RUSTON – Former Louisiana Tech pitcher Braden Bristo got "the call" as the Tampa Bay Rays are calling up the hard-throwing right-hander from Triple-A. 
 
Bristo, who was drafted in the 23rd round of the 2016 MLB Draft by the New York Yankees, spent seven seasons in the Yankees minor league system climbing the ranks all the way to Triple-A.
 
After electing to go into minor league free agency at the end of the 2022 season, Bristo linked on with Tampa Bay where he has thrown in his five innings with their top affiliate in Durham, yielding three runs on six hits with a 7-to-1 K/BB ratio.
 
In three seasons (2014-16) at LA Tech, he appeared in 52 games while making 26 starts on the mound for the Bulldogs.  The Monroe native struck out 115 batters in 143.0 innings pitched while earning 10 wins on the bump.
 
In 2016, Bristo helped the Bulldogs earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Regional, going 5-6 with 62 strikeouts, the third most on the team.
 
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