Every team has tragic figures. Players who died too soon or suffered career-ending injuries or maladies while still in the prime of their careers. Then there are players who never get going because of a health issue early in their career. Ryan Westmoreland is one of those stories.
Westmoreland was a 5th round draft pick, but he could have easily been drafted higher. He was one of the top high school players in the region and was considered a true five-tool talent with tremendous potential. Scouts raved about him. He played extremely well in his first professional season in 2009, playing in the New York-Penn League. Just 19, he hit .296/.401/.484 with seven home runs, 35 RBIs and 19 stolen bases in just 60 games. The sky looked to be the limit.
Unfortunately, that turned out to be the end of Westmoreland's playing career. He was shut down in March 2010, when a cavernous malformation was discovered on his brain stem. He had surgery to remove it and missed the entire season. He attempted to rehabilitate during the 2011 and 2012 seasons to hope to make it back to the field. Unfortunately, he had a setback in 2012 and had to have a second surgery. The next year, he elected to retire instead of pursuing more rehabilitation.
We will never know what could have been, but Westmoreland looked to be the real deal. His health is the most important thing obviously, and by all accounts, his life seems to be going well. It's just a shame we could not see what could have been.
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