Friday, March 28, 2008 11:09 PM CDT
Ames is Charleston's comeback kid
By Brian Nielsen, Sports Editor
sports@jg-tc.com
Cory Ames would not need his 2-0 pitching record going into today’s Charleston baseball doubleheader for this to be a success story. About 10 months ago, friends and family and even Ames himself would have been glad to have heard he would be giving up runs galore and striking out at the plate.
Just so he was still around.
“I was worried about him as a person, not as a baseball player,” Charleston coach Derrick Landrus said. “The last thing on my mind was baseball. He was probably worried about it but I was just worried about him.”
Actually, the kid knew the score as well.
“Oh, I was really scared,” Ames said. “I thought I was going to die. People die from blood clots. At the hospital they were being brutally honest. Sometimes you don’t want to hear that but they have to tell you.”
Among those providing words of encouragement and undoubtedly some advice that most others were not experienced enough to give came from the parents of Adrienne Denney, the Casey-Westfield star softball pitcher who in November of 2006 as a sophomore died from complications of problems similar to that of Ames.
That tragedy emphasized the seriousness of what Ames first deemed to be simply a sore arm last spring.
Twenty games into last season he thought things were bad enough when he had to tell his coach he didn’t think he could pitch but would be able to play as a designated hitter.
Landrus saw swelling in the arm and told Ames to see the athletics trainer.
The athletics trainer told Ames he had better get to the hospital.
Sarah Bush Lincoln sent Ames to Barnes Hospital in St. Louis.
“The problem was the blood vessel was rubbing against his top rib,” Gary Ames, Cory’s father said. “It’s just use of the arm. Catchers and pitchers are the ones that come down with that condition.”
Doctors at Barnes helped bring reassurance.
“They’d say, ‘yes, it’s a serious condition but we deal with some of the sickest kids in the world. It’s not that serious,’ ” Gary Ames said. “The doctors and the nurses down at Barnes, you can’t beat them. They’re first class all the way.
Released from the hospital 10 days after his May 6 surgery, Ames then faced a summer of inactivity and was on blood thinner for eight weeks. Gone were plans of playing for the Mattoon Post 88 team, which was the host of that summer’s American Legion state tournament, and getting more exposure in front of college scouts than he would during high school.
Who knew then that Cory Ames would be the No. 1 pitcher in Charleston’s rotation this spring, let alone sign on Friday to continue his baseball career at Lake Land College.
Not him.
“No sir, I did not,” Ames said. “I thought my pitching career and baseball was going to be done for a long time. I thought I was, too.”
But doctors cleared him to resume normal activity, including baseball. Landrus let him know about an instructional fall league where he got back into some competitive action against others his age.
Ames just had to overcome some physical and mental barriers after not playing since April and being through a life scare.
“I was pretty rusty,” he said. “I was pretty scared too to be honest. I didn’t know if anything would tear or rip.”
With doctors’ assurances, his parents did not try to keep him from returning to the baseball field.
“No, they were totally supporting me the total way,” Ames said. “That was always good. Pitching is what I love to do. It was going to take a lot more than that to keep me from it.”
Landrus was also told he was not putting Ames in any danger by writing his name on a lineup card, which so far has had Ames leading off.
“No, there’s no risk as far as I know,” the Charleston coach said. “I’ve asked and they say it’s 100 percent ready to go.
“He’s just a great kid. The kids missed him when wasn’t around.”
Not only has Ames shown no ill effects, he has returned to the mound in style.
He pitched a shutout in last week’s Apollo Conference opener against Robinson and going into today’s 11 a.m. home doubleheader against Newton he has allowed just one earned run and three hits in 10 innings while striking out 13 batters and walking two.
“I’m just throwing the ball and the defense is doing the job,” Ames said. “I can’t thank them enough.”
“I just want to thank all the people that supported me through everything.”
Of course, Ames is glad to be winning ballgames and getting base hits but the past year taught him to put earned run averages and batting averages in perspective. He can probably tell teammates that just running out of the dugout is no given.
“I took way too much for granted,” he said. “I’m honored just to get back on the field.”
Contact Brian Nielsen at bnielsen@jg-tc.com or 238-6856.
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