CHICAGO — While most Major League players dream of saving runs and making headlines with walk-off hits, Matt Szczur did something few athletes — or people — ever do. He didn’t just save a game. He saved a life.
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Before he donned a Cubs uniform or celebrated a World Series title with his teammates, Szczur made a decision that would forever define his legacy — not as a baseball player, but as a human being.
It was 2009. Szczur, then a two-sport athlete at Villanova University, had joined the Be the Match bone marrow registry as part of a team effort. He never expected a call. But then the phone rang — and what he heard changed everything.
A 15-month-old girl from Ukraine named Anastasia was battling leukemia. She needed a bone marrow transplant immediately. Szczur wasn’t just a match — he was her only viable match in the entire registry.
“They told me I was her only shot,” Szczur later recalled.
“I didn’t even think twice.”
Despite being in the middle of his football season and on the verge of an MLB career, Szczur put everything on hold to undergo the painful and exhausting marrow donation process. It wasn’t without risk. It could have impacted his strength and stamina — vital for any athlete, especially one chasing a dream.
But to Szczur, the choice was easy.
“There are things bigger than sports. This was one of them.”
The transplant was a success. Little Anastasia survived. Against all odds, she began to recover, and years later, was declared cancer-free.
Though U.S. and Ukrainian privacy laws prevented immediate contact, Szczur eventually met Anastasia and her family via video call. Through a translator, the girl’s mother said:
“You are forever part of our family. You gave my daughter her life.”
The story later became the subject of an ESPN E:60 documentary titled “Risking It All.” But for Szczur, it was never about the cameras. It was about doing what’s right, even when no one was watching.
Szczur would go on to join the Chicago Cubs, playing a key role as a utility outfielder. Though not a regular starter, he was beloved for his hustle, humility, and quiet leadership in the clubhouse.
In 2016, he was part of the team that ended the Cubs’ 108-year championship drought — a moment etched into baseball history. Yet ask fans what they remember most about him, and many won’t cite a stat line.
They’ll tell you about the time he gave away a part of himself — literally — to save a child he’d never met.
After the transplant, Szczur became a passionate advocate for bone marrow donation. He partnered with Be the Match, urging fans across the country to join the donor registry.
“If I can do it, anyone can,” he told MLB.com.
“You never know who you might save.”
He and his wife Natalie also launched The Szcz the Day Foundation, supporting bone marrow registries and helping young patients through treatment.