An ordinary day turned into an emergency surgery. During a baseball game on April 29th, 2023, Matthew Delaney got struck by a stray bullet in the back right above his heart. The day started like any other, Delaney began his day with Waffle House ”Great place to go.”, says Delaney. 

This day in particular, Delaney wasn’t working the books in the dugout, around the 6th inning he was playing catch with Gage Mason. Delaney felt something hit his back, at that moment Gage said ”Shots fired.” Delaney fell to the ground and lost feeling in his left leg, he said “Dang that’s not a baseball, I just got shot.” The trainer came over and removed his jacket to find a hole in his chest. 

At the hospital, the doctors insert a tube in his chest to fix the collapsed lung and start surgery. People were lined up at the hospital to make sure Delaney knew that they were there for him. When asked about the overwhelming support he received, Delaney says” It was amazing, great people here, it’s why I came back.”

Delaney keeps his amazing heart and mindset at the front of his physical therapy, he says “Why get upset at something you can’t control.” He continues to fight through every step of recovery, from overcoming paralysis, learning to walk, gaining strength, and now getting back mobility. Matthews’s message to the world is “No matter what happens to you, never get down on yourself, always stay positive, because that one second you’re down, you can be depressed, and it will keep you down for a very long time.”