April 24, 2009 is a day that the people who saw what happened to me may never forget.
It was toward the end of my high school baseball career during a game against Midview High School. I started the game on the mound, and we were playing a great game. We put two runs on the board early, and I knew that was all I needed to win the game. I was rolling along only giving up two hits and one walk while striking out 12 batters.
During the 6th inning, with outs, and a man on first base, I was struck by a line drive just above my right eye. I can't remember the pitch but I do remember waking up seconds later to my coach and the Midview coaches around me. I was face down when the ball hit me and they flipped me over on my back. I tried opening my right eye but it was swollen shut.
They called the EMS and I was rushed to the hospital. They got me in for a CAT scan and discovered that I had fractured my orbital bone and had tiny pieces of bone floating around inside. Later that night I was taken by Metro Life Flight to MetroHealth Medical Center. The next morning, the doctors came into my room and told me something I didn't take very well - I was not going to be able to finish my baseball career in high school.
The doctors were very straightforward with me by telling me my options, neither of which would let me play high school baseball again. I could let the bone heal by itself, and if I didn't like the outcome, they could do the surgery later which would involve re-breaking the bone. With a baseball scholarship waiting for me at Cleveland State, I took the second option which was to have surgery right away.
That evening I was released from the hospital and was told to come back on April 27 to make a plan of action. My surgery date was set for May 7, 2009. But I must add that I am very, very luck that the ball hit me where it did: the doctors said a half-an-inch lower and I would have lost my right eye. I was also lucky I didn't have any brain damage.
The day of operation they cut across my head from ear to ear and pulled my skin down to expose the fracture. After cleaning out the floating bones, the repair began in earnest. Some areas were shattered beyond repair, so the doctors placed a postage stamp sized piece of bone taken from the right side of my head and put it into my forehead. Using tiny titanium screws, they placed the bone back in place piece by piece. After that they pulled my skin back over my head and 47 staples were used to close up everything.
A day after my surgery I was back home and in bed. May 9, two days after my surgery was my senior prom. I had told my girlfriend I'd at least walk her into prom. With a drain tube coming out of my ear and staples in my head, I walked my girlfriend into prom, but left to go home and rest up.
A week later I went to get my staples out, the same day my baseball team had a game that I missed. After I had my staples removed. I felt a lot better, but not 100% of course. I was slowly on my way to recovery, which was six weeks for the bone to heal and another six months before I can play baseball again (which will be in college).
Today July 7, 2009, has been two months since my surgery date. I am able to run and work out again, slowly but surely. I am running everyday getting back into shape for baseball. This accident was horrible, but I am looking at the positives: I have my right eye, I don't have brain damage, and I will be able to pitch again.
If I could give some advice to people it would be to: Never let anything bring you down, be positive, and never say never.