A native of California’s East Bay, just south of Oakland, James Colyer grew up attending Athletics games at the Oakland Coliseum. Years later, he returned to the Bay Area to begin his professional career with the Oakland Ballers, helping the club win a Pioneer League championship alongside one-time Winnipeg teammate Noah Milikan.

James took an unconventional route to professional baseball. Lightly recruited out of high school, he began his collegiate career at the junior college level before pitching at Cal State East Bay and later transferring to Shorter University in Georgia.

After finishing college, James attended an open tryout for an opportunity in the Pioneer League. He turned that chance into a dominant rookie season out of the Ballers’ bullpen, establishing himself as a key part of a championship club and putting his name on the radar of professional organizations.

That performance led to another opportunity in February 2026, when James received an invitation to Spring Training with the Washington Nationals organization. Although he did not break camp with the club, the experience provided another indication of how far he had come from an open tryout and reinforced that affiliated baseball remained within reach.

Now in Winnipeg, James has another opportunity to build on that momentum and continue a career defined by earning each step along the way.