Devoted fan-turned-prospect hopes Fall League leads him to the Majors with Philly

SURPRISE, Ariz. -- There were 45,485 fans in Citizens Bank Park on Oct. 23, 2022 when Bryce Harper drilled his iconic go-ahead three-run homer in NLCS Game 5 to help send the Phillies to the World Series. One of them was Ryan Dromboski, a native of Hamilton, New Jersey, who is now repping the organization in the Arizona Fall League as he looks to make an impact for the club he grew up rooting for.

Every ballplayer dreams of being drafted, and Dromboski was no different. But after 20 rounds came and went in 2024, he expected to return to Penn for his senior year.

“How can you say no to one of the greatest educations in the entire world? I went to Penn because I chose the education,” said Dromboski. “I got to play baseball as a hobby because if baseball didn't work out -- not that I didn't like betting myself -- but I still walked away with a great degree.”

But he kept his options open. Big league organizations checked in with Dromboski’s agent to gauge his interest in signing as a free agent, and while he pondered what to do, things were turned up a notch when the Phillies called.

“But then I didn’t hear back for another 3-4 days,” said Dromboski. “I’m like, ‘Oh my God, this is going back and forth.’ I called my mom, I’m all nervous and stuff.”

Eventually, a deal came together. Dromboski went back and got his degree in communications and now he’s looking to embark on the same path that Otto Kemp did: sign as an undrafted free agent, earn an invite to the Fall League and parlay the success into making the big leagues with the Phillies.

“It's a dream come true for me,” said Dromboski. “I still wake up in the morning sometimes and pinch myself, just to have this honor of playing for the Phillies, to be here in the Fall League.”

An added benefit of representing the organization he grew up rooting for is that once prospects graduate from Single-A Clearwater, they’re in the relative vicinity of Citizens Bank Park. Dromboski spent the majority of this summer pitching for High-A Jersey Shore, 40 minutes from where he grew up. His loved ones were able to attend his outings there and in Double-A Reading, giving him even more of a hometown advantage.

He doesn’t have the same luxury in the Fall League, but that hasn’t slowed him in the slightest. The 23-year-old tossed 4 1/3 innings of one-run ball in Surprise's 10-3 loss to Glendale on Tuesday afternoon, marking the first run against his ledger across 10 2/3 AFL frames as batters have hit just .158 against him overall. Things have been going Dromboski's way so consistently that he even instinctively challenged a pitch Tuesday and got it overturned.

“Every single guy who's here, and especially the hitters, these guys are top tier in all levels, so I always give respect to them,” he said. “But for me, I think my approach is really just throw everything in the middle of the zone and for strikes and anyone can go down swinging.

“I'm just grateful. That's kind of the biggest thing that I take away from all these opportunities and starts, and I think it's been a big factor in why I've been doing well. You don't get many opportunities like this in a career, and you never know how long it's gonna be till you're having to say, ‘Hey, it's time to hang ‘em up,’ but I'm just going out there with the utmost care and love for the game.”

Dromboski has, in some ways, already defied the odds, pushing up to Double-A in his second pro season. His arsenal has undergone a bit of a makeover since he pitched in the Ivy League, adding a cutter to his sinker/slider one-two punch while also continuing to layer in his changeup with about 8-9 mph of separation off the heater.

After posting a 2.69 ERA in his debut campaign while fluctuating between starter and reliever for Clearwater and Jersey Shore, Dromboski earned a full-time rotation gig in 2026. He was unable to replicate the same level of success, although his overall numbers (5.56 ERA) were smudged by a rough two-start stint with Reading. He got enough whiffs with that revamped pitch mix to rank third among all Phillies Minor Leaguers (min. 80 innings) with a 13.6 percent swinging strike rate.

• Subscribe to the MLB Pipeline Newsletter

That pitcher vs. batter, mano a mano mentality stems from Dromboski’s uber-competitive family. Both of his younger brothers currently play college baseball (Braden at The College of New Jersey, Nicholas at Stony Brook) and they grew up competing in everything from Wiffle ball to tennis to football before focusing on the diamond. He brings that gritty Northeast ethos every time he hops across the chalk.

“In the most respectful way possible, as soon as I get on the mound, it's, ‘Hey, it's me vs. you and I'm going to bet on myself 10 times out of 10 and you're going to have to put a good swing on it and you're going to have to earn the hit that you get,’” said Dromboski. “My biggest thing that I have been working on is just not trying to walk anyone to keep the attack up. I always attribute it to, ‘I’m going to compete. If you beat me, you're going to beat me on a pitch.’”