Tarik Skubal of the Detroit Tigers did what he wanted with the Cleveland Guardians on Sunday, leading his team to a 5-0 victory in the series finale with a complete game shutout.
The Guardians, however, had won the first three games of the series.
Despite the loss, Sunday’s game brought something special with it: Nic Enright’s MLB debut.
Added to the 40-man roster during the offseason, the Guardians saw a potentially useful arm in him.
More than that, they saw a story of resilience and determination.
The 28-year-old Enright was diagnosed with Stage 2 nodular lymphocyte predominant Hodgkin’s Lymphoma on December 22, 2022.
The disease didn’t stop him from pitching between his rounds of immunotherapy treatments, and his perseverance paid off on Sunday.
In a conversation with Tim Stebbins of MLB.com, Enright discussed his journey.
”Those 35-40 seconds gave me time to reflect on my entire journey to get here,” the pitcher said of the time between the Comerica Park bullpen doors opening and him taking the mound. “And then, I was able to just think about all the obstacles that myself and my family have been able to overcome these last couple of years.
“Once it ended, it was like, ‘Now it’s just the same 60 feet, six inches it’s always been. It was incredible. That was everything I wanted it to be.”
Performance-wise, his outing was flawless: he completed two innings with two hits, no walks, and three strikeouts.
That’s Enright, the pitcher, in a vacuum: a talented guy who can become a multi-inning weapon in Stephen Vogt’s bullpen.
A guy who had posted a 2.00 ERA in nine innings in Triple-A this year, and a 1.06 mark at the same level last year, in 17 frames.
It’s good to see his hard work, and the sacrifices he and his family have made to this point, pay off.
“All the sacrifices that they’ve [made] these last couple of years, every single thing that I’ve felt, they felt in the exact same way,” Enright said. “For all of us to be here and celebrate it together was just an incredible experience.
If he keeps pitching like he did on Sunday, Enright will earn more chances with the Guardians.
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