Pete Meyer jokes that he never taught Matt Joyce anything.
LAKELAND — Pete Meyer jokes that he never taught Matt Joyce anything.
The Florida Southern athletic director coached Joyce during his college days in Lakeland. The pair spent three years together at Florida Southern, capping it off with the NCAA Division II baseball title in 2005. Joyce arrived as a 160-pound outfielder from Armwood High.
He left Florida Southern as a 12th-round pick of the Detroit Tigers.
“Matt Joyce hasn’t really changed as a player,” Meyer said. “He’s gotten bigger, stronger and he’s got a great work ethic. There’s the same sweet swing. He’s got a sweet left-handed swing, and you always saw the potential in his swing.”
Thirteen years later, that lefty swing is still making its way around big-league ball parks. Joyce’s smile stretched from ear to ear as Florida Southern retired his No. 24 jersey on Wednesday.
“It’s surreal and it goes so fast,” Joyce said. “I got the chance to talk with a lot of the guys on the baseball team, just kind of giving them some of the things I’ve learned along the way. For me, it’s been 13 years. It’s gone so fast.”
Joyce spent three seasons at Florida Southern, hitting 22 home runs and driving in 121 runs in 170 games. His best year came as a freshman in 2003 when he hit .329 with eight homers, 44 RBIs and 13 stolen bases.
But the crown jewel, literally, came in 2005. The Mocs finished 51-11 that year, winning the national title. He still remembers that championship game, one in which he was the only Moc to go without a hit.
“That’s kind of something that sticks with you,” he said with a laugh.
The Tigers selected Joyce in the MLB draft that spring.
He’s spent nine seasons in the big leagues with the Tigers, Rays, Angels, Pirates and Athletics. He was an American League All-Star with Tampa Bay in 2011 and hit a career-best 25 home runs with Oakland last season.
He takes pride in the fact that he came out of a D-II school to carve out a long MLB career.
“I definitely have a chip on my shoulder and I’m extremely proud to say that I went to Florida Southern,” Joyce said. “The experiences and lessons I learned here, the people that I’ve met. They’re second to none.”
The 33-year-old joins former Mocs head coaches Hal Smeltzly (7), Joe Arnold (11), Chuck Anderson (12) and players Greg Pryor (17), Jay Smith (20), Andy McGaffigan (22), Brett Tomko (43) and Ken Huebner (43) with a retired uniform.
“I’m so happy, honored and grateful to have something like this done for me,” he said. “I was very fortunate to be able to go here.”
Brady Fredericksen can be reached at brady.fredericksen@theledger.com or 863-802-7553. Follow him on Twitter: @Brady_Fred.