Cancer survivor Bettis retires

*Photo from Forbes*

   RHP Chad Bettis has announced his retirement after seven major league seasons on Thursday. Bettis signed a minor league contract with the New York Yankees during the offseason but had a change of heart due to the COVID-19 Pandemic that has put all sports on hold since early March. During his time in Colorado, Bettis established himself as a notable presence in the locker room and on the field when the Rockies had postseason teams in 2017 and 2018. 

   Bettis said in his statement that "I started floating the idea and weighing out different scenarios to myself a couple weeks ago,” said Bettis, who said his decision was not the result of any fear associated with the pandemic. “Something was not adding up from what I was trying to accomplish and how my body had been responding. The decision for me was pretty simple. Physically, I took my body to the limit here. And unfortunately, that has been the deciding factor. There are things that I still want to do with my whole life in front of me, and being able to be with my family and chasing my daughter around is something I envision wanting to do."

   In 2019, Bettis had a bad year, going just 1-6 with a 6.08 ERA with 42 strikeouts in 63 2/3 innings pitched. He mostly stayed in the bullpen, only starting 3 games. In his 7 year career, all with the Rockies, Bettis had a 31-31 record with a 5.12 ERA with 431 strikeouts in 600 2/3 innings pitched. 

   During the 2016 offseason, Bettis was diagnosed with testicular cancer, and underwent surgery that December. In March of 2017, he found out that his cancer had unexpectedly spread, and he had to undergo chemotherapy treatments. Bettis took the treatments and beat cancer in July of 2017. He returned to pitching on August 14 at Coors field, where he threw 7 scoreless innings in a 3-0 Rockies win. That earned him the Tony Conigliaro award, which is presented to the MLB player who best "overcomes an obstacle and adversity through the attributes of spirit, determination, and courage that were trademarks of Conigliaro."