CLEVELAND — It may be the middle of the MLB offseason. But for Cleveland Indians pitcher Carlos Carrasco, there's no time like the present.
Rather than spending his holidays in an exotic location or back home in Venezuela, the 32-year-old right-hander was spotted at the Cleveland Clinic on Thursday, passing out gifts to pediatric cancer patients. Video of Carrasco's trip was posted to the Indians' official Twitter account, which showed a young patient excitedly opening a Woody from Toy Story figure.
"Carlos Carrasco continues to blow us away," the video's caption stated. "Cookie delivered Christmas presents to pediatric cancer patients this morning at the @ClevelandClinic."
Following his battle with leukemia earlier this year, Carrasco has been a regular visitor at the Cleveland Clinic's children's unit. In July, he pledged to "punchout cancer," donating $200 for every strikeout made after his return, with New Balance matching those donations.
"I have cancer but cancer doesn't have me," Carrasco says in a video announcing the campaign. "To be honest with you, I didn't realize what was going on. They said, 'Leukemia' and I said, 'what is that?' I don't know if I was so nervous at the time, but I couldn't understand.
"I'm always happy. It's not like, 'ok, I'm going to be sad because I have this.' No. I cannot do that. I need to be strong. The only time that I remember that I have cancer is when I take my pills. That's it. For the rest of the day, I'm me.
"I have a lot of people behind me. First, God. My family, my kids, teammates, the fans. There's a lot of people involved. Everyone is behind me right now. The only thing I can do for them is just be positive. Normally I'm a strong guy but now even more.
"This is nothing for me."
In October, Carrasco was named the winner of the 2019 Roberto Clemente Award, which is presented annually to the MLB player who demonstrates the values of Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente, sharing his commitment to the community and understanding the value of helping others.
Suffice to say, Carrasco is living up to that reputation.