2004

ECCC baseball player still recovering from eye injury

Frosh John Fortenberry of Carthage loses eye after taking on line drive By ROBBIE ROBERTSON Special to The Democrat East Central Communit)' College pitcher John FortenbeiT) always thought he had what it took to be a major leaguer. At 6-foot-4. 227 pound!), he had the frame. Now the Carthage native JU~I hopes to live a nonnal life. During an intra-~quad scrimmage last week. Fortenberry was lut in the face by a line drive. crushing the right side of his face. "It was something he l:ouldn't have reacted to," ECCC coach Jake Yarbrough said. "It was so quick and so unfortu-

nate. Our guys immediately went over to the side and said a prayer. Luckily his parents were there to give the para– medics information." His parents, Dawn and Cookie Fortenberry, accompanied Fortenberry to Laird Hospital where the cuts on his face were stitched up. He was then transported to the Uni– versit)' of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson where he underwent a 5- hour surgery. Yarbrough said after the practice, most of the team loaded on a bus and went to Jackson to check on their fall– en teammate. "(Thq doctors) said he was very fortunat~ to be alive and this wa!> the worst eye injury they had ever seen," Dawn Fortenberry said. "They told U!> the eye socket had been crushed and they would try to save the eye. "On Saturday. they checked the eye

and told us it was lost." Fortenberry's mother said her son , was scheduled for another surgery on I Thursday where doctors will attempt to reconstruct the right side of his face and the orbital area with titanium plat– ing. '"You could just see it in his face when the doctors came m and told him that he was going to Jose his eye." Dawn Fortenberry said. "He had eve.rr intention of going all the way (to the major leagues). Only God knows what the plan may be for him now. We do thank everyone for the support and love that they are llhowing." Yarbrough said Fortenberry was one of his top incoming freshmen. As a high school pitcher at Carthage, Fortenberry was a Mississippi Associ– ation of Coaches All-Star and partici– pated in the Stale Games of Mississip– pi. "II I\ devastating to our whole

baseball team," Yarbrough said. "Our real talented kid and managed to keep hearts and prayers go out to John's his feet on the Fortenberry's mother said she John ''as a very athletic young man doesn't know how she will go about It ..nJ one of our top freshmen. We will but hopes that the accident will m1"' him but the mo!)t important thing prompt some discuss1on O'-er usmg 1s how he i~ doing:· aluminum bats in college and perhaps ·He wru. probably one of the best some kind of protecuon for pitcher;. famJI)'. ground." "We hope for a quick recovery.

APPEA

THAGINIAN

LAKE fl SCOTT UNION

kid.' that\ come through here," said

''I don't know what we will do but

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Waid Prather. ed1tor of the Carthagin- I don't want this to happen to any~y 'HOBA DEMOCRAT ian. else." Dawn Fortenberry said. "Not only wa~ he a great baseball "Chances are if it had been a wood rTON RECORD player. he wa~ a good kid. He was a bat, they might have had a chance. Ilc

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WINSTI 'yes sir. no s1r,' kind of kid. He was a even said as a player. he wtshed they .I DIAN STAR --------- SPIRIT OF MORTON _______ wo_u_Id_c_h_an_gc to wooden bats." '-'L'"'RION-LEDGER --- - - - - IMPACT _______________________