METAMORA, Ill. )WMBD/WYZZ) — Zach McAllister’s road back to the big leagues was long.
Which is why having typical offseason workouts again are special.
“To get back was special for me. To get back with the Yankees, who drafted me, and I played every level with them except the big leagues,” said McAllister.
McAllister, 35, pitched for the Yankees in a win at Boston in September. It marked his first big league appearance since 2018.
He overcame two big surgeries, one on his back, the other on his arm. And he changed his delivery to sidearm.
It worked to get him back in the Yankees organization which first drafted him in 2006. From 2018-2023, McAllister played in the minor leagues for six teams.
“It felt good, almost two full years under my belt with maintaining that delivery,” McAllister said. “Finally got a chance to get back to the big leagues.”
McAllister gives a lot of credit for his return to the big leagues to his Metamora-based trainer Joe Terry, owner of the Human Performance Lab. This winter is their 20th training together.
“When his first signed with the Yankees back in the day, we made a call to talk with the trainers in New York. They asked me a bunch of questions to see what I knew,” Terry said. “They said, have at it. They knew I knew him better than they did.”
McAllister has been training with Terry since he was a freshman at IVC High School.
“You want to have these good people to help you,” McAllister. “Joe is one of these people I always rely on and trust when I get back home.”
As a free agent, McAllister looking for his next team. But the righthanded reliever is preparing to be back in the big leagues in 2024.
