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Bucs’ Taillon upbeat in cancer fight

Associated Press

PITTSBURGH — Jameson Taillon felt like he was in a movie, as if he was watching somebody else’s life change and not his own.

The Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher felt something “odd” in his groin and alerted trainers while on the road earlier this month in Cincinnati. Two days later, there the 25-year-old was getting pulled aside by a doctor and being told there’s a chance he has testicular cancer.

“My heart was racing,” Taillon said.

Just not for long.

Taillon’s grown accustomed to adversity thanks to a career peppered with unforeseen obstacles, from Tommy John surgery on his right elbow in 2014 to sports hernia surgery in 2015 that threatened to sidetrack his young career completely. He finally arrived in the majors last summer, and a bout with cancer isn’t going to stop him.

“My immediate thought (after the diagnosis) was what next? What can I do to get better?” Taillon said.

The first step was surgery conducted on May 8, a procedure that sounded more frightening in his mind than in reality. He was home by the end of the day and is already back playing catch and doing light cardio while he awaits further blood tests to determine whether there is any cancer remaining in his system.

This is not how he envisioned his first full season in the majors going. He was 2-1 with a 3.31 ERA in his first six starts, pitching with a maturity of a guy who’s been around far longer than a few months. Call it the residue of the earlier struggles that delayed his arrival in the big leagues.

“I wasn’t going to let this stop me or put me down in the dumps,” he said.

Taillon was overwhelmed by the response when he posted news of his diagnosis on social media. Cyclist Lance Armstrong, a testicular cancer survivor and founder of the Livestrong Foundation, has reached out. Former big league first baseman John Kruk, another survivor, has called too. Taillon is also exchanging texts with Colorado Rockies pitcher Chad Bettis, who was diagnosed last fall and is still undergoing treatment.

The attention has been a little weird. Yet Taillon is trying to embrace the opportunity and raise awareness. It’s not the most comfortable subject but one he’s learned could be vitally important.

“I don’t think guys are nearly aware enough as they should be,” he said. “I’ll find a way to speak out, be an advocate for early detection.”

Taillon added he’s received nothing but positive news about his long-term prospects. He declined to put any sort of timetable on his return pending more test results but the fact it’s even a subject for discussion is a welcome development.

“One of my big baseball philosophies … if I put runners on base, I can’t worry about how they got there,” he said. “I can’t worry about how I got here, just worry about the plan going forward.”

Watching his teammates scuffle without him hasn’t been easy. Taillon admits he’s “totally out of control” sitting on his couch. He’s confident he won’t have to remain there much longer. It’s a mindset that’s hardly a surprise to Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle.

“He made a decision a long time ago to own whatever happens to him, to not pick excuses and not pick at things, to own it and work with it and do the best he can with it,” Hurdle said. “This is another opportunity for him to do just that and he’ll come back better and not bitter. He’s special.”

Phillies top Pirates

PITTSBURGH (AP) — His club mired in a miserable funk that’s drained all the momentum from a promising April, Philadelphia Phillies manager Pete Mackanin called a team meeting before a weekend series in Pittsburgh.

While Mackanin declined to go into the “recipe” of what was said, for one night Jeremy Hellickson provided the most important ingredient for winning baseball: good pitching.

Hellickson settled down quickly after a rocky first inning, retiring 16 of the final 17 batters he faced as the Phillies pulled away for a 7-2 victory over the Pirates on Friday night to snap a four-game losing streak. It was the kind of performance that was reminiscent of Hellickson’s tremendous play in April when he went unbeaten while posting a 1.80 ERA.

“In April I was making mistakes, and they’re outs, (batters) were missing,” he said. “That’s how the game goes sometime, but tonight I was definitely better. I mixed it up more than I have.”

Hellickson started the night winless this month with a 7.90 ERA.

It looked like more of the same early when Pittsburgh scored twice in the first on an RBI-double by Josh Bell and a throwing error by Philadelphia shortstop Freddy Galvis.

Then just as quickly, Hellickson (5-1) found a rhythm, allowing only a two-out walk in the fourth to Andrew McCutchen over his final five innings. Hellickson was only at 84 pitches through six but left after feeling his back tighten up after smacking an RBI double to left in the top of the seventh that pushed Philadelphia’s lead to 4-2.

Mackanin came out to chat with Hellickson before removing him as a precaution. Hellickson anticipates being able to make his next turn in the rotation.

Galvis and Maikel Franco had two hits each for the Phillies. Cameron Rupp added a three-run homer in the ninth to give Philadelphia’s struggling bullpen plenty of breathing room.

Bell had two of Pittsburgh’s three hits. The Pirates came in with some momentum after winning a series against National League-leading Washington but generated nothing against Hellickson’s eclectic variety of changeups and breaking pitches.

“We got our second hit with our second hitter and we didn’t get our third hit until the ninth inning,” Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle said. “Not a lot of activity. Not a lot of hard contact. He made his pitches. He won a bunch of games last year. He shows the ability to do it. He does it in a way you don’t see done every day and he did it to us tonight.”

Philadelphia’s bullpen, which posted a 6.34 ERA during the first six games of the current road trip, made sure the lead stood up.

Trevor Williams (2-3) pitched effectively for five innings before the Phillies got to him in the sixth to take the lead. The Phillies didn’t push Williams around but instead pecked away, eventually moving in front after Cesar Hernandez led off with a walk and Daniel Nava doubled. Hernandez scored on a groundout by Aaron Altherr and Nava followed after a sacrifice fly by Tommy Joseph. Williams allowed three runs in 5 2/3 innings, walking two.

“We’re getting better,” said Williams, moved into the rotation earlier this month after Jameson Taillon went on the disabled list after being diagnosed with testicular cancer. “We’re getting that routine. The pitch count is going up. So we’re where we need to be in terms of starting right now.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Phillies: Nava left after five innings with left hamstring tightness. He was replaced by Michael Saunders, who was held out of the starting lineup a day after leaving a loss to Texas with tightness in his left groin. … Reliever Jeanmar Gomez (right elbow impingement) went through a bullpen session without incident on Thursday. If Gomez completes two more bullpen sessions, Mackanin said the team may opt not to send Gomez out on a rehab assignment.

Pirates: Taillon is upbeat less than two weeks after being diagnosed with testicular cancer. The 25-year-old remains out indefinitely and will undergo tests next week before the next step in the treatment process begins. “Everything I’ve gotten back regarding (previous test results) I’ve taken as good news,” Taillon said. “It could be a lot worse.”

UP NEXT

Phillies: Vince Velasquez will make his second career start against Pittsburgh. Velasquez (2-3, 5.67) gave up three runs, two earned, in five innings last Sunday against Washington.

Pirates: Ivan Nova (3-3, 2.48 ERA) will search for his first victory in May on Saturday. Nova was the NL Pitcher of the Month in April but is winless in his last three starts.

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More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press.

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