Michael Lips 
The Ballad of Rick Ankiel: From the Mound to the Outfield
By Scars Longbaughl
Ankiel in 2000, when he was one of the top young pitchers in baseball.
Photo via Wikimedia Commons
October 3, 2000 – St. Louis, Missouri.
Busch Stadium was electric. The Cardinals were in the playoffs, and their Game 1 starter was just 21 years old.
Rick Ankiel was a prodigy. Left-handed. Fierce. Untouchable.
But by the end of the inning, he was something else entirely.
🎥 Watch: Rick Ankiel’s Wild Inning – 2000 NLDS (YouTube)
The Rise
Ankiel grew up in Port St. Lucie, Florida. With a difficult childhood and an abusive father, baseball became his escape. His high school career was legendary. By 1997, the Cardinals drafted him in the second round.
He flew through the minors and debuted at just 20. In his first full MLB season (2000), he struck out 194 batters and earned comparisons to Koufax.
📈 Stat Highlight: Ankiel’s 2000 Season (Baseball Reference)
Expectations were sky-high.
The Collapse
In that playoff game against the Braves, Ankiel’s control vanished.
Five wild pitches. One inning.
No one could explain it. It wasn’t mechanics. It wasn’t pressure. It was something deeper—something that would follow him for years.
They called it “the yips.”
The Reinvention
By 2005, Ankiel had tried everything to regain his pitching form. Nothing worked. Then he made a shocking decision: he was done pitching.
He wanted to become an outfielder.
🎧 Podcast: Rick Ankiel on Starting Over – The Daily Show Interview
He returned to the minors as a hitter and clawed his way back.
Then, on August 9, 2007, he returned to the majors—this time with a bat in his hands.
🎥 Watch: Ankiel’s 3-Run Homer in MLB Return (YouTube)
Incredible. He hit 25 home runs the following season. He had one of the best arms in the league. And just like that, Rick Ankiel became one of the rarest things in baseball: a two-career player.
The Message
In 2017, Ankiel released The Phenomenon, a raw and honest memoir.
“I was given a gift. I lost it. And I found another.”
He spoke openly about anxiety, trauma, and reinvention. It wasn’t just about sports—it was about identity and mental health.
📚 Read: The Phenomenon on Amazon
Legacy
Rick Ankiel won’t be remembered for stats alone.
He’ll be remembered as a player who broke, rebuilt, and came back stronger—not the same, but perhaps even more extraordinary.
🎥 ESPN Feature: Rick Ankiel – The Comeback
Want more baseball stories like this?
Subscribe to the newsletter or follow for more long-form profiles of baseball’s unsung legends.
👉 Next up: The High Five That Changed Baseball – Glenn Burke’s Story
