Matt Joyce

Matthew Ryan Joyce (born August 3, 1984) is an American former professional baseball outfielder, who played 14 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB).

There, he helped Miami reach their first Major League Baseball postseason appearance since 2003.

Joyce retired from professional baseball after a stint with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2021, becoming a sports analyst for the Rays.

Matthew Ryan Joyce was born in Tampa, Florida to Matthew Ryan Joyce Sr. and Vallie Klein.

When Matt Jr. and his sister Danielle were youngsters, their mother, Vallie, who was dealing with substance abuse problems, left the children's father and took the rest of the family to New Jersey.

Matt Sr. obtained a court order to reclaim his children, and raised Matt and Danielle as a single father, with the help of Vallie's mother, Patricia Klein.

Joyce's father encouraged his son to learn baseball, helping with backyard batting practice and giving his son the nickname "Slugger" at the age of 10.

A childhood fan of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays of Major League Baseball (MLB), Joyce frequently attended home games at Tropicana Field.

His favorite Ray was Fred McGriff, while his overall favorite baseball player was Ken Griffey Jr. Joyce's baseball career began with the North Brandon Little League in Brandon, Florida.

He went on to attend Armwood High School in Seffner, Florida, where he described his athletic performance as not "too ridiculous as far as being that far above everybody."

Statistically, his best season was as a freshman in 2003, when he batted .329 with eight home runs, 44 RBIs, and 13 stolen bases.

The Detroit Tigers attended an exhibition game that Joyce played with Florida Southern College and selected him in the 12th round of the 2005 MLB Draft.

As a sophomore in 2005, Joyce earned All-Sunshine State Conference honors and helped lead Florida Southern to their ninth NCAA Division II title.

The Detroit Tigers took notice of Joyce when they played an exhibition game against Florida Southern during spring training in 2005.

That year, the Tigers selected Joyce in the 12th round of the 2005 MLB Draft, and he signed with the team shortly afterwards.

In three seasons with Florida Southern, Joyce hit 22 home runs and had 121 runs batted in (RBIs) in 170 games.

After being drafted in the 12th round of the 2005 MLB draft by the Detroit Tigers, Joyce spent the 2005 season with the Class A Short Season Oneonta Tigers of the New York–Penn League.

There, he lived at a dormitory at Hartwick College, in the same hall as Burke Badenhop and Will Rhymes, all of whom would remain teammates as they moved through the Tigers' farm system.

He played 65 games with Oneonta that season, batting .332 and recording four home runs and 46 RBIs in 247 at bats.

The following year, Joyce was promoted to the Class A West Michigan Whitecaps.

He struggled in the jump to Class A; by mid-May, his batting average had fallen under .200, and he had suffered an injury to his quadriceps.

Manager Matt Walbeck told Joyce to focus on changing his mindset as he approached the plate rather than working on his physical ability, and Joyce credits this mental approach to his improvement over the course of the season.

He finished 2006 with a .258 average and 11 home runs, and led the team with 86 RBIs.

The Whitecaps went on to win the Midwest League championship.

Joyce was promoted to the Double A Erie SeaWolves in 2007, and once again suffered an early-season slump.

By May 19, his batting average had sunk to .168.

He had recovered by the end of the season, finishing with a .257 average, 17 home runs, and 70 RBIs in 456 at bats and 130 games.

Joyce, along with fellow outfielder Clete Thomas, was considered a likely future major leaguer.

Commenting on the two, Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski remarked that, "We think they're both prospects... We're not counting on them for this year, but they've got a chance to play at the Triple-A level (this season), depending on how they do this spring."

Between 2008 and 2021, he played for eight MLB teams, most notably the Tampa Bay Rays, with whom he was named an MLB All-Star in 2011.

Raised by a single father in Tampa, Florida, Joyce frequently attended Rays games at Tropicana Field as a child.

Joyce debuted with the Tigers in 2008 and was traded to the Rays the following season.

Joyce began the 2008 season with the Triple A Toledo Mud Hens, with whom he hit .299 with five home runs and 21 RBIs in the team's first 28 games.

After outfielder Jacque Jones was designated for assignment in early May, Joyce was called up to the Tigers in his stead.

Joyce was the second Armwood baseball player to play in MLB, following left-handed pitcher Sterling Hitchcock, and Armwood retired his No. 24 jersey in February 2009.

Although Joyce received offers to play college baseball for the University of Tampa and the University of South Florida, he chose to attend Florida Southern College, who offered him an opportunity to begin playing as a freshman.

In 2013, fans voted Joyce onto the Whitecaps All-Time Team, and in 2019, he was inducted into the Whitecaps Hall of Fame.

After five years in Tampa, Joyce was traded to the Los Angeles Angels, where his performance suffered after a 2015 concussion.

Florida Southern retired Joyce's No. 24 jersey in January 2018.

After stints with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Oakland Athletics, and Atlanta Braves, as well as minor-league appearances for the Cleveland Indians and San Francisco Giants, Joyce signed a one-year deal with the Miami Marlins in 2020.