The Nutshell: All Roads Lead Back Home

Professional baseball players don’t choose where they play. It’s often in towns they never heard of or thousands of miles away from family.

That’s what made Flying Squirrels pitcher Joe Whitman’s appearance against the Akron RubberDucks special. Whitman was born in Akron and started twice for the Flying Squirrels at Canal Park. His homecoming brought out most of his family, including his grandmother, seeing him pitch as a professional for the first time.

“She saw me pitch two or three times in college maybe and I only had a few times where I pitched in weather where it was like, you’re able to sit outside and not be miserable,” Whitman said. “It was only the second time my mom had seen me (pitch professionally) and the third time my dad had seen me. Just because of being on the west coast, it can be difficult to get out there because they have jobs and other commitments.”

The first two seasons of Whitman’s professional career were scattered in Phoenix, San Jose, Calif., and Eugene, Ore. Each of his teams were around 2,000 miles away from his hometown.

Now in his third season in the San Francisco Giants system, Whitman was finally able to come home. It was also special to pitch at Canal Park, a venue he idolized from a young age.

“I grew up a Cleveland Indians fan, so I wanted to obviously play for them. So, I always thought I’d play there at some point,” Whitman said. “I’ve had a picture of that stadium on my wall in my (childhood) bedroom since I was born, so it’s pretty cool to be able to say that I pitched on that mound in an actual Double-A game against the RubberDucks.”

Like his professional baseball career, Whitman’s life led him away from Akron a few times.

When he was eight years old, his family moved to Switzerland due to his father’s job. Whitman still played baseball in a league thrown together by a couple dads in downtown Geneva.

He also competed in a 16U travel team, where a Switzerland-born kid had to throw at least four innings.

The Whitman family moved back to Ohio three years later. College baseball programs started to peak Whitman’s interest, but one institution stood out.

“My dad went to Purdue, and I’d always grown up a Purdue fan,” Whitman said. “Once they called me and had me out for a visit and said they wanted me, I pretty much said I wanted to go. It was my dream school growing up.”

The dream scenario fizzled towards false hope at Purdue. Whitman was limited to only 5.2 total innings in two seasons with the Boilermakers. In the 2022 offseason, Whitman looked at transferring and Kent State University sparked his interest.

Whitman had some recruiting talks with the program in high school, but his interests were set on Purdue at the time. His commitment to Kent State took him 20 minutes outside of his hometown.

It felt like another dream for Whitman to come back to familiar territory, and he saw success. He was named the Mid-American Conference Pitcher of the Year in 2023 and then was selected by the Giants in the second round of the MLB Draft that year.

“Going into that year, I was hoping to just get drafted in the top 10 rounds, let a lone the second round,” Whitman said. "It was a surreal experience. Obviously, having Raúl Ibañez go out there and say your name, plus go to the Giants, is just awesome.”

This year presented another full-circle homecoming moment for Whitman when he pitched against the RubberDucks. He was also able to see a few former high school coaches.

Whitman’s alma mater, Hudson High School, was scheduled to play Stow-Munroe Falls High School on Whitman’s Tuesday start. The coaches mutually agreed to cancel the game and bring out their teams to watch Whitman pitch at Canal Park.

Timing worked out perfectly for the family the week Richmond visited Akron. Whitman started for the Flying Squirrels in both the Tuesday and Sunday games of the series. Though Whitman does not look at the stands when he’s on the mound, it was refreshing to know the ones he loves were there in person.

“It was so cool, and they’ve always been there for me,” Whitman said. “My mom used to be a big screamer when I was on the mound, I’d be able to hear her. I always try to see where they’re at after I’m done pitching.”

Favorite venue to pitch in? – Canal Park or Ray Fisher Stadium (University of Michigan)

Best homecooked meal? – My mom’s lasagna, without a doubt

Are you a cat guy or dog guy? – Never had a pet

What is one fact no one knows about you? – I was a switch hitter until my sophomore year of high school

Who was your favorite baseball player growing up? – Grady Sizemore and Albert Pujols

What is your favorite pitch to throw? – A fastball down the middle, see if they can hit it

Most inspirational person in your life? – My parents because of everything they’ve done for me