Source: Phillies prospect Daniel Brito cleared to attend minor-league spring training
Brito collapsed on the field in July with internal brain bleeding and was in a coma for a month.
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Phillies infield prospect Daniel Brito was cleared by doctors to attend Phillies minor-league spring training, and will be heading to Clearwater on Sunday, a source confirmed to The Inquirer. The Athletic was first to report the news.
Brito, 24, was playing in a game for the Lehigh Valley IronPigs when he collapsed on the field on July 30, 2021, the result of a seizure and internal brain bleeding. He was in a coma for a month, and underwent two brain surgeries following the incident.
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When Brito started undergoing physical therapy last year, the doctors were unsure whether he would be able to live a normal life, let alone get back on the field. But according to The Athletic, Brito was taking swings and ground balls, lifting weights, and running by December. The prospect of playing baseball again pushed him through the fight of his life.
Brito signed with the Phillies for $650,000 in 2014, starting his career in the Dominican Summer League in 2015, jumping to rookie ball in 2016, and continuing to climb up the Phillies’ minor-league ladder. By 2021, he reached double A, slashing .296/.363/.458 with the Reading Fightin Phils.
Just before his accident, he made his triple-A debut in Lehigh Valley, slashing .286/.375/.607 through eight games played. Because of the damage to his brain, he has no recollection of his time in triple A.