Revs' Dryer calling it quits
By JIM SEIP
Daily Record/Sunday News
Even after confirming his retirement, former Revolution slugger Matt Dryer sounded like the same free-spirited, easy-going player that became a fan-favorite in two seasons in York.
"I got a tattoo of a huge skull," Dryer said from his home in upstate New York, "and my phone is just lighting up with text messages about it right now."
The Revs lost perhaps the most recognizable face in franchise history when Dryer informed team officials he will not return for a third season with the club. Dryer has retired in order to pursue a career teaching youth baseball lessons.
"I totally want to come back and play," Dryer said, "but at the same time I have to think about my future. I have to give up baseball at some point. And right now I
One of the original Revolution players, Dryer had been with York since the first spring practice in Lakeland, Fla., and had become a fan favorite. (Daily Record/Sunday News - file)think I have something really special."
Dryer spent seven seasons in the minors, reaching Double-A with the Cardinals in 2006. He spent the last two seasons with the Revs, batting .246 with 18 homers and 58 RBIs last season.
Despite earning an invitation to the Atlantic League All-Star Game in 2007, Dryer became more known for his willingness to associate with York fans.
"Matt was one of the first players I ever signed when I worked in Somerset (in 2003)," said Adam Gladstone, the Revs' director of baseball operations. "All he ever wanted to do was play baseball. That showed in his dedication to the game, and it showed in the way the fans in York bonded with him.
"I'm sorry to see him go, but I'm happy he was able to (retire) on his terms."
Working out in the offseason, Dryer had a chance encounter at his local gym near Rochester, N.Y. Talking to a fan about his career and his willingness to teach youth lessons, the man at the gym directed him to a former minor league baseball player, John Valle.
Valle spent 13 years in the minors and played alongside Cal Ripken Jr. for the Triple-A Orioles affiliate in Rochester. A guru for youth baseball lessons in the Rochester area, Valle - now in his 50s - wanted to slow down. Dryer wanted to get started, and the connection just worked.
Dryer taught two lessons to a pair of Valle students, and he felt he found his new career.
"It just. ... snowballed," Dryer said. "I've got 80 kids, and like four high school teams."
He founded "Matt Dryer's Diamond Pro School of Hitting" and hopes to build his own indoor facility in the future. He has also contacted his tattoo artist about printing T-shirts to market his new school.
Dryer admits he would "give anything" to play one more season, but the financial rewards in teaching lessons are greater than what he could earn playing minor league ball.
He also just experienced one of the more trying seasons of his career last season. His grandfather and uncle passed away, and then he had to leave the team to tend to his ailing father.
Even when the Revs clinched an Atlantic League playoff berth, it was a bittersweet moment. Dryer couldn't play after suffering a hairline fracture when he fouled a ball off his left leg during his last at-bat. He sported a nasty looking bruise in the postseason, but still managed to limp out and take batting practice with a heavily wrapped leg before Game 2 of the Freedom Division Series.
"The injury had nothing to do with my decision," Dryer said. "I didn't like how the season ended, but looking back my last pro hit ended up being an opposite-field home run against Lancaster. That's pretty cool."
An original member of the Revolution, Dryer had been with York since the first spring practice in Lakeland, Fla., in 2007.
"Matt made such an impression with the fans, because he was so approachable," Revs General Manager Matt O'Brien said. "He would talk to fans, and he had no problem starting a conversation with someone sitting in the stands. That was just his personality."
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