Cancer journey bonds Marlins pitcher and coach

JUPITER

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, wasted little time before giving the 26-year-old a hug.

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

To outsiders, what Enright did on this Wednesday afternoon was a routine moment in spring training. A pitcher takes 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 21⁄2 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 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 by MLB Pipeline, took a month off from baseball following the diagnosis to focus on his health. 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 July 10.

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

But a simple moment

Schumaker said he has been “pretty inspired” by Enright’s work ethic this spring.

“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 throw two bullpens per week while he and the Marlins figure out a longterm plan.

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

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

Jordan McPherson: 305-376-2129, @J_McPherson1126