The story of Lou Brissie is one that is not very well known. A lifetime 44-48 starting pitcher in the big leagues—what else is there to know? But it’s not what Brissie did when he made it to the MLB, that’s remarkable, but how he got there.
Brissie was born in 1924 in Anderson, South Carolina. He had played baseball from a young age and began attracting pro attention when he was 16. It helped that he threw gas from the left side. That was all put on halt, however, when the war came and Brissie was sent overseas.
Brissie served with the 88th Infantry Division in Italy. War was just a part of life. That is until his life was forever changed on a cold day in December 1944. Artillary fire rained down upon him and his crew. His left leg was damaged so badly they considered amputating it. Brissie somehow talked them out of it and instead chose very long road to recovery. Who knew if he was ever going to be able to walk again?
It took a long time for his legs to heal and to gain strength back. When he did, he was right back on the mound. Things were different now. He had to use a leg brace to pitch because of the injury, but that didn’t stop him from throwing. Almost three years after that fateful night in Italy, Brissie was making his MLB debut for the Philadelphia Athletics.
Brissie went on to have a solid seven-year career in the Major Leagues. His best year was in 1949 where he was 16-11 with 118 strikeouts. Oh yea, and he was an all-star that season. After living a full life, Brissie passed away in 2013 at the age of 89.
I believe we all have a little Lou Brissie inside us. It all just depends on what story we choose to believe. Brissie could have easily moved on from baseball because the injury was just too limiting. Instead, he stared down the challenge and used it as even more motivation to achieve his dreams. Use speed bumps as stepping stones on the road to your goals!
