Drew Robinson’s story is simultaneously tragic and inspiring, incredible and terrifying. On April 16th, 2020, the Sacramento River Cats outfielder attempted suicide. Quarantined in his apartment and crippled by depression, he put a gun to his head and pulled the trigger. The thing is, he didn’t die. In fact, he started living.
Robinson told ESPN his harrowing story, and you should definitely read it. It’s not easy, but it’s necessary in order to understand what happened on Tuesday night. Robinson survived for 20 hours without medical attention. When he did finally seek help, he had cerebrospinal fluid leaking from his brain into the rest of his body. Doctors placed titanium plates in his head and removed his right eye. Robinson finally had clarity. He wanted to live, but the realization came at immense cost—one that seemed, at the time, to include his baseball career.
But then this happened.
That’s Robinson hitting his first home run since returning to baseball. This past weekend, he logged his first hit. Now he’s hitting them out of the park. There are plenty of guys in the majors who can’t hit with both eyes. Drew is doing it with one.
Making matters even sweeter was the fact that Robinson’s family happened to be in the stands, and as he crossed home he made sure to look up and point at them. A way of saying thank you for being there? Acknowledgement that he’s no longer alone? Honestly, that’s not for us to say, but we do know it rules very, very hard.
So there you have it. As cynical, jaded, bored, and downright frustrated as we all can get with sports, this kind of thing is a reminder of what it’s all about and why we fell in love with it in the first place. So go on, Drew. Keep raking. Climb the ladder. See how far you can take this thing. Or don’t. Whatever you want to do, go do. We’re just happy to have you here.
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