How This Yankees Pitcher Found Peace After Tough 2023: ‘Praying Hard’
By Movieguide® Contributor
New York Yankees pitcher Luke Weaver has helped take his team to the top of the American League.
Weaver entered the MLB as a starting pitcher, but since the start of the 2024 season, he has transitioned to a reliever, which has worked out well for him and the Yankees.
One reason he’s able to make that transition is because of his faith in Jesus, especially after a rough 2023 season.
Per Sports Spectrum, “Weaver’s 2023 season began with the Cincinnati Reds, but after struggling through 21 starts, he was designated for assignment and released in August. He caught on with the Seattle Mariners but logged an ERA over 6.00 in five appearances before he was claimed off waivers by the Yankees in September.
“After closing out the season with three appearances in the pinstripes, Weaver again became a free agent,” the outlet continued. “Both sides saw something with Weaver’s fit in New York, however, and he signed a new one-year contract with the team in January.”
While on an episode of the “Sports Spectrum Podcast,” Weaver explained how his faith sustained him through that season.
“I think it’s hard to live in this space where people think that you can be this and you continue to kind of fall short of that,” he said. “And deep down you know you can do that, but you keep falling short.
“…It was just a struggle that year,” he added. “It was an awkwardness of, ‘I’m so close to feeling healthy and implementing things physically on the mound that I’m so close to achieving and so close to putting together through a full start.’ And there was always one pitch, there was always one moment, that would negatively affect me on the field, mentally, physically, and just really the ballgame. It became a cycle.”
However, as tough as that storm was for Weaver, he turned to the Lord and made it through even stronger than before.
“I’m in the midst of my struggle, and I’m praying hard,” Weaver said. “I’m in 2 Corinthians 12:10 talking about Paul and this thorn in his side and he’s battling against trying to make it about himself. And he’s just like, ‘All right, You put this thorn here for a reason and You’re allowing me to know Your power.'”
“This year has been an amazing year for me on the baseball field,” Weaver added. “[God has] answered a lot of prayers in those aspects…I’m gracious and thankful for that.”
For more inspiring sports stories, check out Sports Spectrum.
He keeps helping his team succeed.
“Luke Weaver and Jake Cousins recorded the largest outs of a tense, 4-3 win over the Royals in 11 innings in The Bronx on Wednesday night,” the New York Post reported yesterday.
Movieguide® previously reported on Weaver’s faith:
During the 2023 season, Weaver faced a series of difficult trials that caused him to doubt his future in the MLB. After beginning the 2023 season with Cincinnati, Weaver was quickly let go to join Seattle. During his first game, however, he got hit by a line drive straight on the elbow, leaving his future unclear.
Despite an abysmal season that ended after only eight games, Weaver was picked up by the Yankees where he has found new life. In the midst of these trials, the athlete has placed his identity in the Lord, allowing him to stay focused and confident, even during a bad stretch.
“That’s been my prayer to God, like, hey, just give me the strength to come off of a bad outing and be the same guy,” Weaver told the “Sports Spectrum” podcast. “And I think that He showed me a lot.”
