By Shaun Scott, Puyallup Tribal News
Puyallup Tribal Member Ryker Robinett was fishing for trout with one of his coworkers on the Fraser River in Colorado when he received an unexpected call on his phone on a mid-May afternoon.
Robinett’s mom, Valerie, informed him he was selected to compete in the fifth annual Native American All-Star Baseball Showcase at Truist Park on June 27-28 in Atlanta.
Robinett, who completed his junior year at Kiowa High School in June, was selected as one of the top 50 high school baseball players of Native American descent in the country. The two-day event will feature pro-style workouts before culminating with a showcase game on June 28.
“My mom called me, and shortly after, I got the email. I don’t really look at my emails very often. At first, I thought she was kidding. I looked at my email right after she told me and I saw the message,” Robinett said. “I guess I caught their attention and they wanted to give me a shot. That’s all I need.”
Robinett splits his time between center field, pitcher and shortstop on the baseball diamond. While he said he can play almost any position on the field, pitching is where he thrives. He said his best pitch is a turbo sinker, which creates a lot of movement, making it hard for batters to hit. Robinett said his fastball has topped out at 91 miles per hour, but he consistently reaches between 83-85 on a regular basis.
With the high school season in the rearview mirror, Robinett said he is working to get in as many bullpen sessions in as possible to prepare for the showcase in Atlanta. Robinett said the opportunity to compete in a Major League Baseball stadium is all he has thought about since he first picked up the sport.
“I don’t feel any pressure. If I go out there and play like I should, I will do just fine,” he said.
Robinett said representing his culture is something he’s always thought about since he was a little kid. He mentioned having the opportunity to get to know Native Americans from different Tribes across the country is something he is really looking forward to.
“It’s where I belong. It’s our people,”
he said.
Robinett was born in Yakima and moved to Hawaii when he was six years old before his family relocated to Colorado when he was 14.
While he’s never lived near the Puyallup Reservation, he’s visited the Puyallup/Tacoma region to see his grandparents and nephew almost every summer throughout his life. He plans on visiting Washington in July after the showcase in Atlanta, adding he wants to be in town for fireworks season.
Following graduation next year, Robinett said he hopes to play baseball at the collegiate level.
“It doesn’t matter to me where I play college baseball, but if I could play in my home state where I was born and raised, that is something I would want to do. All of my family is there and the Tribe is there,” Robinett said.
