Dave Dravecky's comeback in 1989 was short lived, but an inspiration to players, fans and admirers: former pitcher overcame cancer to return to the mound and today continues to motivate followers in and outside the game

Baseball Digest, May, 2008 by Joe O'Loughlin

"MY AUNT, WHO IS A NUN, SAID IT WAS DESTINY when I-was traded from the Pirates and became a Padre," said Dave Dravecky, with a hearty laugh. Yet Dravecky made his biggest impact, not just in baseball, but in an arena far beyond the diamond when he became a Giant in every sense of the word.

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After achieving his lifelong desire of making it to the big leagues in 1982, Dravecky's dream began to turn into a nightmare when a lump was discovered in his pitching arm in 1987.

A biopsy in 1988 revealed that the lump was cancer. A delicate and intricate operation would be performed to remove it. The surgery was successful but because half of Dravecky's deltoid muscle was removed doctors told the southpaw that his pitching career would be over.

San Francisco teammate Kevin Mitchell's description spoke volumes of what the left limb looked like. "Dave, it looks like Jaws took a bite out of you!" Undaunted, Dravecky bucked the odds and embarked on a grueling rehabilitation regimen in order to make it back to the major leagues. On August 10, 1989 before a thunderous crowd at Candlestick Park, Dravecky pitched the Giants, who were in the thick of a pennant race, to an important 4-3 win over Cincinnati. San Francisco manager Roger Craig described the experience this way. "It was half revival, half baseball game. I had never seen so much emotion. I didn't manage the game; I just sat in awe of Dave Dravecky."

What was also accomplished on that sublime summer Thursday was that Dravecky's efforts helped a courageous little boy who was also battling cancer.

In June, when Dravecky was undergoing a difficult stretch of his therapy the Giants' front office asked him to meet Alex Vlahos, who had leukemia. The six-year-old was in need of a bone marrow transplant. The hope was that local TV and radio stations would cover the event and generate publicity for Alex in obtaining a donor.

The outpouring far exceeded their wildest expectations. "When it came time for my comeback game a couple of months later there was a whole campaign in motion. By game time, the pledge drive had gained so much momentum that the pledge for each pitch was over $1,000," said Dravecky.

Dravecky knew he had to uphold his end of the deal. Now, not only was he pitching for his comeback but also for Alex Vlahos. If that wasn't enough to get the adrenaline flowing there was another little added incentive--the Giants held a slim two game lead in the West Division and the team Dravecky was pitching against, the Cincinnati Reds, had been picked in the preseason to win the division.

All those factors were in play when Dravecky strode to the mound in front of 34,810 emotional fans at Candlestick Park.

The crafty southpaw pitched a very effective seven innings. From the first inning, he and catcher Terry Kennedy were in a groove. "I never had the type of stuff that overpowers batters," said Dravecky. He put into practice the lessons he had learned so well during his journey to the majors. "Eddie Watt, my coach at Amarillo when I was in San Diego's minor league system, was most influential in my pitching career. Eddie did not focus as much on mechanics as the philosophy of pitching.

"He taught me to keep it simple and use my head during the course of the game," Dravecky pointed out.

Dravecky used his baseball acumen to set the Reds down 1-2-3 in the first inning using a mixture of speeds and placements. "I only really had one pitch and even at that, I didn't have great velocity, 86-88 miles per hour. But I took that fastball and learned how to get the most 'sink' out of it with my slider.

"Then I would change speeds. So, in effect, I got four different pitches by changing speeds. That method along with good control helped make me an effective pitcher," said Dravecky. That is exactly how Dravecky pitched that unforgettable day. He set Cincinnati down through seven innings, allowing but a solitary hit and no runs. Meanwhile, his San Francisco mates cooperated by scoring four runs to give him a comfortable lead.

Dravecky ran into trouble in the eighth when with two outs and two on when he allowed a three-run homer to Luis Quinones, the Reds' second baseman. Dravecky retired the next batter to end the inning and left the game with a 4-3 lead. Giants closer, Steve Bedrosian, came on in the ninth to nail down the save, retiring the three Cincinnati batters he faced. Then pandemonium broke loose as Dravecky and the Giants' bench rushed on the field.

"The Life Saver Foundation raised over $200,000 for Alex Vlahos. To do something that could give hope and help is an honor. Two things were going on. One, this showed the power of the game of baseball. But something bigger and more important than the game was happening. God was working through me in the midst of this adversity," Dravecky noted.

The money raised helped Alex Vlahos undergo two separate bone marrow transplants. Unfortunately, those procedures were unsuccessful and in the spring of 1990 Alex Vlahos passed away. But still much good did come about. Alex gained extra time for his life and the baseball diamond provided the stage for a community to unite to do something kind, caring and good.