Good Sports: Bullard's Sam Makely relearns walking and baseball in hospital after traumatic crash

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Sam Makely lasting astatine the sheet this play is thing abbreviated of a miracle.

On June 1, 2025, Sam's beingness changed forever.

"I rolled up my windows, called 911 and told them, 'Hey, my sanction is Sam Makely, I'm 16 years aged and I don't privation to die.'"

Last summer, portion driving home, the brakes connected Sam's car failed.

"I don't adjacent cognize however to explicate it," helium said. "When I tapped connected it and it conscionable didn't bash anything, my full assemblage conscionable got truly warm. Next happening you know, I'm going onto the incorrect broadside of the road, mislaid power and deed a tree, conscionable consecutive on. I retrieve closing my eyes, and I was like, 'I'm conscionable going to instrumentality a nap. If I'm meant to aftermath up, I will.' And past a fewer minutes later, I woke up successful an ambulance."

Sam rapidly realized helium didn't cognize his sanction oregon thing astir his beingness anterior to the crash. He'd aboriginal beryllium told helium had a traumatic encephalon wounded and dissociative amnesia, affecting his memory.

"The doc was like, 'He doesn't cognize you. He doesn't cognize who you are, and tin you springiness him immoderate space?' My mommy bosom benignant of broke," said his mother, Tiffani.

"Going connected Instagram was the archetypal happening I did," Sam said. "I conscionable clicked connected the app. It was close there. I retrieve virtually looking up to my caregiver and saying, 'Hey, I play baseball.'"

To Sam's aesculapian staff, shot would astir apt conscionable beryllium a happening of his past.

That didn't halt the Bullard elder from trying to play successful his last twelvemonth of precocious schoolhouse ball.

Relearning to locomotion turned to presumption drills successful the infirmary hallways.

"We knew helium was going to beryllium successful the dugout this year, 1 mode oregon another," says manager Tom Donald. We didn't cognize helium was going to beryllium connected the field."

Eight months aft the accident, Sam was successful the lineup for the 2nd crippled of the season.

Today, he's the Knights' starting archetypal baseman.

"Sammy is precise inspirational to a batch of kids, particularly to his teammates and his coaches," Donald said. We emotion that kid. He's a worker. He's bluish collar, and to spot him retired connected the tract and really playing and moving around, it's an unbelievable story."

Sam showed america wherever his aged beingness ended and his caller beingness began.

But the clang tract isn't a spot of trauma. For this survivor, it's a spot of peace.

"Whenever I'm having a unspeakable day," Sam said. "I'll travel retired here. Whenever I request clip to think, I'll travel retired here."

Pieces of his car are inactive leaving a way and a reminder for gratitude.

"Thinking astir my beingness and however small baseball, I mean, I cognize it's truly important, but however small accent it is erstwhile you person this to deliberation about," helium said.

"The caller memories we marque are the ones that matter," Tiffani said. "Being contiguous and being together, conscionable being portion of Sam's caller journey. There was ne'er 1 clip erstwhile helium said, 'Why is this happening to me?'"

"It's conscionable a bully feeling knowing I'm a beardown dude," Sam said. "Not value strong. I could conscionable spell done whatever. If I privation something, I'll ne'er halt to get it."

For sports updates, travel Sydney Berger connected Facebook, X and Instagram.