’s doing and apply it to my own routine before a game. It was awesome.”
Sloan has left quite a legacy at York, which made consecutive trips to state for the first time. But the program influenced him too.
“Playing for York has been a blessing,” Sloan said. “You get to see how the team has grown. It’s kind of cool to leave your mark, so it’s been great.”
Kalal, who pitched at Downers Grove South and Lewis, will never forget coaching Sloan.
“He’s a once-in-a-lifetime talent, a generational talent,” Kalal said. “As a head coach, you don’t see guys like that come through very often, so to have him at York for four years and have his parents’ support has been really awesome.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter.
