It’s the dream of many young baseball players to one day play in the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska.
This past week, dozens of dreams came true as the 2018 CWS played out, with Oregon State ultimately winning it all. But arguably no player had to overcome more in search of his dream than Texas Tech's 5-year senior pitcher, Dylan Dusek.
As a three-year old, Dusek was diagnosed with leukemia.
“When he was 3-and-a-half-years-old I noticed he wasn’t acting his normal self, he was complaining of pain in his shoulder,” Cheryl Dusek, Dylan’s mother said.
In the hospital, Dylan religiously watched the Astros, falling in love with baseball and, when his cancer was in remission, he began to play.
“Anytime the boy always had a ball in his hand,” Patrick Dusek, Dylan’s father said.
In the years to come, Dylan’s baseball career took off. Eventually, he was playing on elite traveling teams and as a high school senior committed to play at Texas Tech. But as a junior at Texas Tech Dylan’s luck again turned, a sore shoulder and elbow became a double-arm surgery.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
“I’ve been through a lot in my life, so when I first found out I needed those two major surgeries, I knew I was going to work hard and get it done,” Dylan Dusek said.
Dusek eventually fought his way back on the field and during this year’s CWS he was on the mound against number one ranked Florida. With his parents in the stands, Dusek struck out his final batter in what would turn out to be his final college game.
But his baseball journey is far from over, Dusek was drafted by the San Francisco Giants and will report to rookie ball in Arizona later this summer.
