Every baseball player dreams of playing in the major leagues. That vision became a reality as former Georgia Gwinnett College baseball pitcher Alex Cook stood on the mound as a relief pitcher for Major League Baseball's Tampa Bay Rays.

He becomes the first former Grizzly to play in the big leagues during the program's 14-year history.

The right-handed pitcher played in Lawrenceville, his hometown, for only one season, the COVID-abbreviated 2020 campaign, but still made a name for himself as one of the premier relievers in GGC history. He made nine saves and struck out 22 batters in 10.2 innings while holding opposing hitters to a .032 batting average across nine relief pitching appearances.

Cook made the most of his MLB debut, tossing two scoreless innings in relief for the Rays against the Chicago White Sox on July 31. He then recorded a pair of strikeouts in 1.2 innings in Sunday's series finale.

Cook had spent the 2026 season as a pitcher with the Durham Bulls, the Rays' Triple-A affiliate. He was drafted in the 12th round (pick No. 374) of the 2022 MLB Draft after pitching for Colby Community College (Kansas).

Georgia Gwinnett College has had 10 former players drafted and an additional eight players have signed free agent deals with major league baseball teams. The Grizzlies, which were 49-8 last season, have advanced to the Avista NAIA World Series nine times, including eight consecutive trips. GGC won the 2021 national championship.