Ryan Freel was born in Jacksonville, Florida on March 8th, 1976. Ryan’s mother, Norma Vargas, was a key reason he played the game of baseball the way he did. Norma was a hard worker, she worked 16 hour days as a teacher and owned a housekeeping business as well. Freel played baseball for Tallahassee Community College and would be drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 13th round in 1994, but would not sign with the club. In 1995, Freel would be drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 10th round. He would play 6 seasons in the Blue Jays organization before he would make his Major League Debut in 2001. Freel would only play in 9 games for Toronto. He would have 6 hits, 3 RBI’s and 2 stolen bases. Toronto would grant his release and Freel would sign with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays but would spend the entire 2002 season in AAA Durham.
Cincinnati
The Cincinnati Reds would sign Ryan Freel on November 18th, 2002. Freel would play in 43 games in 2003. He would bat .285, hit 4 home runs and steal 9 bases. 2004 would be his first full season in MLB. In 505 at bats, Freel would play well for the Reds. He would bat .277, steal 37 bases, hit 21 doubles, 8 triples, and contribute a 3.9 WAR. Freel would display the traits in 2004 that would make him a fan favorite in Cincinnati.
2005 would be a struggle for Freel in his personal life. Ryan Freel was arrested for driving under the influence and driving with an expired license plate following a win against the New York Mets on April 5th, 2005. Freel would also begin to notice signs of memory loss in 2005. In a positive moment that season, Freel would have a game against the Dodgers where he would steal 5 bases, becoming the first player to do so since 2000.
In 2006, Freel would play in 132 games and play well defensively, posting a 1.2 dWAR. Freel would put his high effort play on display, making a spectacular catch against the St. Louis Cardinals on August 6th, 2006. With two runners on, Albert Pujols would rip a fly ball to deep right center. Suddenly, and without warning, out of the television frame comes a leaping Ryan Freel diving into the warning track in front of Ken Griffey Jr, making one of the craziest catches ever on film. The runners would not advance on the play and the score would end up 4-2 after the inning was complete. Freel would earn a standing ovation from the 40,000 fans in attendance that would last well into the next at bat. The Reds would go on to win 10-3 that game.
Freel’s relentless style of play would make him a fan favorite in Cincinnati. Freel would earn a team promotion in 2007, “Ryan Freel Dirty Shirt Day.” His style of play would also be harmful to his health. In 2007, Freel would collide with Norris Hopper in the outfield trying to make a play. Freel would miss over a month with head and neck injuries from the play. Later that season, Freel would miss time again with torn cartilage in his knee. In 2008 Freel would miss more time as the injuries began to mount. This time it was a torn hamstring that cost him108 games. Freel would be traded to the Baltimore Orioles in 2009 and would not play in more than 41 games for the remainder of his career with Baltimore, the Chicago Cubs and the Kansas City Royals.
Off the Field
While Ryan may have had some issues off the field, like his DUI arrest and disorderly conduct while intoxicated, Ryan made some positive impacts off the field as well. Ryan became the leading figurehead of the “Reds Rookie Success League.” Freel would visit over 1,500 kids each summer and volunteer coaching, provide financial support, photo shoots and media access to underprivileged youth who wanted to play baseball. Ryan loved working with kids and that was a huge boost to the program by always putting kids first. After Freel retired in 2010, he created “Big League Development Baseball Inc.” and would coach teams from 8u-11u.
Mental Health
In 2006, it was revealed in a Dayton Daily News piece that Ryan Freel heard and talked to a voice in his head named Farney. Freel said “He’s a little guy who lives in my head…..everyone thinks I’m talking to myself, I’m talking to Farney.” Freel also had issues with memory loss during the 2006 season and post playing career. He has had as many as 10 concussions or more throughout his baseball careee dating back to his time playing in Venezuela. The worst was his collision with Norris Hopper with Cincinnati.
Ryan Freel found solice reading the Bible. He would try to find answers to his own struggles in the Bible, specifically Romas Chapter 7. He would keep a bible by his bedside and would never eat without saying a prayer. Even while he was playing, he would never miss Chapel according to his ex-wife Christie Freel. Ryan Freel died by suicide on December 22, 2012 at the age of 36. It was discovered that Ryan would be the first Major League Baseball player diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy, commonly known as CTE. There are many signs to CTE and brain injuries. Most notable are cognitive impairment. Memory loss, trouble planning and organizing, and having difficulty just thinking. Other symptoms are behavioral issues, motor skill impairment such as keeping balance while walking. Slurred speech, headaches and difficulty sleeping are other symptoms. CTE is more common in football players due to the nature of the sport, lineman banging heads at the line of scrimmage, running backs and linebackers colliding on a take, etc.
Brain injuries are extremely unfortunate and need to be studied and cared for even more than they are now. Ryan Freel was an old school, hard nosed baseball player. He gave one hundred percent effort on every single play, no matter what. That’s how we should remember him. That’s how I will remember him.
Ryan left behind three children. Alex, Ava and Aliana Freel. Rest in peace. 4/8/1976–12/22/2012
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