Highland's Luke Raley returns to Progressive Field, this time as a major leaguer
CLEVELAND — Beth Raley is often unable to watch her son, Luke, when he's playing baseball.
She'll hide in the bathroom. She'll have to divert her eyes from the TV. She's cheering and supporting him, of course, but sometimes the nerves are just too much.
It's easier to do when it's a high school field or when she's watching on TV. But it's a much longer distance to run from view at Progressive Field.
Her son, Luke Raley, happens to now be an outfielder for the Tampa Bay Rays, who were in Cleveland for a series with the Guardians this weekend. While he stands in right field, she's sitting in the middle of section 172, down the left field line, surrounded by Raley family members, friends, supporters and former coaches and teammates at Highland, where he attended high school.
"It's exciting. It's stressful," Beth Raley said. "I'm not a good watcher. When he was in college, I used to go hide in the bathroom at home. I mean, I shouldn't be that anxious. I probably need medication."
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Years ago, Luke Raley had the opportunity to play at Progressive Field once as a member of Highland's baseball team. When he returned this weekend, he did so as a major leaguer, and one who has made an impact as the Rays contend for a playoff spot.
The Raleys have always been diehard Cleveland baseball fans. For Luke to walk into Progressive Field, now as an everyday player at the highest level, the term "surreal" became the word of the day.
"I grew up wanting to be in the position that I'm in, so it's really surreal," Luke said before Saturday's game. "I definitely took a look around, got to say hello to people yesterday and see a lot of people I hadn't seen in a while. It's always nice to see the support."
He had support in droves. For Friday night's game, Raley had at least 120 family members and friends in attendance. For Saturday's game, the middle of section 172 at Progressive Field was mostly light blue, covered in Raley Rays jerseys and T-shirts. It was as concentrated as a visiting team section at a college football game.
"It's unbelievable. I don't know how to describe it," Beth said of the support her son has been shown now that he's back in town. "I always tell Luke, I go, 'You don't even know how far reaching it is, the support system you have.' I have people from my work, my family, friends from over the years. I mean, the Guardians would have a lot more fans if they had him."
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One of those supporters in attendance was Jay Grissom, Highland's baseball coach. He ordered MLB's TV package so he can watch Raley play every night.
Grissom said Raley was able to do things on a baseball field that he had never seen before, with some "unbelievable" numbers. But it's often difficult to know when a high school player is destined for the pros, especially in baseball.
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But now walking into Progressive Field, roughly a decade later, to see Raley play? It doesn't get much better for a high school coach.
"Yeah, I mean, the thing is, as a coach, I know that I had little to nothing to do with it," Grissom said. "But, I mean, who thinks that they're going to get to come watch one of their guys play in a big league baseball game? So it's beyond anything you ever dream of getting to do as a coach. Right? And so that's been special."
It took time for Raley to find his footing in the majors. He played in 33 games in 2021 with the Los Angeles Dodgers, hitting just .182. He was acquired by the Rays, but appeared in only 22 games at the major league level last year.
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This season has been a much different story. Getting work in the outfield and at first base, Raley was given his first shot at an everyday role. He hit the ground running, hitting .253 with an .839 OPS, 18 home runs, 21 doubles, 46 RBIs and 13 stolen bases in 104 games.
"Oh, man, he's been made the most of an opportunity," said Rays manager Kevin Cash. "All offseason, it was kind of like, how are we going to fit this guy in? I think he's proven that he belongs in the lineup. ... He's just a really good player, and probably doesn't get enough recognition for what he does on the defensive side and his baserunning, and it's a pretty high level."
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Raley returns to Northeast Ohio in the winter, so it hadn't been too long. But now returning in the summer after a few months, he had three things he needed to do.The first was a trip to Swensons — obviously. The second was a trip to Strip Steakhouse in Avon. And the third was to take a deep breath before his first major league game at the ballpark he grew up attending, with more than 120 friends and family members there to watch him play.
"It gets you a little more amped up, maybe too amped up, just because you know you're playing at the highest level with all your friends and family in the stands and people you grew up with," Raley said. "I just try to do whatever I can to calm the nerves, so if it's taking an extra moment to look around or take a deep breath, whatever the case may be."
At least Raley knows he isn't the most nervous person in the stadium — that title is reserved for his mom in section 172.
Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Guardians at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/cleveland-guardians. Follow him on Twitter at @ByRyanLewis.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Tampa Bay Rays Luke Raley goes from Highland to Progressive Field
