Reds pitcher helps local boy overcome medical condition

Tracy Blower heard about Melville and contacted him, hoping for maybe an autograph for her youngest son. Instead, Melville offered more. Much more.

Melville invited Tracy, Carsen and Carsen's brother Chase, 14, to a game at Great American Ball Park.

"When I was a kid, I played baseball and basketball," Melville said. "My chest was caved in. It was hot and I had trouble breathing. My mom investigated what could be done and I had the surgery."

On July 9 at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, doctors inserted two curved titanium rods horizontally under Carsen's sternum, relieving pressure on his heart. The bars are to remain in place four to five years until his breastbone is strong enough to stay above his heart.