ATLANTA -- Bryan Woo's grandfather, John, was living his final months with an unofficial bucket list of things he wanted to see or do before his eventual passing last Thursday night. It was a tally that was more spoken than written; he’d often add them ad-lib or out of left field and he’d always let Woo and his family know when he’d crossed an item off.
At 95 years old, John knew his time was coming soon. And at the top of his must-see tally after his final birthday on June 29 was to see his grandson be named an All-Star.
He got that wish in a big way, as the Mariners’ electric right-hander earned his selection on July 6, but he was watching from above on Tuesday night when Woo wowed on the national stage with a perfect third inning that included a 98 mph strikeout to Ronald Acuña Jr., the Braves’ hometown star and 2023 NL MVP.
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John passed away last Thursday, while Woo was on the mound at Yankee Stadium and just after he lost a no-hitter in the eighth inning.
“It's the values that have passed down from him to my dad to my parents to me, and just making sure I keep those values instilled with me and everywhere I go,” Woo said. “Keep the most important thing the most important thing, which is other people. It's the team, it's the organization, it's the fans. It's not about you. It's never about you.
“It's always about the group around you and the people that make you as good as you are, and how you can always make other people better. Those values started with him.”
Woo’s parents -- Clayton and Hilary -- attend all of his starts, even on the road, and they were planning a larger family reunion in Atlanta after he earned his first All-Star selection, following a first half in which he led the Mariners with a 2.75 ERA and was the sport’s only starter to clear the sixth inning in each of his 18 outings.
The Mariners captured video of the call that Woo made to his parents after he learned of his All-Star selection, which brought Woo to tears.
But after John passed, the gathering grew. His widow, Nancy, flew from the Bay Area despite the inherent challenges of travel at age-90, as did about a dozen others, including Woo’s sister, Emily, and girlfriend, Clare.
“I think that’s the heart of it, that she made the trek out,” Clayton said of Nancy, while beginning to well up. “She wanted to be here with Bryan and my dad. That’s the love we have as a family and what [John] would’ve wanted.”
Woo went into that outing in the Bronx knowing that John would likely pass that night.
And he was absolutely dynamite in one of the sport’s most hostile environments, slicing his way through the Yanks’ lineup and holding it hitless for his first 21 outs with just two walks. He then surrendered a run while still on the mound and was charged another for an inherited run after he departed. The bullpen then coughed away the lead, and the game quickly went from nearing historically great territory to Seattle's worst loss of the season.
Woo learned of John’s passing immediately after.
With family by his side back at his hospital bed back home in Northern California, John listened to the game on the radio, quite literally with bated breath, hanging on each pitch. Woo lost the no-hitter on his 96th pitch, and he’s convinced that the first 95 were a parallel to John’s age.
“Bryan knew when he was pitching in New York that his grandfather was passing that night, and we all were worried about him,” Woo’s mother, Hilary, said, while beginning to tear up. “But at the same time, we encouraged him to use it as fuel and take him out there with him.”
John only saw Woo pitch once in-person in the big leagues, but it was a night that the family will never forget -- on July 3, 2023, when he was a rookie and in San Francisco, where the family had close to 100 guests. Woo grew up a Giants fan and so it was a homecoming of sorts, and after that game, John and Nancy were wheelchaired onto the field for hugs and pictures.
Woo pitched with a heavy heart on Tuesday, but with his grandfather firmly on his mind.