
Former Orioles Pitcher Announces Return to Baseball Following Cancer Battle
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The odds of David Hess taking the mound in a major league game are long. For the 32-year-old pitcher, they wouldn't be the longest odds he has faced in his life.
Hess, who is three years removed from his last professional game, had to pause his baseball career following multiple cancer diagnoses over the last four years.
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The most recent — Hess was diagnosed with angiosarcoma of the lung in 2023 — was the most troubling. The rare, aggressive cancer is associated with a low survival rate, but he responded well enough to treatment that he did not need surgery to remove the growth.
In February, Hess underwent a scan that showed no evidence of the disease.
David Hess #41 of the Baltimore Orioles reacts as manager Brandon Hyde #18 visits the mound to make a pitching change as he is in the midst of a no-hitter in the seventh inning during...
David Hess #41 of the Baltimore Orioles reacts as manager Brandon Hyde #18 visits the mound to make a pitching change as he is in the midst of a no-hitter in the seventh inning during MLB game action against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on April 1, 2019 in Toronto, Canada. More"We got scan results showing no evidence of disease," Hess wrote Feb. 27 on the Twitter/X account of the The 41 Life Podcast, "and for the first time since this whole journey started we can officially say currently I'm cancer free!"
The devil can scrap… BUT THE LORD HAS WON
We got scan results showing no evidence of disease and for the first time since this whole journey started we can officially say currently I'm cancer free!
Look what God can do 🙌 pic.twitter.com/nPVgCyri1S — The 41 Life Podcast (@the41lifepod) February 27, 2025
Flash forward to Monday, when Hess announced his baseball journey is not over yet.
"Three years ago I got released on my birthday and baseball seemed over," he wrote on Twitter/X. "The last two (years) I fought for a 6% chance of survival from cancer. My birthday a few days ago I found out playing baseball is back. After almost a year of clear scans I'm getting back on a mound. Never stop fighting 🤟"
3 years ago I got released on my birthday and baseball seemed over. The last 2 I fought for a 6% chance of survival from cancer. My birthday a few days ago I found out playing baseball is back. After almost a year of clear scans I'm getting back on a mound. Never stop fighting 🤟 pic.twitter.com/ioyu6688SG — David Hess (@hess_express28) July 14, 2025
Hess has already beaten the odds. Now, he'll try to see what he has left in his right arm.
From 2018-21, Hess appeared in 62 major league games for the Baltimore Orioles, Miami Marlins and Tampa Bay Rays. He went 6-22 with a 6.25 ERA across 210.1 innings.
More news: Tigers All-Star, First Draft Pick to Appear in an MLB Game, Passes Away
Assigned to the minors to begin the 2022 season, Hess was released after allowing 13 runs in 4.1 innings with Triple-A Durham in July 2022. During his time away from baseball, Hess re-enrolled in college. He coached a travel baseball team. He started a podcast.
Now that his pitching career no longer has to take a back seat to his health, Hess can focus more on his speed and spin rate than his white blood cell count.
Don't call it a comeback, it's a return 🤟
Sound on for the baseball lovers pic.twitter.com/KxWbWTm5x5 — David Hess (@hess_express28) July 3, 2025
It's already been a remarkable journey for the Orioles' 2014 fifth-round draft pick out of Tennessee Tech. Hess slogged through four years in the minor leagues before reaching the majors. Now, perhaps, he'll get a near-miraculous chance to begin the slog again.
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