LOWELL — Ryan Westmoreland savored every swing he took during batting practice in the scorching sun yesterday afternoon, leaving the batters box with the look of a player who had just hit a walkoff grand slam.
"I feel grateful to be alive and breathing right now," said Westmoreland. "Let alone being here, doing baseball activities, being in uniform and taking in a game from the dugout after a life-threatening surgery."
The sight of Westmoreland in a baseball uniform was an emotional one for his family in attendance, since it was just over five months ago that the 20-year-old underwent major brain surgery to remove a cavernous malformation on his brain stem.
"We are overwhelmed with joy," said his girlfriend Charlene Colameta, fighting back tears. "Seeing him hit off a tee or hit soft toss is overwhelming. He tells me that I'm a crybaby, but he's a true inspiration. This is his dream, and he is fighting for it."
The player that is still ranked the top prospect in the Boston Red Sox system began his long trip back to competitive baseball last night when he joined the Lowell Spinners for workouts during their final homestand.
"This is amazing because I started this process with nothing," said Westmoreland. "I was here last year and it was going so well. Then, just like that, it was almost all taken away from me. So, to be back out here in uniform is very special."
One season ago, Westmoreland was the crown jewel of the Red Sox minor league system. Selected in the fifth round of the 2008 draft out of Portsmouth (R.I.) High School — he fell because he had committed to play at powerhouse Vanderbilt — the Red Sox signed him to a $2 million signing bonus, the second most ever given to a Boston draft pick.
Westmoreland opened his career in style last season, hitting .296 with seven home runs and 35 RBIs in 60 games for the Spinners before his season was cut short due to a broken collarbone he suffered running into the left field fence, leaving a large dent in the LeLacheur Park wall.
With his combination of power, speed and athleticism, Westmoreland was ranked as the No. 1 prospect in the Red Sox minor league system and the No. 21 prospect in all of minor league baseball by Baseball America heading into the 2010 season.
But, as spring training arrived, it all came to a halt in a flash. On March 16, Westmoreland underwent surgery to remove the cavernous malformation on his brain stem, which can result in paralysis, cerebral hemorrhage and death.
"At one point, there was a question if I would be able to do anything again," said Westmoreland. "If I could breath, walk, speak. Just be able to live my life."
Just one week after his surgery, Westmoreland began an aggressive rehabilitation process, and it was baseball that was incorporated.
"They are very aggressive," said father Ron Westmoreland. "They put a Wiffle Ball bat in his hands. They had to hold him up, but he was swinging and hitting the ball, then throwing the ball. It wasn't pretty, but it meant he remembered how to do things he did before."
While in recovery, Westmoreland continued to exhibit the positive attitude and up-beat demeanor that had served him well in his early baseball career.
"You don't know how to approach someone you love in an ICU," said Colameta, a senior at UMass Lowell who Westmoreland met after she did the Chicken Dance on the field last season at a Spinners game.
"But Ryan always had a way to make you laugh and make you feel everything was OK. When you watched him and saw he was the No. 1 prospect for the team, it was Ryan kicking butt. Now, while he attacks this challenge, it's Ryan kicking butt again."
As his condition improved, Westmoreland began moving back into light baseball activities, including hitting off a baseball tee and throwing lightly. Finally, last week, the decision was made that he would report to the Spinners to work out with the team, but not be on the active roster.
"Baseball is second only to being alive for me," he said. "It's an honor just to be wearing the Spinners jersey again. I'm grateful to be alive and be back to the place my career really started."
Westmoreland, still battling issues with his vision, acknowledged that only time will tell how his career will progress, but he is encouraged by the early signs.
"We aren't going to set a timetable and are going to work back slowly," he said. "But I feel amazing. I started not being able to hit a Wiffle Ball. Now I am taking good swings and hitting the ball hard up the middle. I've seen video of my swing, and it may not be back to where it was, but five months after brain surgery it's right where I want it to be."
Westmoreland's father said the return of his swing is a tremendous sign.
"We are to the point that we are relatively sure he will live a normal life," said Ron. "When you look at his swing, it looks just how it did before, so the muscle memory is evident."
Through his early battle, and the challenges yet to come, one dream remains a driving force for Westmoreland.
"I go to bed every night thinking about when I will play again," he said. "I have dreams all the time about playing at Fenway Park. I have never lost sight of my goal."
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