Matthew Siverling had recently returned from his summer suiting up in Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, when his career on the baseball diamond took a tumultuous turn. Having tossed 10.2 solid innings across five appearances with a 1.68 ERA for the Martha’s Vineyard Sharks during the summer of 2021, the left-handed reliever arrived back on campus with his sights set on a successful 2022 campaign. He was determined to build off what was already a strong start to his collegiate career, having already donned Tech’s maroon and orange for two seasons. “I felt really good,” Siverling said, describing the start of fall camp. “Coming into the fall, I felt like I was throwing better than I had at the beginning of the year. [The] 2022 [season], I was like ‘Okay, we’re going to get things going. [We’re] going to establish a good role this year. We’re going to have a good team.’ “I threw probably just two or three times in the fall. And then, my arm just blew up.” What now? Siverling had been diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome, a set of disorders that occur when blood vessels or nerves in the space between one’s collarbone and first rib are compressed, eventually leading to blood clots. Instantly, the cadence on what was supposed to be a promising 2022 season quickly shifted gears for the junior southpaw out of the Charlotte suburbs. His first sign of warning took place during an early October scrimmage on the Hokies’ home turf at English Field at Atlantic Union Bank Park. “My second inning of work, something just felt a little off,” Siverling recalled. “It was like I just couldn’t feel my fingers like I used to. I wasn’t able to throw the ball as well.” After small improvements the next couple of days, he then proceeded to take it upon himself to see if his discomfort was merely a false alarm, with the Matthews, North Carolina, native attempting to take advantage of a more subdued environment in the confines of his home ballpark. Settling in down the third base line for some Saturday work on the weekend of fall break, Siverling quickly realized he may have a greater situation on his hands than he had originally anticipated, with a hint of confusion added on as well. “My arm was swollen about two to three sizes larger than it usually is. [Just] all these kinds of colors that it’s not supposed to be. “At that point, I sent a couple of pictures to our trainer and was like, ‘Should I be concerned? What should I do about this?’ So, we just set up an appointment with the doctor, went to an ultrasound immediately after, and after that, they were like ‘Okay, you have a blood clot in your shoulder.’ And that’s all I heard.” A blood clot? Certainly, these two words had to be alarming to hear for someone who’s pitching at the collegiate ranks. For Siverling, though, it was all about taking the first step in the road to recovery. “Immediately, I started taking blood thinners, just to get the blood clot out of there and get my arm to stop swelling. A couple of weeks into that, we’re not getting much from the blood thinners, so I go to another doctor. He’s like, ‘You probably have thoracic outlet syndrome.’” As it turns out, Siverling did. Consumed with the desire to quickly find his way back onto the field, the lefty hurler’s mindset was glued onto getting over the hump and working his way back to the mound. Siverling’s urge to toe the rubber during the 2022 season was overwhelming, leaving him one simple thought upon receiving the initial diagnosis. “My first thought was, ‘What the heck is this?’ I had never heard of it before,” Siverling admitted. “After that, my first thought was, ‘How do I fix it? How can I try and be ready for the season?’ “The first thing the doctor told me when I had gone was, ‘Okay, we think we can get you ready for the season.’ So, I said, ‘Okay, what do I need to do in order to try and contribute for the team this year?’” Siverling was provided two options. The first: merely leave it be. How about the second? To have the first rib removed, the highly-recommended option between the two. Siverling chose the latter, and to surgery he went. From there on out, the third-year member of the maroon and orange was committed to the rehab process with Siverling still determined to return and contribute at some point for Virginia Tech in 2022. “The first week [after surgery], I had to stay home. I couldn’t turn my head. I couldn’t drive. I couldn’t do anything,” Siverling said. “After that, I came back to campus and it was a lot of bodyweight lifting and then just moving around again; just kind of the grind of day-to-day rehab.” As anyone who has taken the road to recovery would express, progress is a patient process. For a competitor like Siverling, that can introduce a small element of anxiety. “Just in the sense of I want to be out there playing and this is what I’m doing instead,” he said. “Obviously very important stuff, but it’s not exactly what I came here to do. [It was a] slow process, but it was exciting to see the [progress] along the way.” Progress made, indeed. By the month of January, Siverling was already back to throwing from 60 feet out and was starting to ramp up just in time for a potential mid-season debut. Though the left-hander would end up only making two appearances when it was all said and done, the Hokies would put together arguably their most decorated season in program history. Tech went on to finish with its impressive 45-14 overall record, secured its first-ever ACC Coastal Division championship, drew the No. 4 overall seed in the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship, hosted its first NCAA Regional since 2013 and advanced to its first NCAA Super Regional (its first in its home ballpark). A pretty decorated season, no doubt. inside.hokiesports.com 13 Continued on page 14
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