By September of that year, a lump had developed on me outside of my left arm that was now
half the size of a golf ball.
I’m getting ready for spring training in 1981, and the next thing you know, I’m traded
in spring training, with two days left, to the San Diego Padres.
But you know what was really cool?
It was there that I met my roommate, Byron Ballard, and Byron became the guy in my life
that challenged me to read the Bible.
August 27, 1981, my wife and I were baptized by Roy Wheeler.
It was, in all places, in Amarillo, Texas, the most beautiful place in the universe for
Jan and I, and the most amazing experience of our life, that began a journey that has
been a very interesting journey to say the least.
Getting to the big leagues and now being a Major League ballplayer experiencing an All-Star
Game and the World Series, and then getting traded from the San Diego Padres, which were
a last place team, to the first place Giants, and going into postseason playing in ’87
against the Cardinals, pitching the two best games of my life.
I thought, “Man, 1988’s going to be my year.”
We’re sitting there, and the doctors on the outside of the room start flipping the
films under the lights to examine them, and all of a sudden we heard one of the guys say,
“Man, this is a tumor.”
And my heart went into my throat.
I said, “Look, I can’t sit back and forget about at least attempting to come back.
I don’t want to live the rest of my life wondering.”
I went to the bullpen, and there was a standing ovation.
I was like, “Wait a minute, man.
I’m just Dave Dravecky.”
And then I get out to the mound, and I’m just overwhelmed by all these things that
are happening, and the game starts, and I complete eight innings in this victory against
the Cincinnati Reds.
It’s a couple hours before the game, sitting there talking with Bob Knepper over a pregame
lunch, and we start talking about the comeback and how awesome it was, and this incredible
miracle, and all of a sudden I’m sitting there and he looks at me and he goes, “I
hate to burst your bubble, man, but it’s not the miracle of the comeback here that’s
so important.
It’s the miracle of salvation.
It’s the day you met Jesus that is so important in all of this, and what God has done is given
you a platform, through baseball, to share His love with those who hurt.”
And five hours later, I’m laying on the ground with a broken arm, and all I could
hear were Bob Knepper’s words.
The cancer reoccurred.
There were more surgeries.
With each surgery, there were less and less margin to be able to remove anything, because
now they were down to bone.
I felt so much pressure to be an example for others.
I entered into an identity crisis.
I went into clinical depression.
Then I became a very angry man because I did not know how to deal with these emotions that
I had pushed and pushed and pushed.
It was horrible.
As a result of some really good friends, who loved me in spite of my behavior, God began
to heal.
It’s hard even to admit those things, but there’s been great healing in being able
to expose the lies of my life, the hiddenness of my life.
Because in that freedom, I’ve come face to face with true grace, that love that comes
even on my worst day.
The most loving, the most gracious, the most understanding, the most encouraging, the most
forgiving Person in the universe and in my life.