Harry Green Athlete of the Week: Bryant Yoak

GLENVILLE, W.Va. (WBOY) — There have been so many fantastic baseball players who have come through north central West Virginia, but one particular athlete from Gilmer County has been catching some major league attention. His name is Bryant Yoak.

Bryant is enjoying a great season as a Gilmer County Titan, sitting at 5-1 on the season with 88 strikeouts through 36 1/3 innings. He’s only allowed ten hits all season and has an ERA below 1 with a heater that sits at 94 miles per hour and tops out at 97.

Bryant’s path as an athlete has been paved for a while now as he committed to continue playing baseball for West Virginia University in July 2022.

“Yeah, I’m totally excited. I love the coaching program up there. I love Coach Sabins. It’s just a really great program that I’m really excited to go to,” Yoak said.

While he’s already committed to playing baseball in Morgantown, more than a dozen major league scouts have already got their eyes on him, leading to one glaring question: How does he handle the pressure?

“It’s just important to take a step off the mound, take a deep breath, just gain your composure. It does get hard sometimes, my legs get a little shaky, but I can handle it. Just step back, take a breather, and I’m good to go,” Yoak said.

On top of his incredible pitching ability, Yoak is also strong as a hitter, racking up a .311 batting average this season with three home runs and 19 RBIs.

With all of the big league eyes on him at his games, playing baseball is a job that Bryant said he would like to have for years to come.

“It’s always been a dream of mine since day one. It’s always been baseball. I do have backup plans, but in my mind, baseball is what I wanna do my whole life. It’s what I wanna make a living out of,” Yoak said.

Given how he’s performed so far in his career, there’s a good chance that Bryant will realize those big-league dreams soon enough.

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