Carson Revay thought he knew what the next year of his life looked like.
On Monday, July 13, the University of the Pacific left-handed pitcher was throwing a bullpen at Klein Family Field while discussing offseason workouts and a fifth season with associate head coach CJ Whelan.
Then his phone rang.
Revay didn’t recognize the number, but he answered anyway.
“Hello,” the caller said. “I have an offer for you.”
Just like that, less than 24 hours after the 2026 MLB Draft concluded, everything changed.
The offer came from the Boston Red Sox, and within minutes, Revay had signed his first professional contract.
“To call myself a Red Sox is amazing,” Revay said. “It’s hard to wrap my head around. You grow up knowing how big that organization is, and now I’m part of it. It’s something I earned, but it still doesn’t feel real.”
During the 2026 season, the redshirt junior appeared in 22 games, posting a 4.01 ERA with 56 strikeouts in 42 2/3 innings.
He also recorded nine saves, the second-most in a single season in Pacific history and tied for the second-most in the West Coast Conference, earning All-WCC honorable-mention honors.
Revay says none of it would have been possible without the late Reed Peters.
Peters died June 4 at age 60 after leading Pacific to its first West Coast Conference Tournament appearance and victory.
“He’s helped me more than I could ever put into words,” Revay said. “He took a chance on me after Fresno, and I’ll always be grateful for that. He was more than a baseball coach. He was a mentor, a leader and someone who taught me lessons far beyond the game.”
‘Strive through adversity’
Baseball has been part of Revay’s life for as long as he can remember.
His parents, Connie and Steve, say it was obvious almost immediately.
“As soon as you picked up a bat at 3 years old and started throwing a ball, you loved it and were good at it,” they always tell him.
One thing, however, looked much different than it does today.
Before he became a pitcher, Revay dreamed of catching — and doing it for the St. Louis Cardinals.
“Being from Stockton, I get asked all the time, ‘You’re not a Giants fan?'” Revay said. “I grew up loving Yadier Molina and Adam Wainwright, so I became a Cardinals fan at a young age. I even tried to be a left-handed catcher until I was about 10. Obviously, that didn’t work out. But don’t worry, I’m a Boston Red Sox fan now.”
Turns out, giving up catching was the right decision.
As a senior at Bear Creek, Revay posted a 0.39 ERA with 84 strikeouts in 54 1/3 innings while batting .455 with 35 hits and 30 RBIs in 29 games.
The reward was a full-ride scholarship to Fresno State.
Or so he thought.
Revay redshirted in 2023 and didn’t make a single appearance in 2024.
“I had a great time at Fresno State, but baseball-wise I didn’t perform very well,” Revay said. “I still believed in myself, but I can’t tell you there weren’t doubts.”
But he refused to let that end his dream.
“Every day I’d ask myself the same questions,” Revay said. “How am I going to handle this situation? How do I get better? How do I achieve my dreams? I just kept taking it day by day.”
That persistence eventually led him back to Stockton.
Transferring to Pacific, Revay appeared in 20 games as a redshirt sophomore, made three starts and struck out 43 batters in 44 2/3 innings during his first season.
“I got the call, agreed to the deal, and my mom was the first person I called,” Revay said. “She made me really emotional. I’m not a very emotional person, but she kept telling me how proud she was of me. It was a surreal moment.”
One day later, Revay boarded a flight to Fort Myers, Florida, where the next chapter of his baseball journey officially began.
“What excites me most is the people I’ll get to meet along the way,” Revay said. “I’ll be around so many new people who are living the same dream I am. I can’t wait to build new friendships and relationships throughout the journey.”
Like every prospect, the questions now shift to what’s next.
Which affiliate comes first? Will the major leagues eventually follow? Only time will tell.
Those answers can wait.
The 3-year-old who fell in love with baseball is now a Boston Red Sox.
If there’s one lesson Revay hopes others take from his journey, it’s to “strive through adversity.”
“Whenever something hard challenges you, you’re going to have those moments where you wonder, ‘Is this really for me?'” Revay said. “Those are just lessons in life. Adversity is always going to come your way, and it’s up to you to decide how you’re going to respond and what kind of person you want to be. You want to be someone who strives through adversity because, in due time, that’ll always put you on the right side.”
This article originally appeared on The Record: Boston Red Sox sign Pacific pitcher Carson Revay after 2026 MLB Draft
Reporting by Dylan Ackermann, The Stockton Record / The Record
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Dylan Ackermann, The Stockton Record | USA TODAY Network
