Nic Enright was diagnosed with cancer, Hodgkin's Lymphoma, 29 months ago.
On Sunday, he made his debut in Major League Baseball for the Cleveland Guardians.
"That was everything I wanted it to be," Enright told reporters afterward.
Enright got the news of his call-up on Friday night. He was in Columbus, and Cleveland needed to place reliever Hunter Gaddis on the bereavement list.
Outside the ballpark, Enright delivered the news to his family, which got the chance to cry happy tears.
His wife and parents were in attendance Saturday in Detroit, but Enright didn't get into the game.
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On Sunday, Enright trotted in from the bullpen for an MLB debut that not too long ago had seemed improbable.
Enright never stopped believing. He underwent his treatments around a baseball schedule, either at the All-Star Break or during the offseason.
The right-handed pitcher kept getting outs in the minor leagues, and so when the Guardians needed an arm, it was his they chose.
Enright pitched the final two innings Sunday. The Guardians were trailing, but that didn't matter.
His first at bat ended with a strikeout on a heater. Enright threw two scoreless frames, allowing two hits and striking out three.
Nic Enright struck out Riley Greene on four pitches to begin his big league career. pic.twitter.com/h9szdpoaix
— Tim Stebbins (@tim_stebbins) May 25, 2025
Enright, a 20th-round pick out of Virginia Tech, was unlikely to see this day based just on his draft status. Throw in the cancer diagnosis, and Enright's odds got even lower.
But he beat the odds, all of them, and as he walked off the mound Sunday, he looked up at his family in the stands, according to The Athletic's Zack Meisel.
His family had been there through it all, and they shared this magical moment together.
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