Arroyo makes pitch for himself, father

Getting to the major leagues as soon as possible would fulfill a dream for both the former Hernando High standout and his ailing father.

By BRANT JAMES

© St. Petersburg Times, published March 5, 2000

LAKELAND -- The point is irrelevant. It doesn't matter, though. None of it was open for discussion anyway.

Gus Arroyo has two failed kidneys and awaits a transplant so he can resume his way of life. Family members are first tested for compatibility as potential donors, and Arroyo's son Bronson and daughter Serenity Pascual were logical places to begin a search.

His daughter's matching blood type takes her candidacy a step further. Bronson's mismatched blood type precluded him, but Arroyo said his son was not an option anyway.

Bronson Arroyo's part in the life and eventual recuperation of his father is furthering his attempt to become a major league baseball player.

"Not at this point in his career. No way," said Gus Arroyo, who watched his son pitch for the Pittsburgh Pirates in their spring opener on Friday at Marchant Stadium. "I'll stay on dialysis before I'd do that."

There would be no use insisting, he added.

"I still have the final say-so," he said. "He could offer one, but I wouldn't have to take them."

Bronson Arroyo said he would not hesitate to donate, even though the procedure would cost him a summer in which he will likely start at Triple-A and at some point make his big-league debut.

"He's my dad, and I would give him one gladly," Arroyo said.

He knows there would be little use arguing, however.

"I know how he is," he said. "I know for a fact he would stay on dialysis for another 10 years before he'd let me give him one. He's pretty much devoted most of his life to getting me to the big leagues.

"I think he'll be more happy the day I get there than I will."

The day is approaching for the former Hernando High standout.

Arroyo tied for the Double-A Eastern League lead in wins (15-4) last season and posted a 3.65 earned-run average for Altoona. After 25 starts he was promoted to Triple-A Nashville for the end of the regular season and playoffs.

Arroyo said he expects to start this season in Nashville even though injuries have left Pittsburgh in need of a fifth starter and long reliever. Arroyo is a right-hander, and the Pirates are in desperate need of lefties.

"You can see for yourself how it works out," he said.

The Arroyos' odyssey toward the majors began in 1982 when Bronson was 5 years old and wanted to play T-ball and Gus resisted. Father finally relented and threw himself into helping his son once Bronson's abilities began to evolve.

"I signed Bronson up for T-ball and my husband went even though he wasn't very interested in it," said Julie Arroyo. "Once he saw Bronson play, he was an assistant coach the next day."

The Arroyos' 3-acre home in Brooksville is an off-season training complex of sorts, with a weightlifting gym, batting cage, and large net into which they hit baseballs -- and the occasional golf ball.

"He threw himself into helping me," Bronson Arroyo said of his father. "We trained year-round even when I was in high school. I'd come home from basketball and we'd go throw in the yard. We'd set up lights in the batting cage when it was getting too dark."

Gus Arroyo, 49, has lost nearly 40 pounds since both kidneys shut down. Unable to continue working as a builder because he tires easily, he cleanses his blood by hooking himself to a dialysis machine each night as he sleeps.

Gus, who can still lead a fairly normal life by day, is not sure why his kidneys failed, although he said they have long troubled him. He has a theory.

"The doctors say taking medication for a long time can have an effect," he said. "I was allergic to chocolate as a kid and I took high dosages of penicillin for it. You can't tell a kid he can't have chocolate, so I just took the penicillin until I was about 14."

He put off seeking medical attention until January despite ever-worsening symptoms that began nine months ago. His level of blood toxicity was 15 times acceptable rates when he finally sought help.

Gus already is on a list for a donor kidney. He said tests will soon begin to find the best tissue from family members, including brothers Henry and Danny.

If a procedure is successfully completed this spring, he should be healthy enough to book a flight for wherever that potential big-league debut might occur. That Bronson Arroyo is resigned to starting the season at Triple-A Nashville gives his father more time.

At 23, Bronson knows time is still on his side. Selected in the third round of the 1995 June draft, he has been one of the younger players on his team at every level. His subsequent need to grow physically into his surroundings -- he's 6 feet 5, 180 pounds -- has helped foster patience.

"I've been at every level for a whole season," he said. "I wouldn't expect anything else but to start at Triple-A.

"I just want to go there and put up some good numbers and hopefully make it up near the end."

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