Retired Major League Baseball catcher and baseball Olympian, Ryan Lavarnway played for eight MLB teams over his 10-year career, winning a World Series with the Boston Red Sox in 2013. He is also a member of the Team Israel international baseball team where he has participated in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, the 2017 and 2023 World Baseball Classic tournaments, as well as the 2023 Baseball European Championship where served as Israel’s Captain. Prior to his professional baseball career, Ryan was the third-ever MLB draft pick out of Yale University where he had a breakout year in 2007, leading the NCAA in batting average and slugging percentage.

Since retiring from baseball, Ryan has served as a broadcaster, including as a television analyst for the Colorado Rockies and has also appeared as a motivational speaker at Harvard, Yale Law School, Kent State, various leadership summits and numerous Jewish community centers. He recently launched an inspirational podcast, “Finding the Way” and wrote a children’s book, “Baseball and Belonging.”Growing up in Woodland Hills, Calif., Ryan played baseball at El Camino Real High School and is an inductee of the Southern California Jewish Sports Hall of Fame. He currently resides in Denver with his wife, daughter and dog.