Kervin striving to Rise and Conquer

Bryan Kervin spent the 2009 season fighting for playing time. He spent the ensuing offseason fighting for his life.

After wrapping up the 2009 campaign with the Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats, Kervin, a 24-year-old utility infielder, returned to his native Texas for an offseason of college coursework and regular workouts. His goal for the 2010 season was simple: Earn a starting spot with the Fisher Cats and continue his big league ascent from there.

To say things didn't go as planned would be an understatement of immense proportion, as Kervin's health took a dramatic turn for the worse that November. The symptoms were deeply unpleasant and the pain considerable.

"I was working out hard every day, but my energy levels were way down. My bowel movements were becoming more and more frequent and the stomach pain was so severe it was like someone was stabbing me with a knife," Kervin recalled.

His initial reaction was to ignore the pain, as if refusing to acknowledge it would make it disappear. But the symptoms, including crippling fatigue and bloody diarrhea, only worsened. He finally sought medical attention and, after a colonoscopy, was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) that, along with the similarly symptomatic Crohn's disease, affects an estimated 1.4 million Americans. These diseases affect males and females equally, primarily those between the ages of 15-35.

"I didn't even know what ulcerative colitis was," Kervin said.

He was soon to find out. Kervin was put on the drug prednisone to help alleviate the symptoms, with side effects that made him feel "weak, puffy and messy with the hormones and emotions." But that January, the symptoms reappeared and Kervin made a return trip to the hospital. His thinking at the time was that he'd be there for "a day, maybe two or three at the most," but he ended up staying for 41.

The severity of his symptoms eventually resulted in surgery to remove his large intestine. Complications from the procedure included severe internal bleeding. Only months before, the Blue Jays prospect had been in the best shape of his life, a chiseled 185-pound physical specimen competing just two rungs below the Major Leagues. Now he was 120 pounds and bedridden, and his fight to make it to The Show seemed worlds away. Kervin was, quite literally, fighting for his life.

"Baseball is just a game, but you can learn a lot through the game," said Kervin, a 28th-round pick in the 2008 Draft. "Taking things one at-bat at a time becomes taking it one breath at a time, one second at a time, when you're fighting for your life in the hospital. It's a game of controlling what you can control and staying positive because you have to believe that you are going to get well.

"I believed I was there [in the hospital] for a reason and that in the end my struggles would make me a better person."

Kervin resumed his baseball career this summer, appearing in 34 games for the short-season Vancouver Canadians. While it speaks volumes regarding his dedication to the sport he loves, baseball isn't his sole focus anymore.

In 2010, Kervin, along with a small cadre of dedicated and experienced volunteer backers, established the Rise and Conquer Foundation. This non-profit organization is devoted to raising awareness of ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease as well as providing support to those afflicted through mentoring programs and fundraisers.

One of Rise and Conquer's early priorities has been donating items to hospital gastrointestinal (GI) wards that are designed to make the experience more palatable for patients and their families, such as white noise machines, comfortable beds for frequent visitors and kitchen amenities. But to Kervin, the most important aim of the foundation is to provide mentoring and support.

"We want to make a difference in this world, both financially and mentally, so that others can receive the same support I did," he said. "With that support, they can understand that they can still do whatever they want to do in life."

In tandem with Rise and Conquer, Kervin is rededicating himself to his baseball career. The odds are against him, of course -- he's 26 years old and has appeared in only 165 games as a professional. Last year, he hit .198 for the Canadians (totaling 111 at-bats before being sidelined by a wrist injury). And maintaining his energy levels over the course of a long season remains a concern.

But Kervin already has shown himself to be remarkably adept at overcoming challenging situations. While hospitalized, he was told he might not be able to play baseball again. And from that day, he said he's "wanted to prove them wrong."

"I just want to stay healthy and have a breakout year, to get people's attention not through health issues but onfield success," he said. "I can do that through hard work and believing in myself, believing that I can still do everything that I was able to do before."

Rise and Conquer and Kervin's pursuit of his big league dream are certainly not mutually exclusive endeavors. Playing baseball gives him a platform to share his story, reaching out to others in ways that otherwise would not be possible. Or, as he put it, "Baseball gives me the opportunity to take it to the next level."

"[Ulcerative colitis] was unfun to talk about at first, but I had to, and now I don't think twice about it," Kervin said. "This is something that affects 1.4 million Americans, but no one wants to talk about it. That's why I didn't know about it [when I was diagnosed]. With Rise and Conquer, we will raise awareness, mentor patients as they make these transitions and provide support for those in need."

Clearly, there's no backing down now.

"If you're focused on being passionate and helping others, you'll find a purpose in life," he said. "And the byproduct of that will be happiness."