Life & Work with Riley Egloff of south Denver

Today we’d like to introduce you to Riley Egloff

Hi Riley, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
“My story”
Well my story starts all the way back to when I was 9 years old, I was about 3 years into baseball now and my dad bruce egloff was looking for a good team to put me on when we found southeast Denver all stars. This was apart of the league that I played in that was owned and operated by Mike lutz. Mike had a son named Dylan who when me and Dylan met we instantly kicked it off hung out a lot with our team and eventually both became apart of the Allstars, Dylan and every other one of my teammates were two years older but that was the best part I had a bunch of older brothers!! I was an only child so this was the best thing ever. Over the next few years we all continued to play together eventually onto a travel team in Colorado which my dad and tom Severtson coached, We were called (Gameface) any ways me and Dylan continued to play together and continued to excel!! Looking back this is why I have the foundation that I do today and why I coach and teach the young kids the way I do. I also put that in there because Dylan and mike are the owners of legends baseball facility and the whole reason I got back down here doing lessons was because I got hurt

I was drafted by the Miami marlins in the 2018 MLB draft. I had a lot of thought and consideration and ended up not taking the draft and pursuing my athletic and academic career in college where I attended Yavapai Junior college for two years! This was all the beginning it was the start of me learning how much it takes to get where you want to be. I really enjoyed yavapai and especially the baseball side of things, I was in 85 degreee weather all the time playing baseball nonstop and learning how to grind. The junior college route is a awesome experience and one of those things you never regret, I was taught a lot and taught a lot about myself that has helped me be the player and coach I am today taking the adversity of having everything in your hand at one time to then going back and starting from the beginning.
After junior college I was recruited to the university of New Mexico to play baseball and continue my academic career. My first year there was the year after covid or I guess during which we all know was off. I ended up spending 3 years at the university of New Mexico Pitching every Friday night. Getting my bachelor degree, and learning how to to work at what I wanted while also compete at the game I love every week. College is a grind when you are a student athlete and Im very thankful for that, I was always a crazy kid and that starts back to when I was young and playing on game face with Dylan, Ultimately I think God and baseball have kept me in check this whole time which is the biggest life lesson I can learn.

My third year at Unm was my senior year and I was ready to make that next jump back into professional baseball. I thought everything was clicking My fastball was 93-95 topping 96l my slider was the best its every been and I was having a really good year! I was talking to scouts my agent was excited for what was to come and everything was just shaping out right, that was until my last start of the year on the 76th pitch I threw a fastball boom pop my Ulnar collateral ligament the (UCL) this is the one ligament in your arm you don’t want to pop as a pitcher, I was in shock I had no idea what to do this whole game I was 95-96 topping 98 and threw my last pitch at 82 this isn’t right!!
I come back home and find out that I actually had two minor tears and one big tear which was the reason my velocity had been so up and down in previous years… I had a choice I could throw in the towel on my dream and everything I have every wanted or I could do something with myself and make something out of the bad, I think god was teaching me a lesson.
I came home to stead man and hawkins up in vail and got the surgery the next few months were weird, I really had no idea what I was doing or what I needed to do to get back to where I wanted to be.
That then what leads me to where I am now and that’s at legends After getting hurt I knew I still wanted to play and play professionally again so with me recovering and training and doing physical therapy I needed to stay in the game and not just in the game but help the game. I reached out to Dylan lutz long time buddy and asked if I could start helping at legends and being an instructor, I think Dylan was thrilled an old time friend wanted to help out and I think Dylan also knew this would help me in a sense especially with baseball. I started giving lessons and started recovering I was helping out these young kids and it was helping me through my recovery before I knew it I had the biggest support system out there not to mention my dad and family and girlfriend but all these new lessons that truly believed in me just the way I believe in all of them.

I am truly grateful for Dylan and legends and all these kiddos that are helping me become the best player/teacher I can be. Lessons and teaching have become a huge part of my life because It has kept me in the game It has kept me locked in. These kids don’t realize how much they have helped my life the little bit I have helped them. I really enjoy working with all of my lessons and I hope that what Im doing is helping them while also showing them to never give up on your dreams never give up on the unknown because we all need to make jumps we all need to write our story and no story is every written perfectly.

Legends is a huge part of my life now it is a home to me a place I can throw laugh workout and have a good time and that’s what it should be to me a professional and to the 5 year old who is scared of the ball! we all start at the same place and its what you do with what’s laid out infront of you, nothing is going to be handed to you so in order to be a legend you have to work at it and work hard at it and this is the message I try and teach my lessons while also trying to hold at legends.

Overall my story is always around baseball and even with the ups and downs we can make anything happen.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
No it has been anything but smooth haha I got drafted and didn’t take it I partially tore my ulnar collateral ligament my first year in college and then fully tore it my last year in college. I lost one of my support systems after my first year in college my mom passed away.. I didn’t get drafted after my senior year and tore my UCL fully. I had a year on my own and with a great physical therapy clinic which is

NEXT ERA PHYSICAL THERAPY

but the only thing that has made it smoother is helping these kids out helping legends and my buddy Dylan out and ultimately seeing the work I have put in to make my own goal and dream actually possible.

I think those are all lessons even though some really suck haha

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Well I am still a professional baseball player so when it comes to work and when it comes to helping the younger kids out I think they see it as wow I have someone who is till doing it teaching me also. I feel like this gives kids a better feeling about there dream or making a team or doing whatever they want to do because they see me doing what I want To do. I am known for all around lessons and pitching, Every single one of my lessons is on a plan and have goals that we are shooting to achieve. Don’t get me wrong I think what is the difference maker is I look at each lesson like myself and I work hard to make sure what they are doing is right for them through research, videos, talking to mentors, talking to others for ideas, and then giving my lessons the best route in my opinion for them to reach their goals in baseball. I am most proud that over my time at legends I have helped countless kids make baseball travel teams feel confident in themselves and most of all love baseball, I have had multple parents reach out and talk about how lessons for their kid is a safe place their kid loves coming to lessons because they learn, I also think I take it with a more of a professional approach I understand they are going to have fun and be kids but I stress the importance of them just taking one thing home and building off of that. Now a days with lessons all you see is the same thing over and over here’s the same drill here’s this here’s a video I saw online… In my opinion that’s not fair to the kid, I can go get videos online and explain them to everyone it’s what’s gonna make that individual better in my opinion. a good way to look at it or understand it is im not just a cookie cutter teacher I want to make my lessons the most athletic they can be so when we put a pitching motion which isn’t athletic together it works.

What matters most to you? Why?
God matters most to me and this is because god is with us always and always there for us. God has given me every opportunity to be where I am and get where I am, So its what I do with it. God has taught to me to help and be patient and forgive and learn all of these things I can apply to my daily life and that’s what I feel like me teaching lessons also does is it teaches me so much about myself and these young kids to where I can help further down the road as well.

God gives us every morning and what matters to me the most is making sure I live through him

Contact Info:

• Instagram: egghead pitching. https://www.instagram.com/eggheadpitching/ eggysideupsunny.