Ryan Michael Castellani (born April 1, 1996) is an American professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw ...

for the

Kansas City Monarchs The Kansas City Monarchs were the longest-running franchise in the history of baseball's Negro leagues. Operating in Kansas City, Missouri, and owned by J. L. Wilkinson, they were charter members of the Negro National League from 1920 to 193 ...

of the

American Association of Professional Baseball The American Association of Professional Baseball is an independent professional baseball league founded in 2005. It operates in the central United States and Canada, mostly in cities not served by Major League Baseball teams or their minor lea ...

. He previously played in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) for the

Colorado Rockies The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...

and

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

. Born in the United States, he has represented the

Italy national baseball team The Italy national baseball team represents Italy in international baseball competitions. The Italian national team was ranked 17th in the world as of 2020. The team is managed by Mike Piazza, a former New York Mets player and Major League Baseba ...

Amateur career

Castellani attended

Brophy College Preparatory Brophy College Preparatory is a Jesuit high school in Phoenix, Arizona, United States. The school has an all-male enrollment of approximately 1,400 students. It is operated independently of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix. The school has ...

Phoenix, Arizona Phoenix ( ; nv, Hoozdo; es, Fénix or , yuf-x-wal, Banyà:nyuwá) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona, with 1 ...

. He was drafted by the

in the second round of the

2014 Major League Baseball draft The 2014 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft was held from June 5 through June 7, 2014, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The first two rounds were conducted on June 5, followed by rounds three through ten on June ...

and signed.

Professional career

Colorado Rockies

Castellani made his professional debut that year with the

Tri-City Dust Devils The Tri-City Dust Devils are a Minor League Baseball team in the northwest United States, based in Pasco, Washington. The Dust Devils are members of the Northwest League and are affiliated with the Los Angeles Angels. Tri-City plays their home gam ...

and spent the whole season there, going 1–2 with a 3.65 ERA in ten starts. Castellani spent 2015 with the

Asheville Tourists The Asheville Tourists are a Minor League Baseball team of the South Atlantic League and the High-A affiliate of the Houston Astros. They are located in Asheville, North Carolina. Asheville teams have played under the Tourists moniker in differen ...

where he was 2–7 with a 4.45 ERA in 27 starts, and 2016 with the

Modesto Nuts The Modesto Nuts are a Minor League Baseball team of the California League and the Single-A affiliate of the Seattle Mariners. They are located in Modesto, California, and are named for the several types of nuts grown in the region. They play the ...

where he posted a 7–8 record with a 3.81 ERA in 26 starts. In 2017, he pitched for the

Hartford Yard Goats The Hartford Yard Goats are a Minor League Baseball team based in Hartford, Connecticut. The Yard Goats, which play in the Eastern League, are the Double-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. The team was founded in 2016 when the New Britain R ...

, pitching to a 9–2 record and 4.81 ERA in 27 games started. He spent 2018 with Hartford, going 7–9 with a 5.49 ERA in 26 starts. The Rockies added Castellani to their 40-man roster after the 2018 season. He also made it 7 starts with the

Salt River Rafters The Salt River Rafters are a baseball team that plays in the East Division of the Arizona Fall League. They play their home games at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick near Scottsdale, Arizona. The ballpark is also the spring training facility o ...

of the

Arizona Fall League The Arizona Fall League (AFL) is an off-season sports league owned and operated by Major League Baseball (MLB) which operates during the autumn in Arizona, United States, at six different baseball complexes. Arizona Fall League rosters are fill ...

following the 2018 season. He spent 2019 with the

Albuquerque Isotopes The Albuquerque Isotopes are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. They play home games at Rio Grande Credit Union Field at Isotopes Park in Albuquerque, New Mexico, at an el ...

, pitching to a 2–5 record and an 8.31 ERA over ten starts, striking out 47 over innings. He returned to the Salt River Rafters following 2019. On June 23, 2020, it was announced that Castellani had tested positive for

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. He returned in time for the start of summer camp on July 4. Castellani made his major league debut with the Rockies on August 8, 2020, against the Seattle Mariners, retiring the first 12 batters he faced. In his rookie year, Castellani logged a 1–4 record and 5.82 ERA in 10 appearances. Castellani only made one appearance for the Rockies in 2021, giving up 2 runs in innings, before he was designated for assignment on June 24, 2021. He was outrighted to Triple-A Albuquerque on June 30. He elected free agency on November 7, 2021.

Oakland Athletics

On November 23, 2021, Castellani signed a minor league contract with the

. He spent time with the Athletics in spring training, and was optioned to minor league camp before the 2022 season began. On April 15, 2022, Castellani was added to the Athletics roster for their road trip to Toronto as a COVID-related substitute. Castellani made 3 scoreless appearances for Oakland, striking out one in 2.2 innings of work. On April 29, he was removed from the 40-man roster and returned to the Triple-A

Las Vegas Aviators The Las Vegas Aviators, formerly known as the Las Vegas 51s and Las Vegas Stars, are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. They are located in Summerlin South, Nevad ...

. He struggled to an 11.97 ERA in 26 games for Las Vegas before he was released on July 28, 2022.

Kansas City Monarchs

On February 13, 2023, Castellani signed with the

of the

World Baseball Classic The World Baseball Classic (WBC) is an international baseball tournament sanctioned from 2006 to 2013 by the International Baseball Federation (IBAF) and after 2013 by World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) in partnership with Major Leagu ...

Castellani opened two games for

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

in the World Baseball Classic in March 2023, with two earned runs and three strikeouts over four innings. https://www.mlb.com/world-baseball-classic/stats/pitching/wins?page=3

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Castellani, Ryan 1996 births Living people American people of Italian descent Baseball players from Philadelphia Major League Baseball pitchers Colorado Rockies players Oakland Athletics players Tri-City Dust Devils players Asheville Tourists players Modesto Nuts players Hartford Yard Goats players Albuquerque Isotopes players Salt River Rafters players 2023 World Baseball Classic players