NORTH PORT, Fla. -- If all goes the way third baseman Austin Riley desires this year, he will convince his dad to quit at least two of his three jobs. But that might be every bit as challenging as his bid for a third straight 30-homer season.

When Riley received a 10-year, $212 million contract in August, he asked his dad to quit either working at a FedEx distribution center, operating a lawn service or providing hitting lessons around their hometown of Hernando, Miss.

Those who thought Dad might just rest on his son’s sudden financial windfall don’t know Mike Riley, Austin's proud 53-year-old father.

“He just goes, goes, goes,” Riley said. “I got him this summer to maybe back off to doing just two jobs, just the [grass] cutting and working at FedEx. He might back off the lessons. He just can’t sit still. He’s always got to be doing something.”

Some of that great work ethic has helped Riley quickly become one of baseball’s top players. The 25-year-old was ranked No. 20 on MLB Network’s list of Top 100 Players Right Now. 

Safe to say, Riley has made a quick and significant rise since coming to Spring Training just two years ago, having to compete with Johan Camargo for the starting third-base job.

“It’s nice to get the recognition and see the benefits of all the hard work I’ve put in,” Riley said. “I feel I’ve come a long way from where I was offensively and defensively.”

When Riley arrived at the big league level on May 15, 2019, and enjoyed a successful power surge over the six weeks that followed, he drew complimentary comparisons with Troy Glaus, a big-bodied third baseman who hit .256, constructed an .874 OPS and averaged 37 homers through his first four full MLB seasons (1999-2002).

Riley has hit .288 with an .887 OPS and averaged 36 homers over the past two seasons. The comp seems to be a good one from an early-career standpoint, but it seems as though Riley could be a much more complete offensive player, especially if he avoids the health issues that plagued Glaus.

“He’s just a tremendous kid,” hitting coach Kevin Seitzer said. “He’s got an unbelievable work ethic. He’s the total package.”

That diligence helped Riley overcome some of the frustration he encountered during the early part of his career. He hit 14 homers through his first 42 games in 2019, but then hit just four more while producing a .513 OPS over his final 37 games of that season.

Riley showed some improvement during the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season, but things didn’t truly begin to click for him until he was a few weeks into the 2021 season. He remembers being overwhelmed by advice before he finally said he was sticking with one plan.

“We had one meeting I remember very vividly in 2021, about a month into the season, right before I went off,” Riley said. “We were trying different things every day. I literally told [the hitting coaches], I was like, ‘Hey, look, let's pick one thing.’ I was like, ‘If I swim with it, great; if I sink with it, I'm going to go to Triple-A and I'll figure out.'”

After simplifying his load with the pre-swing positioning of his hands, Riley took off and has since tasted consistent success. He has finished within the top seven in National League MVP Award balloting each of the past two years, and he earned his first All-Star selection in 2022 while moving toward a second straight 30-homer season.

Adding to last year’s success was the thrill of becoming a father. Once the season concluded, he and his wife, Anna, took young Eason Michael back to Mississippi to live on the three-acre property that includes their home and the one inhabited by Mike and Elisa Riley, the parents who helped their son develop his strong work ethic.

“It’s been instilled in me,” Riley said. “You can’t take anything for granted. I know there’s always something that can be improved."