READING — Despite the heat on Tuesday evening, Mike Schmidt took the stage in the plaza at FirstEnergy Stadium in a long-sleeved light blue shirt, long white pants, a white wide-brimmed hat and sunglasses.
Properly protected from the summer sun, the Baseball Hall of Famer and Philadelphia Phillies legend spoke enthusiastically and eloquently about the importance of seeing a dermatologist and taking precautions to prevent skin cancer.
“The bottom line is education, prevention and early detection,” the former third baseman said to the assembled fans during the Play Sun Smart program before the Reading Fightin Phils played the New Hampshire Fisher Cats.
During a session with the media minutes later, Schmidt battled to find the right word to describe how his outlook changed after getting diagnosed with Stage 3 melanoma in 2013.
Mike Schmidt, the former Philadelphia Phillies third baseman and Baseball Hall of Famer, talks to fans about melanoma during the Play Sun Safe program before the Reading Fightin Phils’ game at Reading’s FirstEnergy Stadium on June 30, 2026.
BRIAN SMITH | LNP STAFF
In the middle of answering the next question, the word he was looking for came to him.
“Epiphany,” he said.
Yes, like a bolt out of the blue.
“When I started to get my life back, my attitude about everything changed,” Schmidt, 76, said. “I appreciate my life so much more now than I ever did, you know what I mean. The whole idea of loving to the nth degree, thinking about other people. I’m totally a different person than I was prior to that diagnosis.”
The surprise diagnosis — Schmidt called it lucky — came after he went to a dermatologist on his way to the airport to have something on his hand looked at. The doctor convinced Schmidt to let him do a further examination. That’s when he found a mole on Schmidt’s back.
Three days later following a biopsy, Schmidt found out he had cancer. Understandably, he was scared. He considered it “a death sentence.”
“You’re not 100 percent sure what to think, but one thing you do think is, ‘I might die,’ ” Schmidt said. “People are dying from melanoma.”
As Schmidt learned more about melanoma and drugs that were coming off trial, he said he got more confident about his ability to live.
“But never … I never stopped at one red light through that entire period and didn’t think about dying,” Schmidt said. “Whenever I was alone, on the toilet or whatever, my brain always went to, ‘Maybe you get your stuff in order. Maybe I’ll never see my granddaughters graduate from high school.’ You know, you think about death. That’s a scary thing to think about.”
His journey doesn’t sound easy.
Schmidt said he had seven spots on his brain and 12 on his lungs. He had all the lymph nodes removed on the left side of his body. He underwent chemotherapy. He lost some of his memory.
“I had some friends I couldn’t even think of their names when I ran into them,” he said.
His memory appears good now. He recalled his first professional home run — hit while playing for Philadelphia against Reading soon after he was drafted in the second round in 1971 — and his time playing for the Reading Phillies. He also touched on this year’s edition of the Phillies.
Mike Schmidt, the former Philadelphia Phillies third baseman and Baseball Hall of Famer, talks to the media following his Play Sun Safe presentation before the Reading Fightin Phils’ game at Reading’s FirstEnergy Stadium on June 30, 2026.
BRIAN SMITH | LNP STAFF
“Crazy year, man,” he said. “They’re, you know, going to be close to 10 games over .500 at the (All-Star) break, if not more than 10, and I’d have got laughed at if I had predicted that a couple of months ago, right?
“It just goes to show you how crazy the game of baseball is. They can prove that it is a long season. Everybody started heating up a little bit, and we got great pitching, and I think we’re on our way to 90-plus victories, hopefully. So everything’s clicking right now. Just ride the wave.”
Schmidt also talked about Kyle Schwarber, who broke the three-time National League MVP’s franchise record with his 30th homer of the season in the team’s 84th game. Schmidt’s best start was 30 homers through 87 games in 1979 on the way to 45.
“I really respect Kyle for a lot of reasons,” Schmidt said. “On the field for sure. He’s a great hitter, a great teammate. He’s big in the community. He’s just got a great attitude about everything. He’s a man of the people.”
When asked if Schwarber could hit 60 homers this year, Schmidt said he thought it was possible.
“If anybody can, he can,” said Schmidt, before adding with a laugh: “Don’t put it down like I predicted 60 homers. I know how that answer can take you there.”
But baseball was a secondary reason for Schmidt’s visit. He has made it a mission to partner with Dermatology Partners and the Richard David Kann (RDK) Melanoma Foundation, as he did on Tuesday, to deliver his message on melanoma.
“My last scans and MRIs, which I get every four months, have all been good, clean, stable,” he said. “But I’ll do those the rest of my life.”
A life he feared may be nearing its end 13 years ago. And one he is grateful for more than ever.
Mike Schmidt, the former Philadelphia Phillies third baseman and Baseball Hall of Famer, talks to the media following his Play Sun Safe presentation before the Reading Fightin Phils’ game at Reading’s FirstEnergy Stadium on June 30, 2026.
BRIAN SMITH | LNP STAFF
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