(Toronto) — An incredible odyssey for Tanner Andrews that began on diamonds in Kosciusko and Fulton County has now reached The Show.

Andrews, a 2013 Tippecanoe Valley graduate, pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning in Toronto’s 8-2 loss to Miami at Rogers Centre.

He becomes the first player from the Sports Michiana area to make his big league debut since Penn alum Niko Kavadas was called up by the Angels in 2024. Ironically, Kavadas, a first baseman and outfielder, is also the last player from our area to pitch an inning, used in a blowout loss last season.

It has not been an easy road to the bigs for Andrews, who was drafted out of Purdue in the 10th round in 2018. He slowly rose through the Marlins organization as a starter, before being traded to the Giants organization in 2022.  The Giants turned Andrews into a reliever and he worked at AAA Sacramento, where he finally transitioned to a closer role late in 2024.

The Giants released Andrews after that season, and he pitched for an Independent League in Staten Island to begin 2025 before catching on with the Twins organization at AA Wichita last year. The Twins released him after the season, and Andrews, now 30, caught on with the Blue Jays.

He has been stellar as a closer at AAA Buffalo. His May numbers added up 7-2/3 innings of relief appearances, allowing just one hit and no runs. When the Jays put Dylan Cease on the 15-day injured list Monday, they called Andrews up for his debut.

He is the first Tippecanoe Valley athlete to play Major League Baseball and the first from a Kosciusko County high school.