Keep Pushing Forward: The Story of Drake Fellows
IL Indianapolis Indians

Keep Pushing Forward: The Story of Drake Fellows

Published on September 6, 2025 under International League (IL)
Indianapolis Indians News Release


Indianapolis Indians right-handed pitcher Drake Fellows was on top of the world, fresh off an impressive junior season with the Vanderbilt Commodores that culminated in a College World Series Championship and was supposed to jumpstart his professional career with the San Diego Padres. Unbeknownst to him, those college outings would be his last for almost two years.

Indianapolis Indians right-handed pitcher Drake Fellows was on top of the world, fresh off an impressive junior season with the Vanderbilt Commodores that culminated in a College World Series Championship and was supposed to jumpstart his professional career with the San Diego Padres. Unbeknownst to him, those college outings would be his last for almost two years.

Fellows was a standout in the Commodores starting rotation in 2019, finishing the regular-season campaign with 13 games to tie for the most among NCAA Division I pitchers and second-most in a single season in program history. The success catapulted him to a future in professional baseball, with his name called by San Diego in the sixth round (173rd overall) of that summer's First-Year Player Draft.

Not only was his baseball career halted shortly after - but so was his world.

"After we (won the College World Series), I took a couple days and flew to San Diego to sign," Fellows said. "I passed my physical and all my blood work, stuff like that. I went to Arizona for maybe two weeks, and then I found something in my armpit."

Fellows did not think much of of the lump under his arm, figuring it was something minor like a muscle knot. He approached a trainer at the Peoria Sports Complex - the Padres training facility - to see if the supposed muscle knot could be worked out. The trainer had a different opinion

Per the trainer's advice, the lump needed further medical attention. Fellows flew to San Diego to have tests done and was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a cancer of the lymphatic system that starts in white blood cells, about a month after his dream of being a professional ballplayer came true.

"It was shocking," Fellows said. "Like any healthy, in-shape 21-year-old playing ball, I was not expecting it to be cancer. It felt like it was out of left field, and it was overwhelming for me and my family.

His support system extended beyond his family and friends. The Padres also rallied around him - a kid not long removed from just joining the organization - and covered the cost of his cancer treatments in full.

"I'm really thankful, honestly, that we found it right after I got drafted," Fellows said. "[The Padres] took really good care of me. The treatments aren't cheap. They did a really good job of getting me everything I needed to get through it. They were not worried about the baseball side of it; I just wanted to get healthy and get back to a normal life."

Fellows was given a choice by the Padres: he could receive his cancer treatment in San Diego or closer to home in Illinois. Although he was born a Hoosier in Lawrenceburg, Ind., Fellows moved to the Chicago suburbs around age two and spent most of his life there.

With his family and primary support system in the Midwest, Fellows chose to begin a series of visits to the Lurie Cancer Center of Northwestern University in Chicago.

"Treatment was pretty brutal," Fellows said. "It was pretty much poison being pumped into me. A lot of needles and long treatments. I think the chemotherapy lasted four to six hours. I got blood work and an IV in my arm. They had to keep switching sides because it scarred my veins. It was a handful of medicines each time and they all had time slots - one would go for maybe 30 minutes and the next for an hour."

Fellows did his rounds of chemo almost every three weeks for over seven months while he stayed with his family in the Chicago area. After treatment all morning, he would go home and try his best to relax.

"My family couldn't even use the same bathroom as me," Fellows said. "I was releasing all the toxins they were putting in me. I had to take a steroid for about a week after each treatment."

The steroids made him feel weak as he tried to recover. He would start to feel better, and then the next rounds of chemo came. The cycle of recovery and detoxification exhausted him, both physically and mentally.

After a long battle, Fellows received extraordinary news - the chemotherapy worked.

"On Jan. 28, 2020, the doctor gave me the news that I was in remission," Fellows said. "I got a CT scan of my body and [my armpit] after the final round of chemo, and I was clear."

He commemorated the date with a lime green ribbon - the designated symbol for non-Hodgkin lymphoma - tattooed on his wrist with the date. Fellows had to remain vigilant while in remission, receiving blood tests twice a year for the first couple years after beating the disease.

"I got the clear about a month and a half before Spring Training," Fellows said. "I started working out at Vandy to try to get something in before going back to Arizona. My body had just been getting beat up. I dropped a little bit of weight, but I was just kind of frail. I couldn't work out during the treatments. I hadn't done anything in like eight months."

While San Diego was patient with Fellows returning to action, it was not the same feeling when he made his way back to Peoria.

"When you come into Spring Training, obviously, you've got to be ready to go," Fellows said. "They didn't expect any of that from me. So, I just started my throwing progression, started conditioning. I didn't have to do all the stuff most guys had to do when they showed up. They spent about three weeks building me up and then COVID shut everything down."

Unsure of what was on the horizon with the Minor League Baseball season canceled, Fellows returned to Nashville. He could not go back to working out at Vanderbilt due to disease restrictions, so he resorted to working out at a regular gym and throwing on any fields he could find.

"Everyone was kind of in limbo and didn't know what was going on," Fellows said. "I just tried to stay ready as much as I could."

That offseason, Fellows was given the chance at a fresh start. On Jan. 19, 2021, Fellows was traded from San Diego to Pittsburgh in a three-team trade with New York (NL) that sent Pirates RHP Joe Musgrove to the Padres.

After two years of chaos, weathering cancer and a global shutdown, Fellows had the chance to return to the mound in 2021 with a new organization. Twice knocked down, Fellows finally climbed back on top of the hill. Fate soon pushed the boulder all the way down again.

"It felt really good...until I blew out my elbow," Fellows said with a retrospective laugh.

Fellows was just five games into his professional career between the Florida Complex League and Single-A Bradenton before his elbow gave out. One month after making his pro debut, the hopeful then-23-year-old hit the injured list and underwent ulnar collateral ligament surgery.

"We kind of take it for granted, being on top of the world like we're just going to continue to play the game we love and never stop," Fellows said. "That's everyone's dream, you know? For a while, I felt like everything was going in the wrong direction."

Fellows could not have conquered all these obstacles without his family and friends in his corner.

"It ate me up for a bit," Fellows said on all his trials. "I felt like everything was spiraling out of control. I just give a lot of credit to the people around me, the support I had from the Padres and Pirates. Honestly, just trying to keep a good mindset and keep pushing forward."

Through all the challenges, alongside all those close to him, Fellows kept faith he would persevere through it all to enjoy a long career. In addition to the tattoo on his wrist, Fellows has his remission date stitched into his glove: a reminder that each day is a blessing and that every opportunity on the mound is a testament to how far he has come.

To patients and families affected by the disease, he offers these words of encouragement:

"Just hang in there," Fellows said. "You're going to get through it. Lean on your family, friend and the people you care about. Just go through it with them every day and there's a light on the other side of the tunnel. Once you do that and get through the tough times, the good times are going to be even better. Life can be short, and you never know what's going happen the next day. Continue to fight, grow and be a good person, and things will all work out."

Fellows has reached new heights in 2025 with Indianapolis, marking his first full season in Triple-A. Fellows earned a win in a career-best five straight decisions to begin the campaign, pitching to a 2.08 ERA (5er/21.2ip) with 25 strikeouts in nine appearances from April 20-May 31. This run propelled him to being named Indianapolis Indians May Player of the Month, as he allowed just one earned run in 12.2 innings across five outings. In addition to his hot start, Fellows holds the longest scoreless innings streak by an Indians pitcher, blanking opponents across 15.0 consecutive frames from July 12-31.

Now, only one step remains on the professional ladder for Fellows: A major league debut.

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International League Stories from September 6, 2025


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