Baltimore Orioles outfielder and first baseman Trey Mancini revealed Tuesday that he is in the midst of six months of chemotherapy and thanked team doctors for requesting the blood testing that led to the discovery of his malignant tumor.
‘If baseball returns in 2020, it will probably be without me,’ Mancini wrote in an essay for The Players’ Tribune on Tuesday.
Mancini, who first announced successful Stage III colon cancer surgery last month, said he began chemotherapy on April 13 and will have treatments every two weeks.
The cancer was discovered in spring training following a team physical and follow-up tests when his iron was too low.
Baltimore Orioles outfielder and first baseman Trey Mancini revealed Tuesday that he is in the midst of six months of chemotherapy and thanked team doctors for requesting the blood testing that led to the discovery of his malignant tumor
‘And without the Orioles I never would have caught this before it may have been too late. There was really no indication that anything was wrong other than me just feeling a little more tired than normal,’ he wrote.
‘Everything that comes up when you google colon cancer? I didn’t have any of it. And so without that second blood test I probably would not have discovered the tumor until I had a total blockage of my colon. Instead, from the day I was diagnosed to when the tumor was removed was just six days – March 6 to March 12.’
He turned 28 on March 18.
Mancini is receiving chemo in a Baltimore hospital and described what it is like to have the procedure amid the coronavirus pandemic.
‘Nobody is allowed to come in with me, and that’s completely fine by me,’ he wrote. ‘I don’t want anybody else being put at risk – people that are close to me and that I love, and other people in the hospital. You just never know. COVID-19 has spread so quickly.
The Orioles selected Mancini, a Florida native, in the eighth round of the 2013 draft. After a brief call-up in 2016, he became a fixture with the club in 2017. He has a career batting average of .276 in 462 games with 86 home runs and 238 RBIs
‘I’m definitely trying to follow all the protocols, not only because it’s the right thing to do, but also because I don’t want to expose myself to anything, especially before going into chemotherapy.’
He left no doubt that he intends to return to baseball when his health allows.
‘Even when I’m doing chemo, I can work out and do some things. So, whenever the time comes for me to come back to baseball, I’ll be ready. But I just want to make sure that I am physically fine before I go out there and start trying to perform again at a major league level.’
Describing himself as ‘lucky,’ Mancini wrote about the people who have motivated him throughout his career and continue to do so.
One 13-year-old Baltimore sports fanatic, Mo Gaba, helped Mancini keep his struggles at the plate in perspective back in 2018.
‘He and I have gotten to be friends the last couple of years,’ Mancini wrote. ‘He’s had bouts with a few different types of cancer, and he’s blind and has a tough time getting around.
‘But he also just has the best outlook on life that I’ve ever seen,’ Mancini continued, while sharing a story about his prolonged slump in 2018. ‘During that tough year in 2018, I stayed back in Baltimore for the All-Star break so I could spend a day with him and his mom — took them to Dave & Buster’s to hang out and just have like a normal day.
‘Well, in March when I was in the hospital, Mo actually called me to see how I was doing. He told me that he was worried about me and wanted to make sure I was O.K.
‘The 13-year-old kid with cancer calling me to make sure I’m O.K.? It blew me away.’
Describing himself as ‘lucky,’ Mancini wrote about the people who have motivated him throughout his career and continue to do so. One 13-year-old Baltimore sports fanatic, Mo Gaba (right), helped Mancini keep his struggles at the plate in perspective back in 2018
In one anecdote Mancini shared a text he received during that 2018 slump, in which his sister Katie attached a picture of him playing baseball as an eight-year-old little leaguer
Mancini also detailed the encouragement he’s received from his family throughout his baseball career.
In one anecdote he shared a text he received during that 2018 slump, in which his sister Katie attached a picture of him playing baseball as an eight-year-old little leaguer.
‘You didn’t come this far to only come this far,’ she wrote to Mancini.
‘That really resonated with me,’ he wrote. ‘I went 2 for 4 that night. I had been 3 for my last 37. I don’t know what it was, but it was just immediate. I had a good second half after that.
‘So many people had reached out to me before then, but nothing had worked. But Katie’s message … it was perfect. And it set me up to have the best year of my career last season. I still have a picture of that message on my phone — still look at it every now and then.’
Mancini pulled out of that slump in late 2018 and was the Orioles’ most productive player last season, batting .291 with 175 hits, including 38 doubles and 35 home runs, and 97 RBIs in 154 games.
The Orioles selected Mancini, a Florida native, in the eighth round of the 2013 draft. After a brief call-up in 2016, he became a fixture with the club in 2017. He has a career batting average of .276 in 462 games with 86 home runs and 238 RBIs.
Mancini pulled out of that slump in late 2018 and was the Orioles’ most productive player last season, batting .291 with 175 hits, including 38 doubles and 35 home runs, and 97 RBIs