His Brother’s Inspiration Kept Herges’ Head in Game

The baseball cap Matt Herges wore for security hangs in his clubhouse stall now, but what it inspired will remain in the Dodger pitcher’s heart forever.

He will still focus on his older brother’s name, Toby, written on the cap to remind him that anything is possible with the support of family and the desire to fight.

Toby is recovering from brain-cancer surgery, and Matt has been changed by the harrowing experience too.

Herges retired the cap because the longtime minor leaguer has made the opening-day roster, and baseball rules prohibit writing on uniforms. But it served its purpose.

“I put Toby’s name there to always remind me of what he was facing and how hard he fought while he was going through everything,” Herges said Saturday before the Dodgers’ 2-1 victory over the Blue Jays at SkyDome in the clubs’ final exhibition game.

“Every time I went out [to the mound], I wanted to have that feeling like he was there with me. Now, I look at it [the cap] and it’s a great reminder about what’s really important in life.”

Toby, 31, was diagnosed with an inoperable malignant brain tumor Jan. 28. Physicians gave him two to six months to live, but his close-knit family refused to accept the devastating news.

Butch and Barb Herges reared eight children in Champaign, Ill., teaching them to support one another. They were determined to help their son survive--no matter how bleak things appeared.

Butch met many professional athletes while operating the family’s bar near the campus of the University of Illinois. They often told him about the best places throughout the country to receive medical care, and Butch used every contact he had made to find help for Toby.

The Herges turned to physicians at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. Doctors there agreed to perform a difficult procedure, informing Toby and his family of the danger involved.

Toby and his wife, Christine, have two young daughters, and they learned that she was pregnant again shortly before the surgery. The thought of leaving his wife and children, parents and seven siblings overwhelmed him, but his intense support group wouldn’t let him quit.

Matt, who turned 30 on Saturday, wanted to be with his brother instead of in Vero Beach, Fla. He considered forgoing spring training, and probably his final shot to start a season in the big leagues, to be by his brother’s side.

Their father knew best.

“I talked him into going,” Butch said. “I knew he was extremely worried and he didn’t want to go, but he had given eight years of his life to pursuing his dream. Toby didn’t want him to pass up this opportunity, and everyone else in the family was behind him. We had to talk to him almost every day to get him to stay, but it was the right thing to do.”

Toby’s March 1 surgery was surprisingly successful. Physicians had hoped to remove about 80% of the tumor they described as being “the size of a large fist,” but they excised the entire growth.

Toby endured immense pain during the seven-hour procedure because he could not be anesthetized or receive pain medication. To determine which part of his brain they were affecting, the doctors overseeing Toby even had to question him while they used a bone saw to cut through his skull.

He has already made remarkable progress during his short recovery period. Toby didn’t have to undergo radiation or chemotherapy, and he has returned to work, helping his father manage the bar. His peripheral vision might not return for a few months, but Toby said that’s a small price to pay.

Matt provided daily updates about Toby for his concerned teammates, who welcomed Toby into the clubhouse after Butch surprised him with a three-day trip to Dodgertown last week.

“Everyone was really incredible,” Toby said. “I asked Gary Sheffield how he was doing because he had a finger injury and wasn’t playing, and he said, ‘How am I doing? Forget about me. How are you doing?’

“I told Todd Hundley about the surgery and he kind of doubled over in pain when I was describing it to him. Orel Hershiser, everybody, they were all unbelievable. It was really like a dream come true.”

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Carlos Perez (1-3) earned his first spring victory in his final start, giving up one run in four innings. . . . Shawn Green drove in the Dodgers’ runs with a solo home run, his sixth homer of the spring, and a run-scoring double. . . . Infielder Juan Castro was traded to the Cincinnati Reds for a player to be named.

DODGERS SEASON OPENER

at MONTREAL

* When: Monday, 4 p.m. PDT

* Pitchers: Dodgers’ Kevin Brown (18-9 in ‘99) vs. Expos’ Dustin Hermanson (9-14)

* TV: Channel 5.