‘A huge milestone’: Marlins reliever throws first bullpen since December cancer diagnosis

Nic Enright fired off his final pitch to Cameron Barstad, and a sense of euphoria and relief enveloped him. Pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre Jr., who stood behind Enright for just about every pitch he threw, wasted little time before giving the 26-year-old pitcher a hug.

“I got goosebumps watching him,” Stottlemyre said. “I really did.”

To the outsiders, what Enright did on this Wednesday afternoon was a routine moment seen throughout spring training. A pitcher takes to the mound, throws a bullpen session, gets feedback and critiques from his catcher and his pitching coach and goes on about his day.

But very little has been routine for Enright during the past two-and-a-half months.

Enright’s bullpen session was the first time he threw off a mound since being diagnosed in late December with nodular predominant Stage 2 Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, a type of cancer that affects the immune system and causes swollen lymph nodes and growths throughout the body.

Enright, listed as the Marlins’ No. 23 overall prospect according to MLB Pipeline, took a month off from any baseball-related activities following the diagnosis to focus on his doctor appointments and making sure he had his health taken care of. In lieu of chemotherapy, he done four rounds of immunotherapy so far via a port that was inserted into his chest in December. His final round for his first set of treatments came in early February, right before the start of spring training. He is scheduled to begin his next round of treatments on July 10.

The Marlins are being slow and methodical with Enright’s throwing program.

But a simple moment like Wednesday, throwing 20 pitches off a mound, was more than enough validation for Enright.

“I felt amazing,” said Enright, who the Marlins selected in the Rule 5 Draft on Dec. 7, a little more than two weeks before his diagnosis. “For me, that’s the last two months of work and everything that gone into it — between plyo balls in my basemen when I was going through treatments and all that — the reason I’m doing all that is so that I can get out here and be on the mound. For me, I could have been spraying balls halfway up the fence and it wouldn’t have mattered. Just to be back on the slope was a huge milestone and a huge checkpoint through all this.”

Stottlemyre understands Enright’s situation. The pitching coach was diagnosed with prostate cancer in February 2021 and has a family history of cancer — His father, Mel Sr., died in 2019 after a battle with blood cancer and his younger brother Jason died from leukemia at age 11.

“During our conversations in the winter, I did a lot of listening to him, and then I opened up to him,” Stottlemyre said. “I told him my story. I gave him my dad’s story. I gave him my little brother’s story and everything that took place and what they went through and their perspective on life. And, really, it translates to pitching if you think about it. There are some good days and you can have some bad days. He made the chose to move forward with his program, and I’ve been there with him to support him. He knows that.

“We’ve had conversations at during spring training,” Stottlemyre continued. “With all the guys that I have, I just want to make sure that I didn’t let him slip away and not check in with him and that if he needed somebody I was going to be there for him. Hopefully, that part helps him.”

Enright appreciates the bond he has forged with Stottlemyre as he balances his health and his career. He is also thankful for his teammates’ support. He had a decent contingent of pitchers and catchers watching on as he threw his bullpen session and received fist bumps from all of them after he finished.

“The fact that I ended up in an organization where a pitching coach like him has gone through what he has gone through and we have that shared connection is really awesome,” Enright said. “The fact that all these guys are here around me while I’m going on the mound is an encapsulation of my entire journey through all this. Every step of the way, there’s people right and left there to help support me and be there for me.”

Enright was originally a 20th-round pick by Cleveland in the 2019 MLB Draft out of Virginia Tech. He finished the 2022 season with Cleveland’s Triple A affiliate, the Columbus Clippers. In 37 innings over 29 appearances with the Clippers, Enright posted a 2.68 ERA with 50 strikeouts against just six walks while holding opponents to a .216 batting average.

For his career, he has pitched 141 2/3 innings in the minors and has a 2.80 ERA with 201 strikeouts against 35 walks. Baseball America called Enright “one of the most polished available relievers in this year’s Rule 5 class” and called him “a relatively low-risk addition to a big-league bullpen as a Rule.

Marlins manager Skip Schumaker said he has been “pretty inspired” by Enright’s work ethic through spring training.

“You’d have no idea he’s going through anything the way he’s going about things,” Schumaker said. “There hasn’t been a bad day as far as we’re concerned as far as how he’s going about his business with a smile on his face. He’s upbeat, excited to be here, excited to be part of the drills and throwing the bullpen is a big step.”

As for his next steps, Enright said the goal is to be throwing two bullpens per week while he and the Marlins figure out a long-term plan.

Stottlemyre doesn’t want to think that far ahead just yet, though.

“Take it one day at a time,” Stottlemyre said, “and really cherish and embrace what life and baseball gives him that day.”