DENVER \u2014 Ryan Ward toiled in the Los Angeles Dodgers farm system for seven seasons, logging 696 games and amassing 3,084 plate appearances while awaiting his chance to play for the MLB juggernaut. Then came Friday in Albuquerque, when he walked over to the on-deck circle in the first inning of a Triple-A game and got called back to the dugout.<\/p>\n
The smirks Ward saw on his teammates\u2019 faces gave away the news that the 28-year-old wasn\u2019t sure he\u2019d ever hear: He was finally going to the big leagues.<\/p>\n
\u201cHonestly, sitting here right now thinking about it, it feels like it went fast,\u201d Ward said Sunday from the visiting dugout at Coors Field before his debut. \u201cBut, man, when I was down there, it felt like a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ward, an eighth-round selection in 2019, logged enough time at Triple-A (420 games) to become the affiliate\u2019s career leader in home runs (94) and a 2025 Pacific Coast League MVP. The wait to reach the big leagues has turned this weekend into a blur. Upon getting the call in Albuquerque, Ward scurried from the dugout, down the tunnel and found his phone to call his parents.<\/p>\n
As it turns out, Carl Ward was watching the broadcast from his home in Millbury, Mass. He was puzzled when his son\u2019s name was called in the first inning, but he saw Nick Senzel stepping up to the plate instead.<\/p>\n
Then Carl\u2019s phone buzzed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was just like numb,\u201d Carl Ward told The Athletic during an interview in the stands. \u201cI\u2019ve been waiting for this for my whole life for him. Knowing that he accomplished his dream and opened this door. I didn\u2019t know how to act.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m asking him, \u2018Are you OK?\u2019\u201d recalled Jenn Ward.<\/p>\n
Ryan Ward\u2019s family is here for his debut. Here they are after his first MLB hit and RBI. pic.twitter.com\/QS5pX1E9QV<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) April 19, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n The Dodgers needed an extra bat. Freddie Freeman was officially placed on the paternity list on Sunday as he and his wife, Chelsea, are expecting their fourth child.<\/p>\n Ward earned his shot for at least a couple of days. It\u2019s been a journey for someone who never sniffed a top prospect list. Instead, the outfielder and first baseman kept knocking on the door until the day finally came.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s going to get a shot,\u201d Carl Ward said Sunday. \u201cThat\u2019s all I can ask. That\u2019s all I\u2019ve ever wanted. He opened the door.\u201d<\/p>\n Ward had waited long enough when he stepped in to face Michael Lorenzen in the third inning on Sunday. So he swung at the first pitch. He flew out, but he made it. Ward was a big leaguer.<\/p>\n An inning later, he came up to the plate with a couple of runners on and lined a ball into right field for his first hit and RBI. When Carl pointed to his son at first base from the stands, Ryan pointed right back.<\/p>\n Waiting is a feeling Ward\u2019s new manager can understand. Dave Roberts was a 28th-round pick who spent six seasons in the minor leagues before his debut, forging a career after beating the odds. He sees some of that in Ward.<\/p>\n So Roberts took a liking to Ward, who had to wait his turn to join a roster of superstars. The Bryant University (Rhode Island) product progressed through the Dodgers system and hit all along the way. Ward even earned an invite to big-league camp ahead of the 2024 season. When Roberts sat him down at the end of that spring, he laid out a pathway for Ward to break through.<\/p>\n The Dodgers needed Ward to refine his plate discipline, asking him to hunt the right pitches to maximize his clear hitting talent. Ward slugged 33 home runs that season, didn\u2019t get the big-league call, and went to work on heeding the organization\u2019s advice.<\/p>\n Ward spent his offseason at home in Massachusetts, where he grew up watching Boston Red Sox games and modeling his game after David Ortiz. This time, Ward had his father move the pitching machine around unpredictably. Each time Carl Ward reset the machine, Ryan looked away. He trained himself to hunt certain pitches in the right zones.<\/p>\n Things clicked from there, Ward said. His 2025 season at Triple A was dominant. Ward struck out less (his strikeout rate dropped from 26.8 percent to 18.7), walked more (his walk rate went up from 8.1 percent to 12.7), hit for a better average (.290, up from .265) and boosted his home run totals.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve asked him to do a lot of different things. \u2026 And he\u2019s done all that,\u201d Roberts said. \u201cIt\u2019s one of those stories where he (has) earned every bit of this opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t enough for a call in 2025, even though the Dodgers lacked production from their left fielders. Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes said this winter there were several times the organization considered a call-up, though they never pulled the trigger. Whenever a big leaguer was sent to Oklahoma City, Ward found a way to ask them what it took to make it.<\/p>\n \u201cHonestly, I used it to keep going,\u201d Ward said. \u201cOK, if I\u2019m not there yet, what do I have to do to get there? What part of my game do I need to work on to keep getting better? I used it as fire to keep working.\u201d<\/p>\n Ryan with his first Major League hit and RBI! pic.twitter.com\/v6Jc7oIHvJ<\/a><\/p>\n