The Hearns: Profiles in Courage
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Chapter 2 The Hearns: Profiles in Courage I feel really tired. I feel like I’m 84 instead of 53. I feel like I should be sitting in a chair in some retirement home looking out at some palm trees. But this journey has given me a gift that I know I’m supposed to use. - Ed Hearn on July 15, 2014 It’s late one evening in 1994 and Ed Hearn, feeling extremely weak and deeply depressed from a failed kidney transplant, is sitting in an old reclining chair in his basement watching a video tape recording of his major league debut. The May 17, 1986 NBC Game of the Week from Dodger Stadium is a contest between the Mets and the Dodgers. In a day game after a night game, Mets’ manager Davey Johnson is giving his All Star catcher Gary Carter the afternoon off and inserting Hearn into the line-up. The hard-throwing right-hander and future Cy Young Award Winner Bob Welch is on the mound for the bullet into the chamber, closes his eyes and takes a Dodgers. Hearn, who singled in his first at-bat that deep breath. He cocks the hammer back with his afternoon, follows that up in his second plate finger on the trigger before taking one last look at the appearance by drilling a long fly ball to deep left center photos. field for a stand-up double. Then, in what would have been the last moment of his As Hearn stands proudly on second base, the life, he begins to think about his faith in God and how announcers Vin Scully and Joe Garagiola discuss how taking his own life would affect his wife Tricia. Ed puts Hearn must feel as if he’s on top of the world. the gun down, choosing to keep battling his daunting Upon hearing those words, Ed musters all the energy health issues, and live another day. he could and jumps out of his chair, kicking the ****** television off its stand, and sending it crashing to the Shawnee, Kansas is a lush, green, middle class basement cement floor. With tears running down his suburban town of 62,000. With its serene lakes and cheeks, he sits down beside his work bench and starts parks, and its close proximity to Kansas City, Missouri, writing a “final note” to his wife Tricia. Money Magazine ranked it 17th in its “Best Places to “Sorry Trish. I’ve become too much of a burden for Live” in a recent survey. you. Forget about me. Remarry and be happy.” There was some question on whether or not I would Ed then looks up and sees an old photo of himself as a get to see Shawnee, the home of former Mets’ back- boy playing ball with his father. Then another photo of up catcher Ed Hearn, as my email exchange with him his wife as a 10 year old girl catches his eye. became an exercise in gaining his trust. He begins another note, this one to his baby boy Cody. “Much has been said and written about the ’86 Mets,” “Cody, I’ve never been a quitter, but the “bean balls” wrote Hearn in one email. “So personally, I would have been too much. Don’t be like me, son. Keep recommend that before you were to take the trouble swinging for the fences regardless of life’s curves. Ya flying out here, I would be interested in hearing a bit gotta face the curves if you’re gonna be a big leaguer about your angle on this project. I’m no longer in life.” enthused about much of today’s purposeless, slap- Ed puts his pen down, walks over to his gun rack and stick media.” pulls out a .357 Magnum revolver. He loads a single I eventually gained Ed’s trust by emphasizing how I have the best care. If I didn’t think he was getting it, or intended to personalize each of the ’86 Mets profiled, if I felt I could do it better, than I would do it myself. thus greatly enhancing the quality of the book for the The stronger you are, the more likely you are to get reader in the process. He liked how that sounded and what you need and want. I always try to do it in a nice invited me to his home. way, but if I don’t get what I need, I just get more and Once in Kansas, I pulled into Ed’s driveway about 20 more aggressive.” minutes later than I intended. As I listened to her speak, I couldn’t help but think if “So what do you think about our Kansas City traffic, there was ever a picture in the Webster’s Dictionary by dude?” Ed said grinningly as I got out of my rental car. the wedding vow phrase “In sickness and in health,” it Ed admitted to me later that he had some trouble would be of Tricia. remembering my name, so he substituted it with Ed and Tricia first met in much happier times, late in “dude.” I took the use of this informal term as a the Mets’ 1986 world championship season. Ed, after compliment, as its often used these days with eight-and-a-half years of minor league ball, was called someone you are comfortable with. up by the Mets that year to be the back-up catcher to “No kidding,” I said. “I’m glad I called you before I left Gary Carter. He was more than capable in the role, my hotel.” hitting .265 with four homeruns. And when “Kid” went down with an injury that August, Hearn confidently Ed’s greeting was warm as he shook my hand and declared with true ’86 Mets bravado that “it’s my team welcomed me into his house. He seemed unlike now” and helped the club to an 11-4 record in Carter’s anyone that would ever have contemplated suicide. absence. His time behind the plate was highlighted by Once inside, I was introduced to his wife, Tricia, and a homerun he belted off of the great Fernando their 19 year old son Cody, a polite young man who Valenzuela. But as Ed would be the first to say, the has battled Stage 3 non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma the last greatest connection of his life came late in the 1986 few years. Cody would soon excuse himself to watch a baseball season. local baseball game with some of his friends. While shagging balls in the outfield at Shea Stadium While Ed spoke in a low, yet soft and sometimes with pitcher Randy Niemann, a discussion began about breathy voice, Tricia’s was surprisingly strong and Randy’s wife and their new baby born the night before authoritative when considering how pretty and at a hospital on Long Island. As the conversation feminine she was. slowed, Ed asked what pretty much all ballplayers are “She’s a stubborn-ass first generation German from most interested in finding out. Long Island,” Ed took delight in pointing out several “I jokingly asked Randy if there were any good-looking times during the visit. “Both of her parents are from single nurses up on their wing,” Ed said with a smile. Germany. You better do things her way.” “I’ve always had a soft spot for nurses. Most of them I would come to understand what made Tricia so seem to have a genuinely caring personality that I had strong—not only had she been Ed’s caregiver for well come to like during my many visits to the hospital for over twenty years, but she was also dealing with one surgery or another.” Cody’s own cancer battle since he was seventeen. Niemann was more than happy to give his teammate a “I think my strength has kind of progressed over the scouting report and, according to Ed, told him, "Hey, years,” Tricia explained. “While I think I was meek as a there is this really cute looking gal my wife has gotten teenager, growing up in New York made me stronger to know pretty well. She's a real looker! Tall and over time. I started working in a bakery at sixteen and slender, brownish blonde hair, and brown eyes And New Yorkers are known for being difficult to please. she seems really sweet. My wife really likes her. And The experience helped make me more assertive and I best of all, she doesn't even have one of those New learned to stick up for myself. York accents. But the only thing is, they wear those “And with Ed, I think my being a professional nurse surgical scrub outfits, so I can't tell if she's got great really helped. As a wife you want your husband to boobs or not! Yeah, you've got to come on down to After hearing more accolades about the pretty, young the hospital and meet this gal." nurse from Kristen’s mother and her father, Ed got As intriguing as this may have all sounded to Ed the Tricia’s phone number and set up a lunch date. bachelor, he explained how he was hesitant about At the time, Ed was casually dating Red Sox relief going out with another New York woman, finding pitcher Calvin Schiraldi’s sister, Rhonda. Prior to the them to be too fast for, as he called himself, “an ole World Series, this courtship wouldn’t have raised an southern boy.” eyebrow and would have made total sense.