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A Texas native will return to the United States as a Tokyo Olympic silver medalist for baseball.
Shane Baz, from Cypress, Texas, garnered the award with Joe Ryan, both of whom play for the Tampa Rays.
“Our team played really under such different circumstances than they usually face back in the States in a normal season. Every game was a Game 7,” said U.S. manager Mike Scioscia, whose mentor, late Los Angeles Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda, led Team USA to the 2000 gold in Sydney, on NBCNews.
Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX) posted on Twitter to recognize Baz's accomplishment.
Baz and Ryan spent several years together. They first met during an instructional league after the 2018 season, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
“It’s just like, constantly, we’re together,” Ryan said on Tampa Bay Times. “And now he’s here again. And so it’s good to have him. It’s a special opportunity.”
Competing together, and representing their nation, made their experience more memorable.
“The biggest honor I can do on a baseball field, honestly, is putting on red, white and blue and trying to go [to] win a gold medal for your country,” Baz said. “So it’s really special.”
Host country Japan shut out the American squad, which consisted of minor leaguers and free agents.
Scioscia said the Japanese “deserved to win.”
“We got within a couple breaks of winning the gold medal,” he said on NBCN.
There were six countries that competed in baseball during the Olympics for 12 days, NBCDFW5 reported.
“I’m fortunate to go to the Olympics and get to go play, and I’m excited about that, nonetheless,” Ryan said in the Tampa Bay Times. “It’s going to be different. It’s going to be unique. And, yeah, it’s going to be a good time.”