Reed Harvey is one pitcher who doesn't mind staring down a slugger with the bases loaded.

Harvey, a senior baseball student-athlete at Emory University, has stared down death twice and walked away both times.

When he was 13, Harvey suffered a water skiing accident while on vacation with friends. A ski came flying off one of his feet and hit him in the head, fracturing his skull. Harvey was prepped for surgery to install a metal plate in his head.

Just before the operation, his mother arrived and asked for a second opinion. This time doctors discovered he had a bone fragment lodged in one of his veins. The planned surgery to remove the other fragments most likely would have ruptured the vein, leading to serious complications and possible death.

After that accident, Harvey switched baseball positions to become a catcher, permitting him to wear a helmet during the game.

So there he was, three years ago at Emory, a third-string catcher who finished his freshman season with a .200 batting average while appearing in 11 games. The starting catcher had graduated and the backup catcher was rehabbing a knee injury. The door was open for Harvey to become a starting catcher.

Harvey increased his workouts, aiming to add more muscle and improve his hitting. He lost three pounds. His performance in a summer recreation league was dismal.

"It was the low point of my baseball career," he said. "I just couldn't figure out what was going on."

A few months later, Harvey accidentally discovered the answer.

At the urging of his mother, he went to the hospital for a consultation about cosmetic surgery for a protrusion above one of his eyebrows. Harvey had been told by another doctor that the protrusion was a bone growth that couldn't be removed, but he consented to an MRI anyway.

The five-minute scan turned into a 45-minute scan when the technician saw what he thought was a cyst. When surgeons opened him up however, they found a brain tumor that didn't reveal itself on the scan.

The tumor was killing Harvey's pituitary gland, which affects many body functions, including growth. No wonder he couldn't gain any muscle mass.

After a three-month recovery, Harvey made his first at-bat as a pinch hitter, drawing a walk. He appeared in nine games, with two hits in five at-bats.

The next season, Harvey had a new plan. One thing he always possessed was a cannon arm. Emory coach Mike Twardoski agreed to give him a chance.

On February 24 last year, Harvey made his first pitching appearance, coming in as a reliever. In one and two-thirds innings, he yielded one hit, no runs and no walks.

"I was so excited when coach summoned me," Harvey said. "I knew then that pitching was what I wanted to do. I had finally found my niche on the team so I could contribute to its success. That game was symbolic of my reward for sticking through all the tough times when I thought about quitting."

This season, Harvey was promoted to the team's starting rotation as the No. 2 pitcher. When the No. 1 pitcher came down with an injury, it was up to Harvey to take the mound for the coveted opening-day assignment. His parents flew in from California the night before for the occasion.

"We reminisced about the skiing accident and my surgery. I realized that no matter how I did (on the mound), I had already won," Harvey said.

Only about 14 percent of the people who undergo the type of surgery Harvey had fully regain their health and mobility. Harvey realizes that he is incredibly lucky to be not only healthy but also a student-athlete, playing baseball and majoring in neuroscience and behavioral biology at Emory.

"I know that baseball is not life and death. I could have been so much sicker. I'm healthy. I'm playing college ball with my best friends. It's an opportunity few get," he said.

"It's kind of a miracle that I'm here. I wonder why I was chosen. Why was I given a third chance at life? Every day I wake up and think, 'This is a day I might not have had before.' I want to be a better person. It sounds cheesy, but it's true. I don't know what my purpose in life is, but I'm going to keep looking."