Ian was notified of his first MLB promotion during a Triple-A Durham game at Jacksonville’s VyStar Ballpark…his mother, Amy, happened to be visiting at the time, and the two made a late-night drive across the state to Tampa…his father, Albert, and brother, Elliot, caught flights from Boston and his sister, Isabella, flew in from Philadelphia following an overnight shift as a nurse…Ian did not pitch that night, but, ironically, made his MLB debut the next day back at Fenway Park, roughly 30 miles from Westborough, where he spent most of his childhood…in addition to his immediate family, his grandmother was in attendance as well as countless friends, teachers and former teammates...Ian was teammates with White Sox starter Sean Burke at St. John’s (Mass.) High School, with the two anchoring a state-title-winning pitching staff in 2017…St. Johns is also the alma mater of current Mets color commentator and former All- Star pitcher Ron Darling...He has relied on deception rather than velocity since his high school days, when he was a sophomore who struggled to reach 80 mph...Ian’s unique “no look” delivery in which he appears to look in the direction of the third-base dugout stems back to his childhood…previous attempts to “fix” the motion by looking forward have resulted in him waking up with a stiff neck...He is the first Virginia Tech alum to suit up for the Rays…coincidentally, Rays President, Baseball Operations Erik Neander graduated from the school in 2005…because the 2020 Minor League season was cancelled, Ian was able to complete his degree online after being drafted the same year…he majored in biology because of the flexible career paths the degree offers. Selected in the second round (57th overall) of the 2020 First-Year Player Draft out of Virginia Tech…was the school’s highest-drafted player since Joe Saunders (first round) in 2002...Led the Hokies with 40 SO over four starts as a senior in 2020, ranking fourth in the nation with 17.70 SO per 9.0 IP.
2025
Made 19 appearances (five starts) over three stints with the Rays (June 8-10, July 8-30 and July 31– end of season) in his first Major League season… began in a relief role before transitioning to the starting rotation, earning the starting nod in five of his final seven appearances after his first 12 came out of the bullpen...Went 3-2 with a 3.16 ERA (25.2IP, 9ER) in five starts compared to 1-1 with a 4.02 ERA (31.1IP, 14ER) in 14 relief appearances...Limited lefties to a .178 (13-for-73) average, fourth lowest among AL rookie pitchers (min. 70AB) behind ATH Justin Sterner (.140), TOR Braydon Fisher (.149) and KC Noah Cameron (.161)…was the sixth-lowest mark by a Rays rookie and the lowest since Diego Castillo (.146) in 2018...Held opponents to a .143 (9-for-63) average with two outs, seventh lowest among AL left-handers (min. 50AB)…his .201 (28-for-139) opp. average on the road was seventh best among all AL pitchers (min. 130AB)...Opponents hit .186 (16-for-86) with 32 SO in at-bats ending with his changeup, third lowest on any AL left-hander’s changeup (min. 75AB) to DET Tarik Skubal (.154) and CLE Joey Cantillo (.165)…min. 750 total pitches, his 31.7 pct. usage rate on changeups was second among AL southpaws behind LAA Tyler Anderson (33.8%)...Recalled from Triple-A Durham June 8 after going 5-3 with a 2.95 ERA (61.0IP, 20ER) in 12 appearances (11 starts) for the Bulls, leading the club in wins and strikeouts (84)…made his Major League debut the following evening, June 9 at BOS, and was credited with the win after yielding 0 ER in the 10th and 11th innings… became the fourth Ray to earn the win in relief in his Major League debut, joining Seth McClung (March 31, 2003 vs. BOS), Doug Waechter (Aug. 27, 2003 at SEA) and Andrew Bellatti (May 9, 2015 vs. TEX)…was also the first pitcher in club history to record a win and a blown save in his debut and the first AL pitcher since DET Matt Anderson on June 25, 1998 vs. CHC...The Connecticut native became the third pitcher in MLB history born in New England (Conn., Maine, Mass., N.H., R.I., Vt.) to earn the win at Fenway Park in his first career game, joining BOS Kevin Morton (Conn. - July 5, 1991 vs. DET) and NYY Charlie Devens (Mass. - Sept. 24, 1932)...Across his first 10 career appearances (June 9-Aug. 9), went 1-0 with a 1.06 ERA (17.0IP, 2ER), best in franchise history through a pitcher’s first 10 career outings (min. 15.0IP)...Made his first career start Aug. 25 at CLE, tossing five IP of one-hit ball with eight SO and 1 BB, joining Brendan McKay (June 29, 2019 vs. TEX) as the only Rays to permit two baserunners or fewer across five IP or more in their first career start… was the first left-hander to start a game for the Rays since Tyler Alexander on Sept. 26, 2024, snapping a 133-game streak of right-handed starters that was second longest in team history, trailing Oct. 3, 1999-June 5, 2001 (234G)…his eight SO tied Taj Bradley (April 12, 2023 vs. BOS) for third most by a Ray in his first career start, trailing Matt Moore (11) on Sept. 22, 2011 at NYY and Wade Davis (nine) on Sept. 6, 2009 vs. DET...On Aug. 31 at WSH, permitted one ER over five IP in his second career start, recording eight SO and one BB…became the sixth pitcher since earned runs became an official statistic in 1913 to record 16 SO or more and 1 or 0 ER across his first two career starts, first since SD Bob Shirley in 1977…was the first pitcher to accomplish the feat with two BB or fewer…became the first player in franchise history to record eight SO or more in each of his first two career starts…his 16 SO through his first two career starts were second most by a Ray, trailing Taj Bradley (17)…became the third pitcher since 1913 to record five IP or more with one or 0 ER allowed and eight SO or more in each of his first two career starts, joining CWS Garrett Crochet (2024) and Brooklyn’s Karl Spooner (1954)...Worked five IP or more and allowed two ER or fewer in each of his first four starts, the longest career-opening streak in club history...Turned in his longest outing of the season on Sept. 17 vs. TOR (W, 4H, 1R-0ER, BB, 3SO), going seven IP in his first career quality start…became the first Rays rookie to allow 0 ER over seven IP or more since Alex Colomé on June 21, 2015 at CLE (7.0IP) and the first left-handed rookie since Matt Moore on June 15, 2012 vs. MIA (7.0IP)… threw 100 pitches, most in his professional career, surpassing his start on May 23, 2025 at Worcester (G1) with Triple-A Durham (98)…was the first Rays rookie to reach that mark since Luis Patiño (102) on Aug. 30, 2021 vs. BOS...Yielded 9 ER over 7.1 IP across his final two starts, raising his ERA from 2.54 to 3.63…tied a career high with 16 whiffs in his final start on Sept. 28 at TOR, matching Aug. 31 at WSH...Finished with 31 SO in his five starts, tying Wade Davis (2009) for fifth most in franchise history through the first five starts of a pitcher’s career behind Jake Faria (35, 2017), Chris Archer (35, 2012-13), Jeremy Hellickson (35, 2010-11) and Taj Bradley (34, 2023).
2024
Named the Minor League Pitcher of the Year by the Rays baseball operations department...Went 9-4 with a 2.35 ERA (145.1IP, 38ER), .187 opponent average (97-for-518), 0.95 WHIP and 162 strikeouts in 27 starts between Double-A Montgomery (17GS) and Triple-A Durham (10GS)…promoted on July 23...Named a Southern League postseason All-Star...Led all Rays minor leaguers in ERA, innings, strikeouts and WHIP while ranking third in opponent average and wins (tied)…his 2.35 ERA was ninth lowest among full-season Minor League pitchers...His 162 strikeouts tied for fifth most among all minor leaguers and ranked fourth among left-handed pitchers...Min. 140 IP, his 0.95 WHIP was the lowest mark by a Rays farmhand since at least 2006… it ranked second in the minors behind Austin Peterson (0.89) in the Guardians organization... Earned Organizational Pitcher of the Month honors for both April and May, going 4-2 with a 2.35 ERA (53.2IP, 14ER) and 70 strikeouts across 10 starts...Ranked by Baseball America as the No. 18 prospect in the Rays system following the season...Added to the Rays 40-man roster on Nov. 18.
2023
Made 16 starts across four levels of the organization in his return from Tommy John surgery, pitching to a 1.50 ERA (42.0IP, 7ER), lowest among Rays farmhands (min. 40.0IP)…Opened the season on the injured list before a July 4-28 rehab assignment with the FCL Rays… had stints with Class-A Charleston (July 28–Aug. 29), Class-A Bowling Green (Aug. 29–Sept. 14) and Double-A Montgomery (Sept. 14–season’s end)…Ranked by Baseball America as the No. 17 prospect in the Rays system following the season.
2022
Started five games for Double-A Montgomery before undergoing June 8 Tommy John surgery, performed by Dr. Keith Meister...Ranked by Baseball America as the No. 30 prospect in the Rays system following the season.
2021
Went 4-0 with a 1.95 ERA (55.1IP, 12ER) in 14 appearances (13GS) across three levels of the Rays system in his professional debut...Named the Rays Minor League Pitcher of the Month for August...Ranked by Baseball America as the No. 14 prospect in the Rays system following the season…the publication also tabbed him as having the Best Changeup in the organization.
