Despite being such a small island, an impressive number of professional baseball players have come out of Alameda high schools over the years. Bryan Woo, a 22-year-old right-handed pitching prospect in the Seattle Mariners organization, is attempting to follow in the footsteps of former players like Willie Stargell and Jimmy Rollins, as well as current Miami Marlins minor-leaguer Osiris Johnson — three products of Encinal High School. While Woo has a way to go before reaching the Major Leagues, his stock is rising as he continues to post impressive numbers in his first minor-league campaign.

Woo’s Youth Baseball Experience
Woo fell in love with baseball during his Little League years. He drew inspiration from his dad who also served as his coach and always helped him train and work out. Woo mainly played infield growing up. Pitching was his second option and something that he didn’t take to full-time until his junior year at Alameda High School when his coaches needed more pitching. Woo never gave up, kept working and eventually things fell together. In fact, he was named West Alameda County Conference MVP after his senior high school season when he accrued a 1.25 ERA and led the Hornets to a 27-2-1 record and the CIF-North Coast Section Division 2 championship. However, because he was a late bloomer, he wasn’t highly recruited until his junior and senior years in high school.

College Years
Woo played collegiately at California Polytechnic State University (Cal Poly), the only school that offered him a scholarship as a pitcher only (not a two-way player). In his final collegiate season in 2021, Woo pitched in 10 games with two starts, striking out 42 batters in 28 innings. He went 2-2 with a 6.11 ERA and one save. Unfortunately, Woo blew out his elbow pitching against Long Beach State and underwent Tommy John surgery that sidelined him for the second half of that season.

“Cal Poly was the best academic option and best baseball program out of my choice of schools. It was the perfect fit for me as it was not too far from home, my family got to come down to watch games, I loved being near the beach and I met a lot of people,” said Woo.

Early Professional Career
The Mariners drafted him out of Cal Poly 174th overall in the sixth round of the 2021 draft. After an arduous Tommy John rehab process during which he also had to recover from having his appendix removed and taking a line drive comebacker off the face, Woo finally made his professional debut in early June in the Arizona Complex League. Then he was assigned to Seattle’s Single-A affiliate, the Modesto Nuts, where he made six starts in which he pitched 20 innings, racked up 29 strikeouts and finished with a 3.98 ERA. Woo earned a promotion to the High-A Everett Aquasox where he has a 2.13 ERA and 37 strikeouts through five starts against tougher competition. On August 19, Woo pitched six scoreless innings against the Vancouver Canadiens, allowing just two hits and recording 11 strikeouts.

“It has been a fun year, said Woo when asked about his success in his first taste of the minor leagues. “I am taking it day by day and not trying to get too ahead of myself. Doing a lot of talking to coaches, learning from them and other players. Not too focused on results, although it’s great that they are good. I am just trying to learn and get better every day as the minor leagues are a lot about development and growing.”

Woo is happy to be in the Mariners’ organization and excited for the next couple years with the team. If he manages to avoid further injuries and continues to pitch well and develop in the minor-leagues, Mariners fans might see Woo as a member of their big-league rotation or bullpen in the near future. Either way, Alamedans have an opportunity to root for another home-grown player as he pursues his dream.

You can follow Woo and the Everett Aquasox as they wrap up their season in the coming weeks.

Ben Wiley is an Alameda native who recently graduated from Seattle University. To reach Wiley, contact editor@alamedasun.com.