Ryan Searle

Searle went on to pitch 33 2/3 innings with a 0.53 ERA over the course of the regular season and playoffs, leading his new team to the Italian Baseball League championship.

Ryan Searle (born 22 June 1989, Brisbane, Australia) is an Australian professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent.

He is a regular on the Australia national baseball team, the "Southern Thunder".

Continuing to play throughout his schooling years, he graduated from Northpine Christian College at the end of 2006 while playing for the Narangba Demons baseball team.

When he grew older he joined Windsor Royals baseball club.

He was signed to a professional baseball contract at the age of 17 with the Chicago Cubs in 2007.

In 2007 Searle spent the first three months of his pro career in spring training and extended spring in Mesa Arizona, then going back to the Australian Academy on the Gold Coast in Australia.

In 2008 Searle went to spring training and extended spring to return to the Australian Academy (MLBAAP) again.

There he led the starting pitchers in ERA, WHIP, strike outs, wins and innings pitched.

He then returned to Mesa, Arizona after the MLBAAP to pitch two games before being promoted to the Boise Hawks an "A" ball affiliate of the Chicago Cubs.

There he was 2–2 with a 1.05 ERA in 35+ innings, holding batters to a minuscule .171 against.

In 2009 for the Chicago Cubs he pitched the entire season with the Daytona Cubs, and was selected as a 2009 Florida State League Mid-Season All-Star at the young age of 19.

After a hot start he had a slow second half and his lack of experience started to show.

In 2010 Searle started in the FSL but was soon after demoted to Single A Peoria Chiefs, he was 7–8 with a 4.38 ERA fanning 101 in 124 Innings.

In 2010 the newly formed Australian Baseball League kick started its campaign to win over the Australian public.

In 2011 Searle started out the 2011 season with the Daytona Cubs Bullpen.

After posting a 1.59 ERA in 16 games, he was promoted to the Cubs AA Affiliate Tennessee Smokies.

For the Smokies, he had a 5–3 record with a 3.51 ERA in 23 games with 66 strikeouts.

He finished with a combined 3.03 ERA which lead all Chicago Cubs qualified pitchers.

He has been both a starter and a relief pitcher throughout his career which reached its highest level at AAA Iowa Cubs in 2012.

In 2012 Searle again spent time in the FSL at the Daytona Cubs, but also split time between the AA Tennessee Smokies and also reaching his career high AAA mark for the first time when he was promoted to the Iowa Cubs.

He recorded his first and only AAA win on 19 August.

He finished the season with career best mark of 8 wins, 5 losses and a 3.87 ERA over 90+ innings.

2013 was an injury plagued season for Searle, missing almost four months after a forearm sprain.

He recovered and went on to make rehabilitation games in the AZL before being sent to the Daytona Cubs in the Florida State League to finish out the season.

There, alongside Cubs 1st round draft pick Kris Bryant, Searle and CJ Edwards combined for two 2 hit shutouts in the Semi Final clinching game against Dunedin Blue Jays and then in the Championship clinching game against the Port Charlotte Stone Crabs where they were crowned the FSL champions for the 2nd time in 3 years.

In the off season of 2013, Searle was offered a free agent contract to sign back with the Chicago Cubs for the 2014 season.

In May 2014, Searle was released from the Cubs organisation following a poor 6.63 ERA season in 19 innings at Double-A class affiliate Tennessee Smokies.

Searle signed with the Grand Prairie AirHogs following his release from the Cubs and went 5-9 with a 4.39 ERA.

Most notably recently, Searle broke the saves (17) and ERA (0.40) record in the newly formed ABL while pitching as the closer for the eventual 2015/2016 ABL Champion Brisbane Bandits.

Born in Brisbane, he started playing baseball at the age of 5.

On 11 March 2015, Searle signed with the Ishikawa Million Stars of Baseball Challenge League.

His manager was the age defying player coach, Julio Franco.

He was the league's strikeout leader with 113 in 135 innings pitched ending his time with the team with an 8-7 record and a 1.99 ERA.

On 5 February 2016, he signed with the Lamigo Monkeys of Chinese Professional Baseball League.

Despite early success Searle, after sustaining a bad knee injury he never regained form and was released from the team on 10 June.

After a series of switches between starting and relief roles to become the 3rd foreign player released by the team that year.

In June 2016, it was announced that Searle would be replacing outgoing Scott Patterson on the Unipol Bologna team playing in the Italian Baseball League.

On 13 March 2018, Searle signed with the Québec Capitales of the Can-Am League.

He was released on 26 July 2018.