MILWAUKEE – If they gave away a Comeback Player of the Year Award in the Minor Leagues, Brewers pitching prospect Frank Cairone would already have it locked up with his inspiring professional debut in the rookie-level Arizona Complex League on Thursday.
Cairone is the 18-year-old left-hander who was hospitalized with a serious head injury suffered in a car crash in early January near his New Jersey home. The Brewers never disclosed the specific nature of those injuries, citing privacy concerns, but at the time, club officials were worried as much about Cairone’s life away from the ballpark as his future in baseball.
But a few weeks after the Brewers’ Major League players showed their support by wearing “FC United” T-shirts in the early days of Spring Training, Cairone was cleared to report to camp to begin a slow ramp-up. It culminated with him being granted full, unfettered clearance last week to begin appearing in games.
“I’m just so thankful that he’s OK,” said Brewers president of baseball operations Matt Arnold after Cairone had his pro debut in the books. “It’s been such a scary journey that he’s been on, so for him to come back and do just what he did today, I’m incredibly thankful that he’s on the mound and back after it.”
Making the start in a Brewers-Giants ACL game in Phoenix on Thursday morning, Cairone yielded a run on a single, a stolen base, a wild pitch and a run-scoring groundout in his first professional inning.
Cairone was Milwaukee's second-round pick in last year’s Draft, and ranks No. 26 on MLB Pipeline’s list of the Top 30 Brewers prospects.
Like they are with all pitchers at the start of their professional careers, the Brewers will exercise caution with Cairone’s build-up.
“It’s just build volume, be healthy, walk off the mound,” Arnold said. “He’s a kid we love a lot. He’s a talented dude.”