Episode 22: Special guest Ryan LaMarre Moving through life, the baseball podcast

Lutzy and Frank welcome former Reds teammate and 13-year MLB and MiLB veteran Ryan LaMarre to the podcast. Ryan talks about his decision to walk away from the game and how perseverance and resilience helped him overcome injuries and evolve his approach both on and off the field. He also shares some fantastic stories about pitching at Fenway Park (as a position player), hitting an “oppo taco” at Yankee Stadium and his interactions with some of the game’s greatest players like Big Papi, Mookie Betts, Aaron Judge and others. In this episode:

- Ryan talks about deciding to walk away from the game
- The uniqueness of the Yankees’ player evaluation and development program
- Ryan and the guys talk about hitting metrics and the idea of chasing the process instead of homers
- The events that led Ryan to consider retirement
- Playing with the Red Sox and how their superstars interacted with Ryan
- Ryan tells stories about playing for the Red Sox, shadowing Big Papi and working with Mookie Betts
- How watching the Astros AAA team’s batting practice led to working with a new hitting coordinator that helped revolutionise Ryan’s swing
- Zero to hero – how Ryan’s new swing helped him make the Twins’ opening day roster
- Ryan talks about simplifying his swing, loading the hips and bat path
- Pitching at Fenway after not pitching for almost a decade
- A special mound visit from Dustin Pedroia
- Giving up moon shots at Yankee Stadium on Sunday Night Baseball
- Ryan reflects on his career and the importance of keeping perspective
- Frank shares his instrumental reimagining of the Mos Def and Vinia Mojica song “Climb”