Jul 2, 2016 7 min read

Every baseball player in the independent leagues is trying to overcome something. For some, it’s being told there is no longer room for them in a major league organization. For others, it’s not being selected in the annual amateur draft. For many, it’s an injury that has derailed their career.

All of those players have a story that includes elements of determination, facing adversity and fighting the good fight.

And they all pale in comparison to the story of Isaac Wenrich, a catcher for the Frontier League’s Florence Freedom, who will conclude a three-game series today (5:05 p.m.) against the Wild Things at Consol Energy Park.

You see, Wenrich shouldn’t be alive today. He was clinically dead for four minutes in March after suffering what was described as a massive “widowmaker” heart attack.

A Pennsylvania native, Wenrich is alive today only because of the quick-thinking and calmness under of pressure of Nathan Boyer, a 13-year-old boy who revived him with cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) while being guided through the procedure by paramedics who were providing instructions via a cellphone.

Wenrich is a native of West Lawn, a sports-minded community 12 miles west of Reading. He was an outstanding athlete at Wilson High School, a PIAA football powerhouse. Wenrich played college baseball at Franklin Pierce in Rindge, N.H., helping the Ravens to a fourth-place finish in the 2010 NCAA Division II World Series but he went undrafted after his junior and senior seasons.

That led Wenrich to independent baseball and in 2014 he signed with a team in Vallejo, Calif., that plays in the Pacific Association. During the offseason, Wenrich trained in Arizona, where he coached a 13-and-under travel baseball team. One of his players was Boyer, who would eventually save Wenrich’s life.

Late last summer, Wenrich was traded to Florence, where he batted .250 and hit three home runs in 18 games.

“The trade of the year for our organization,” Florence manager Dennis Pelfrey says. “No pun intended, but Isaac is the heartbeat of our team. He was with us for only 18 games last year but he improved us and helped push us into the playoffs. There was no doubt he was going to be our starting catcher this year.”

During the offseason, Wenrich was back in Arizona getting in the best shape of his life, or so he thought, preparing for his first full season with the Freedom. He also taught baseball lessons and one of his students was Boyer.

It was March 28 when Boyer and Wenrich met at Desert Breeze Park in Chandler, Ariz., for a baseball lesson.

“I remember that morning, I had been lifting weights,” Wenrich recalled. “Afterward, I had some pain in my chest and it was going down my left arm. I thought it was just from lifting weights; maybe I had pulled a muscle or tweaked something.”

Boyer’s mother always stayed and watched her son’s workout with Wenrich, but on this day she had an errand to run and didn’t stay.

“It was the only time she didn’t stay,” Wenrich said.

While Boyer did some pre-drill stretching, Wenrich sat on a bucket of baseballs. When Boyer was ready to hit, he approached Wenrich, who stood up and then immediately fell face-forward to the ground.

At first, Boyer thought Wenrich, a jovial guy, was fooling around. It didn’t take long for the boy to realize this was no joke. The situation was deadly serious.

Boyer, however, had the maturity and presence of mind to think clearly, grab Wenrich’s cellphone and call 9-1-1.

“I had fallen on my cellphone, so Nate had to get it out from under me,” Wenrich explained. “He knew to roll me over and get the phone.”

Boyer had taken a CPR course when he was in the Boys Scouts as a 10-year-old but was foggy on some of the procedures, especially under the circumstances.

“He had an understanding of what he was supposed to do, but the paramedics walked him through the CPR step by step while on the phone,” Wenrich said.

Boyer revived Wenrich after four minutes. When the paramedics arrived, they transported him to the hospital.

“This happened on a Monday and I don’t recall being at the park or anything that happened,” Wenrich said. “I was in a coma until Wednesday. When I woke up, I couldn’t believe what I was being told. Here I am, 26 years old and in the best shape of my life, eating the best diet possible, and I had a heart attack.”

Not just any kind of heart attack. Wenrich had 100 percent blockage in one of his arteries. A piece of plaque in the artery had become dislodged and settled into a position where it blocked blood flow. Wenrich was told that only five percent of the people who suffer this kind of heart attack survive.

“My hitting coach (A.J.Cicconi) called and told me he heard what happened,” Pelfrey said. “I couldn’t believe it. I thought it was a bad joke. I was in shock for several days without any information coming in. How does a 26-year-old guy who is in great shape have this happen to him? It’s unbelievable. He’s fortunate to be alive.”

When Pelfrey confirmed his catcher had indeed suffered a massive heart attack, the search Wenrich’s replacement began.

“In all honesty, I was counting him out for the rest of his career,” Pelfrey said.

One thing Pelfrey and the Freedom have learned, however, is never to count out Wenrich.

“Seven days after I had the heart attack, I was out of the hospital and doing baseball-related activities,” Wenrich said. “Nothing strenuous, mind you, but simple things like taking a few swings at a ball on a tee and light jogging.

“My whole goal was to get back on the field, the sooner the better. I’m fortunate that I’m blessed with great family and friends and play for an organization that told me to take all the time I needed to get back. (Pelfrey) told me he needed me in August at the end of the season, not at the start.”

Wenrich was back in Florence in May but began the season on the disabled list. He was activated May 27, and in his first game back went 2-for-2 against Gateway. Wenrich entered Saturday night with a .227 batting average and four home runs in 27 games. He drew a walk as a pinch-hitter in the ninth inning Friday against the Wild Things.

Before Florence’s June 10 game at home against Evansville, Wenrich was sent to home plate to catch a ceremonial first pitch – something that happens before almost every baseball game at every professional level. Only this time, unbeknownst to Wenrich, the kid throwing out the first pitch that night was Boyer.

“I was overcome by emotion,” Wenrich said. “I couldn’t hold it in.

“You wonder sometimes why God puts certain people in your life. Two years before this happened, Nate was just a kid on my team. Then, he was a kid I gave lessons to. Then he becomes the person who saved my life. He’s special. I can’t thank him enough.”