After 7 years in Minors, Ward doesn't wait long for 1st hit, RBI

DENVER -- Call it “delayed gratification.” Triple-A Oklahoma first baseman Ryan Ward was pulled from Saturday night’s game in Albuquerque as he approached the on-deck circle for his first at-bat. With his manager, Scott Hennessey, busy on the field, the reason for Ward’s early exit from the game wasn’t entirely clear yet.

“I was literally walking to the on-deck circle first thing in the game,” Ward said Sunday before his MLB debut from the Dodgers’ dugout at Coors Field. “Henny was actually coaching third at the time, so we had to wait the whole inning until he came in and told me. It was awesome.”

Ward, 28, was the Dodgers eighth-round Draft pick in 2019, and after working through seven Minor League seasons to get a big league opportunity, he gladly waited another half inning to get the official word. The Dodgers' No. 19 prospect per MLB Pipeline is taking Freddie Freeman’s spot on the roster as Freeman begins a three-day stint on the paternity list.

“He's been a Dodgers farmhand for a long time, and we've asked him to do a lot of different things – hit for power, control the strike zone more, hit for average, and improve the defense,” his new manager Dave Roberts said Sunday. “He's done all that. He earned every bit of this opportunity. It's validation for all the hard work he's put in.”

Once he got his opportunity, Ward made the most of it, singling to right in his second at-bat to plate Andy Pages in the fourth inning of the Dodgers' 9-6 loss to the Rockies. His liner just eluded a leaping TJ Rumfield at first before landing on the right-field grass.

Ward was the Pacific Coast League MVP in 2025, slashing .290/.380/.557 with 36 homers and 122 RBI. Ward led all of Minor League Baseball in homers, RBI, extra-base hits (73), and total bases (315) in 2025.

“I've done a lot of work, especially in the last two years, changing the chase rate, getting the walk again, getting on base more, getting myself into better counts, and doing more damage in those counts,” Ward said. “It’s been a lot of work, and honestly, sitting here right now thinking about it, it feels like it went by fast. But when I was down there, it felt like a long time.”

Ward emphasized his work at being more selective at the plate, using slight adjustments to the pitching machine to help him hone in on looking for a particular pitch in a particular location. He also doubled-down on doing his homework on pitchers, studying how their strengths matched up against his.

“I’m trying to try to play that chess match and figure it out,” Ward said. “It clicked last year, and I'm trying to just continue to build off of that.”

The work paid off with a strong start to his Triple-A season, hitting .324 with four homers and 14 RBIs in 18 games.

“I really believe in meritocracy and performing,” Roberts said, comparing his own tenure in the Minors to Ward’s. “He's a guy that nothing was given to him. He's had to earn it and continue to earn it and continue to prove it. I relate to that, and I am sensitive to guys like him.”

Roberts said he had initially planned to start Dalton Rushing at first base Sunday, but he decided he wanted Ward to have the opportunity to start. When Roberts went to Rushing to tell him of the change in plans, Rushing finished his sentence for him, saying “because he’s earned it.”

Ward said he felt extra driven after being put on the 40-man roster this spring, and Roberts noted that Ward may have “put a little extra pressure on himself” as a result.

“He didn't have the best spring, but he started off the season really well, so this is just a perfect storm for him,” Roberts said. “I expect him to play a lot more and get a lot more service time.”

After calling his parents and his fiancée all on one call with everyone crying over the happy news Saturday night, Ward quickly rounded up about 20 friends and family members to hightail it to Denver and catch his debut Sunday.

The veteran of seven pro seasons admitted to feeling some uncharacteristic nerves.

“I woke up this morning with a lot of butterflies,” Ward said. “That kind of went away since I've been [at the park], but I'm sure they'll come back.”