Fonthill draft pick Brettell to honour late sister on mound with Cardinals
Michael Brettell took his late sister’s memory with him every time he stepped onto the mound for his college baseball team last year.
The Canadian right-hander plans to keep doing that as he begins his pro career in the St. Louis Cardinals’ organization.
Brettell inscribed the initials of his sister Emily, who died suddenly at age 17 two years ago, on the custom-made glove he used for his junior season at Central Michigan University.
While he won’t be able to use the same glove in the pro ranks — there’s a Canadian flag stitched on it and MLB prohibits the use of gloves with different colours in game action — Brettell will write E.R.B. into the palm of his new glove once he gets it.
“I’ll carry her with me every game,” Brettell told The Canadian Press in a phone interview from Johnson City, Tenn., the home of St. Louis’s rookie-league affiliate.
“I also wear a chain that has a cross with her initials and her fingerprint on it, so I keep her nearby every time.”
Emily was a promising young rower on her high school team and the South Niagara Rowing Club when she died while working out in the Brettell family’s basement in Fonthill, Ont., in August 2016.
Michael was home from school following his freshman season with the Central Michigan Chippewas when it happened. His family still doesn’t know what caused Emily’s death.
“It was not anything anyone expected, because she was so healthy and in such great shape,” Brettell said.
“It’s still undetermined. There was no underlining issue, nothing like that.”
Emily’s death was the second tragedy to hit the Chippewas team that year. Two months earlier, the mother of Brettell’s teammate, Colton Bradley, died in a bicycle accident.
Brettell had been living with the Bradleys in their Michigan home while playing summer ball when the accident happened.
He said the bond between him and Bradley began to solidify at that time, and was further strengthened when Emily died, and Bradley made the 600-kilometre drive to Fonthill to be with the Brettells.
“Seeing him go through that was heartbreaking, just awful; and then with what happened with me, it was something else that we connected over,” Brettell said.
“It was definitely a nice feeling, knowing his support was there. That’s not a short drive. It was nice to see him make that trip to come and support my family during that time.”
Bradley said he wasn’t thinking about the distance when he hopped in his car.
“I wanted to make sure I was there for him, like he was there for me,” Bradley said. “Seeing the way he was there for me through the loss of my mom . ... If we needed to go to the grocery store he would help out with that kind of stuff. He’d just do whatever he could to take our minds off it. “And so, when I heard the news about his sister, I got in the car and drove out to his house.”
Brettell was drafted in the 15th round by the Cardinals earlier this month and reported to their rookie league team last Saturday.
A ground-ball pitcher with a full arsenal, the six-foot-three, 210-pound Brettell said he was thrilled to be chosen by an organization that has produced some of the game’s top arms in recent years.
He’s not sure yet if he’ll be used in the rotation or bullpen just yet. But he’ll be happy either way.
“I know they pride themselves on ground-ball outs and working quick in the count, and that’s what I try to do, as well,” said the 20-year-old, who throws a sinker, four-seam fastball, changeup, slider and splitter.
“I’m definitely excited to be part of this organization and I’m excited to see where this takes me.”
Bradley’s excited to see that, too, calling Brettell’s talent “electrifying.”
“He’s got phenomenal stuff, and on top of that he works harder than anyone,” said Bradley, adding he’s seen Brettell touch 95-96 miles per hour on the radar gun. “It’s really impressive to see what he can do and I know he’s only going to get better.”
Brettell was with family and friends at his girlfriend’s home in Michigan when he got the call from St. Louis on Day 3 of the draft three weeks ago.
While he celebrated his accomplishment, he thought for a moment about what his sister might have said to him had she been there.
“Me and her had a weird relationship — she was into rowing and I was into baseball, and neither of us liked each other’s sport,” Brettell said with a laugh. “But she would have definitely been proud of me.
“I know she would have been progressing quickly in her rowing career too, so we would have been proud of each other.”