Brown’s rocky path paved the way for big-league success with Cubs
Rookie pitcher Ben Brown has been an unexpected bright spot for the Cubs this season.
After a rough MLB debut in Texas early in the season, the 6-foot-6 right-hander has posted a 1.91 ERA in the 37 innings since then, even while shifting roles between five starts and six relief appearances.
But one reason Brown, 24, has been sailing as a rookie is because his path to the big leagues was so rocky.
As a sophomore at Ward Melville High School on Long Island, Brown was a rising star. College coaches flocked to his starts.
But appendicitis ruined his junior season, and by the time high school ended, he had just one college offer on the table, from Siena. He begged major-league teams to draft him but stayed on the draft board until the Phillies finally called his name in the 33rd round.
“I became more than what I would have been if I had never gotten hurt,” Brown said this week at Wrigley Field.
An appendectomy can seem like a minor procedure, but it creates problems for an athlete. Downers Grove South grad Nick Burdi came down with appendicitis last year in May, shortly after being called up to the Cubs, and didn't return. He's now with the Yankees.
Brown didn't even have a routine appendectomy. He ignored symptoms for a few days and tried to keep playing baseball until the appendix finally ruptured.
“I was throwing up in the woods at my high school game, thinking I had some sort of stomach bug,” Brown said. “I ended up blacking out and going to the hospital. I waited as long as you can to say something.”
He spent several days in the hospital, was sent home, then returned to the hospital when there was an issue with his blood cell count.
His junior season of high school was gone, he lost weight and when he tried to come back that summer, his velocity was way down.
“I essentially missed my junior summer,” Brown said. “I was noncompetitive.”
His high school produced a couple of MLB pitchers in Steven Matz and former Cub Anthony Kay, so his coach Lou Petrucci had plenty of connections, but college interest faded fast. During his sophomore year, Brown was approached by schools like Maryland, Pittsburgh, a few in the Big Ten. He set a goal of playing at St. John's and thought UConn, where Kay pitched, could be an option.
“It was frustrating for sure,” Brown said. “Schools that you thought you could play at with your eyes closed are saying that you're not good enough to play there anymore and you can't even do anything about it. I wasn't myself. I wasn't throwing hard. I was all beat up.
“It wasn't until maybe January, February of my senior year where I started kind of ticking up a little bit.”
When high school ended, Brown wasn't sure what to do. He committed to Siena but debated whether a Southern junior college would be a better path if he wasn't drafted.
The Phillies gave him an opportunity but not much money. Still, he was happy to get a chance.
“For a high schooler not to sign for slot is pretty ridiculous,” Brown said with a laugh. “To give the scouts some slack, I did say I would sign for anything. They took me up on that offer.”
The obstacles kept coming. Two years after being drafted, he had Tommy John surgery, then the pandemic hit, so he went roughly two years without pitching. But he sees that now as a silver lining, because he was just 17 when he finished high school.
“Tommy John was the best thing for me, in my opinion,” Brown said. “It helped me catch up to everyone else.”
Once he got back on the mound, the good news started flowing. He was traded to the Cubs in 2022 for reliever David Robertson, which was an interesting twist. His wife Maggie's family are die-hard Cubs fans. The young couple already had a dog named Wrigley before the trade happened.
Brown spent this past winter living near the Cubs complex in Arizona and made a couple of changes in his delivery that seemed to contribute to the current success.
At the time Brown was drafted, his high school coach made a prediction that was close to accurate.
“I think his determination and dedication to baseball is what sets him apart from the average high school pitcher,” Petrucci said, according to TBR News Media. “If he signs and forgoes college, he’ll be in the big leagues in five years. No question in my mind.”
It took seven years, thanks to elbow surgery and the pandemic. But the setbacks pushed Brown to work even harder and the payoff has been impressive.
“It's awesome,” he said. “I'm just really blessed to be here and have this opportunity.”
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