Kalamazoo, Mich. – On Sunday, former Kalamazoo Growler, Joe Boyle made his major league debut with the Oakland Athletics. The 22nd-ranked prospect in the Oakland Athletic’s organization became the eighth Growler alum to make his major league debut when he appeared in the A’s weekend series against the Padres on Sunday, September 17.

The 6’7” righty took the bump in Sunday’s game versus the Padres, throwing 3 scoreless innings while not factoring in the decision. In his debut, Boyle struck out 4 while only allowing 1 hit through his 3 innings of work. Despite Boyle’s strong performance, the A’s dropped the game 10-1 to the Padres. 

Boyle played for the Growlers during the 2018 season, appearing in seven games and posting a 3.68 ERA as the team’s closer. Known for his high-octane fastball, Boyle closed out the first Growlers playoff win against the Kenosha Kingfish back in 2018. 

The Notre Dame product threw 36 innings for the Fighting Irish in his 3 seasons with the team going 5-4 with 57 strikeouts. Entering the 2020 season, Boyle was named to the Baseball America Preseason All-American Third Team. 

In 2020, Boyle was drafted in the 5th round of the MLB draft by the Cincinnati Reds. After missing most of the 2021 season due to injury, Boyle found his stride in 2022 with the Red’s organization before being traded to the A’s organization in July of 2023. Since starting the 2023 season in AA Chattanooga, Boyle has climbed his way up through the organization making stops in Midland and Las Vegas before getting the call-up to Oakland this past weekend. 

Boyle joins Zack Gelof who played for the Growlers in the 2019 season. Gelof made his major league debut for the A’s back in July. Boyle is now the third Growler to make his MLB debut this season after Gelof and Mervis made their debuts earlier this season.