Nic Ungs received a little divine intervention Thursday evening during his most brilliant performance of a physically and emotionally exhausting season.
High above Smokies Stadium in Kodak, Tenn., Jane Ungs cheered as loud and enthusiastically as she ever has during her son's eight-year professional baseball career. She aggressively disagreed with whatever jeers the home team's fans shouted and assured Nic everything would turn out OK as he worked through the occasional rough spot.
Jane Ungs, who lived to watch Nic and brother Matt Ungs pursue their passion for baseball, lost an eight-year battle with cancer Wednesday at her home in Dyersville, Iowa. She was 51 years old.
So, while Nic Ungs mustered up the courage to pitch the following night, Jane Ungs lent him a little extra strength. She was finally free of the pain that turned her family upside down, so she could act like every other baseball mother -- believing that her encouragement would make a difference.
It did.
Nic Ungs, in just his second appearance after a six-week stay on the disabled
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Ungs lowered his ERA to 0.75 in his two appearances with Huntsville. He began this season, his first in the Brewers' organization, at Triple-A Nashville and could return there as early as this month.
"I'm just trying to get the feel of being back," he said Thursday night. "I'm enjoying the fact that I'm healthy again. And this is a great team to be associated with.
"My catcher, (Martin) Maldonado, and I were on the same page. We had a good game plan going in. They're a pretty aggressive team, so I tried not to be predictable. I wanted to throw inside, throw away, change speeds and look for early contact, but not good contact."
Ungs allowed only a two-out single to Matt Craig in the fourth inning. He walked two and struck out none. Jason Shiell pitched the final two innings.
During his stint on the disabled list, Ungs made a late-June trip to Dyersville to visit his mother one last time. He tried to stay sharp by throwing bullpen sessions with his brother, also a former all-stater at Dyersville Beckman who manages the Dyersville Whitehawks semi-pro team.
"I actually have it kind of easy, because I get to be away playing baseball all summer," Nic Ungs said on Sunday. "It's a lot tougher on my dad (Donnie) and my brother, because they have to deal with it on a daily basis.
"It's hard because she used to really enjoy listening to my games on the Internet, and she couldn't do that."
Jane Ungs' cancer kept her away from the road trips she and Donnie would have cherished as Nic pursued his dream of pitching on a Major League Baseball diamond. She saw him pitch for the Kane County Cougars of the Class A Midwest League in 2002 and did get to see his Triple-A debut four years later.
The Florida Marlins' top affiliate just happened to be playing the Iowa Cubs in Des Moines when Nic got his first start for the Albuquerque Isotopes in April 2006.
"It was pretty nerve-wracking, but it was also really exciting," Jane Ungs said after the game at Principal Park. "I got a little emotional, because it's been so long since I've seen him pitch. And, as a mother, you're always worried about how they'll do. He had one rough inning there, but I thought he did pretty good."
Nic Ungs' career offered the perfect escape from Jane's pain, even if it came in three-hour increments every fifth day. You'll never find a more humble family that understands the value of hard work and humility.
Even when baseball politics dealt him an unfair hand, his family would help keep things in perspective.
"It really makes you proud," Donnie Ungs said after Nic's Triple-A debut. "We were talking the other night about how many people dream about the situation he's in and getting a chance to pitch at this level in front of the home fans. I couldn't believe how many people came down and how many people talk about his career back home.
"We really appreciate it."
It's easy to root for the Ungs family because of those values. And now, their biggest supporter will be cheering loudly from above.
Jim Leitner's E-mail address: jleitner@wcinet.com
