How Lynch's dad helped his son reach MLB

OAKLAND -- Daniel Lynch leaned on the railing of the visitor’s dugout at Oracle Park earlier this week and pointed out toward the center-field bleachers of the Giants’ home ballpark.

“UVA kind of has center-field seats like that,” Lynch said, “and there was my dad, waiting for me, with a huge smile.”

Lynch was recounting one of his favorite stories about his dad, Dan Lynch, and his own baseball career at the University of Virginia. It was in the early hours of May 15, 2018, and Lynch had just dominated Georgia Tech, striking out 13 in seven innings in what he labeled as “probably the best start of my career, and probably the start that solidified the Royals’ choice to draft me.” After starts in college, Lynch did running drills on the field, but the game hadn’t started until close to 10 p.m. because of a rain delay, so Lynch’s conditioning wasn’t until around 2 a.m.

When he walked out onto the field, Dan was in the center-field stands. Daniel ran over and high-fived his dad.

“It was just such a cool moment,” Lynch said. “That year was tough and frustrating at times, but I got through it, persevered, and I wouldn’t have done it without my dad. We were the only two people out there. I just remember that moment as one that really meant so much to me.”

Lynch, the fourth Daniel in his family, has a special bond with his dad, one that’s grown over time. Daniel’s mother, Jolie, passed away when he was a teenager, and Dan raised three kids -- Daniel, Will and Molly -- while working full-time in healthcare.

As Daniel has gotten older, he’s realized how much of an influence his dad has on him.

“Growing up, I wouldn’t say I was closer to my mom, but I guess my mom was more buddy-buddy,” Lynch said. “My dad was more of the disciplinarian when he had to be. I was still super close to him, but if someone was going to get on me, it was going to be my dad. And I didn’t understand it as much as I do now. I also understand, especially when he was by himself, a lot of the stress he was under. I’ve gained a ton of perspective on it now.

“He’s been a dad by himself for 10 years now. I call him every day when I go to the field. We talk. Most times it’s just catching up, but a lot of time, it’s talking through stuff.”

Lynch has always been “all in” on the things and activities he commits to. Whether it’s sports or the relationships he cultivates with those around him, Lynch fixates on being the best he can possibly be. That comes from Dan.

“He always made me honor my commitment,” Lynch said. “There were a lot of times in high school when I didn’t really feel like going to practice or winter workouts, but he always was like, ‘You made a commitment to the team that you were going to be there.’ There were a lot of lessons he instilled in me with that, and just teaching me to show up.”

That passion can be a blessing and a curse. On one hand, it fuels Lynch. On the other, it can sometimes cause his mind to spiral when things aren’t going so well. But Lynch has his dad there when the latter creeps in.

“He does a really good job of reminding me that this isn’t who I am, it’s what I do,” Lynch said. “And I have a really hard time, because I’ve worked so hard at this and care so much about it that when I don’t do well, it really bothers me. … The times I pick out when I think about my dad are when I wasn’t doing well, because that was when he stepped up for me even more.”

Early in the 2018 college season, Lynch was coming off a stellar summer in the Cape Cod League, and he was feeling good about his Draft prospects that year. But his first three starts?

“They were just terrible,” Lynch said, shaking his head.

The stretch was capped off by a seven-run, eight-hit outing. Yale crushed Lynch and Virginia, 11-4. The next day, Dan drove from Richmond, Va., to Charlottesville to see Daniel. They talked about his path, the ups and downs he had endured and what the future held.

“We just sat in the car together, and the moment I remember, I could see tears in his eyes,” Lynch said. “He felt so much for me, that I had worked so hard for something and it wasn’t going the way I wanted to. I just remember, that’s when I knew he was there for me -- I always knew it, but it just solidified it.

“After that, I think I had like four straight scoreless starts, with 10-plus strikeouts or something. I mean, I just took off.”

The Royals targeted Lynch in the 2018 Draft and took him No. 34 overall as part of their historic college pitching Draft class, and four years later, Lynch is a stable part of Kansas City’s rotation.

Dan has been there the whole way.

“He’s definitely the single most influential person in my life,” Lynch said. “Someone who has always shown up for me, for my family. … Just can’t thank him enough for everything he’s continued to give us every day.”