Wilson graduate Luke Holman, a cancer survivor, taken in MLB Draft

Ever since his son, Luke, overcame lymphoma as a child, Wilson’s Craig Holman and his family are thankful for every day.

“We’re grateful; I’m the most grateful and thankful man you’ll ever meet,” Holman said. “I don’t have one bad day. If you are around me you’ll never hear me complain. I don’t have bad days. They’re all good because I know what we went through that year with him getting chemotherapy every week, so as long as the kids are healthy I’m having a good day.”

And on Sunday, the former pitcher for the Philadelphia Phillies organization surely had one of his best days, as he watched Luke, the 2019 Berks Baseball Player of the Year, get selected by the Cincinnati Reds with the 71st pick of the MLB Draft.

“My whole goal in life was to see my name pop up,” Luke Hollman said. “As soon as it popped up I was excited. And I think the Reds organization is a very good fit for me, so I’m excited to get started.”

Luke Holman was diagnosed with anaplastic large cell lymphoma, a rare type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, on Dec. 24, 2010, and began chemotherapy at Penn State Hershey Medical Center on Dec. 30, a week before his eighth birthday.

Before his diagnosis, Luke had tried many sports and played organized baseball, football and basketball. He recovered completely after a year of treatment and returned to sports despite being one of the smallest kids on his teams back then according to his father. One oncologist said the chemo might have been slowing his growth.

Over a decade later, now thriving along his path to the big leagues, Holman was chosen with the Reds’ third pick of Sunday’s first day of selections in Competitive Balance Round B.

“It’s very fulfilling after watching all the work that he’s put in over the years,” Craig Holman said. “Watching what he went through having cancer at seven years old, a very tiny kid, and we have put in hours upon hours (of work), and most people do … but that’s just the ticket to get on the ride. It doesn’t mean that it’s going to be a great ride.”

A consistent work ethic indeed translated into a strong collegiate experience for Luke.

A right-hander drafted out of LSU who transferred for his junior season after two years at Alabama, Luke made 16 starts in 2024 and posted a 2.75 ERA over 91.2 innings of work. He walked just 33 batters, struck out 127, and had an overall record of 9-4 as one of the Tigers’ top starters.

Luke Holman had initially been drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays out of high school in 2021, but opted to pursue collegiate baseball, as the circumstances suited his growth better according to Craig.

“It was a perfect scenario,” Craig Holman said. “As of last night (Sunday) he got the money he was looking for and he spent three years in college and got NIL money as well.

“I loved college. I said it was the best time of my life. So I told him I’m gonna feel like I let you down if I don’t tell you to go to college. But kids will turn down $800,000 and go to college, and then maybe they get hurt, and things don’t work out so well and then they end up not getting drafted at all.

“It’s a heartbreaker. That was not the case with him.”

In 2024 Holman limited his opponents to a .174 batting average and also finished second in the SEC in strikeouts, second in the SEC in opponent batting average, third in ERA, fourth in wins and fifth in innings pitched.

He finished tenth in the nation in strikeouts and was named to the SEC All-Tournament Team after completing six scoreless innings and allowing no hits, just two walks and striking out seven in a 11-0 shutout win over Kentucky who were ranked No. 2 at the time.

While he had several dominant performances in his collegiate career, it was a game in which he struggled that Luke explained was an important sign showing he was ready for the next step.

Having overcome adversity in numerous forms, Luke Holman said he believes his perseverance in all aspects of life is one of his greatest attributes.

“At LSU this year, we played Texas A&M and it was kind of my only start where I struggled early on,” Luke Holman said of the 6-4 victory. “One inning (fourth) I got the bases loaded and no one out, and it was 3-3. I could have just folded and let someone else come in for me, but I decided to bear down and struck three guys out on nine pitches.

“It kind of shows the fight I had I’ve had all year.

“It’s when you give up that’s when you lose the battle. Even in everyday battles, schoolwork to other games I’ve had when I’ve been struggling in freshman year and sophomore year, whatever it is, I try my best to bounce back, and over time, I’m getting better and better at it.”

At Alabama, he pitched out of their bullpen as a freshman and posted a 5.69 ERA in his 19.0 innings. He improved over 15 starts and one relief appearance in 2023, recording an ERA of 3.67 with 87 strikeouts in 81.0 innings.

In his senior season at Wilson, Luke was 7-1 with a 0.88 ERA and 113 strikeouts in 55.2 innings. During his Player of the Year season in 2019, he was regarded as the hardest thrower in the league after tallying a 5-1 record, a 1.27 ERA, 70 strikeouts and 24 walks in 38 2/3 innings.

For Craig Holman, in addition to the game against Texas A&M, an exceptional outing during a 6-1 win against Florida early in the season was a highlight of the past year.

He gave up just one hit, a solo home run, and walked just three batters while recording a career-high 13 strikeouts. Through the first three innings of the contest, Holman had nine strikeouts.

“The best game I saw him throw was the opening SEC weekend, striking out 13 guys against Florida,” Craig Holman said. “He’s had some really good games. When I saw him pitch this year, at certain starts I would cry.

“And I’m not crying for sadness; I cried that night at the stadium when he struck out the bases loaded with nobody out against A&M; it was phenomenal.

“These are just tears of joy because he was seven going through the chemo and we prayed and prayed and begged God, ‘Please don’t take this kid.’ He had a 50/50 chance to live and things have been great.”

When Luke was going through his treatments, he turned to former pitcher Jon Lester, for inspiration.

Less than two years after being diagnosed with lymphoma, Lester started and won the final game of the 2007 World Series for the Boston Red Sox and, later in May 2008, pitched a no-hitter against the Kansas City Royals.

He would go on to win another World Series with the Red Sox in 2013 and one with the Chicago Cubs in 2016.

And just as Lester’s story was a source of inspiration, Luke and his father are hopeful that Luke’s baseball journey can continue to serve as a symbol of hope for those who are struggling.

“The way I got through it was Jon Lester and seeing him really changed my mindset on a future,” Luke Holman said. “So maybe I can influence other kids by going to hospitals and doing something for them. It makes me feel better when I do stuff for others. Seeing smiles on faces and helping anyone out I can is what it’s about.”

“He’s got a lot of kids that follow him who have cancer,” Craig Holman said. “He’s got the Four Diamonds Club at Hershey who just sent him a gift box with a card and signed baseball from all the kids taking chemotherapy.

“He’s a huge example and a doctor told me that the kids can’t believe it when they see a picture of Luke at seven bald, and then they see him now at 6-5, 205. They go, ‘Oh my god, I got a chance.’”

Source: Berkshire mont