An emotional New York Yankees coach Phil Nevin returns after COVID-19 and complications

NEW YORK – Nearly four weeks after his COVID-19 diagnosis, New York Yankees third base coach Phil Nevin was medically cleared Friday to return to the dugout.

“It was a little bit of a grind,’’ said Nevin, who lost 22 pounds. “But people have been through worse, I know.’’

Nevin dealt with complications beyond COVID, specifically a staph infection that was caught early – thanks to a phone call made by pitching coach Matt Blake, who was also in quarantine.

Yet, the hardest part of Nevin’s illness was missing his son Tyler’s big league debut with the Baltimore Orioles.

“We had talked about that day for a long time,’’ an emotional Nevin said. “And to not be there for that, that probably hurt the most.’’

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An essential phone call 

On the Yankees’ May 9 flight to Tampa, Florida, Nevin learned of his positive COVID-19 test.

Nevin would be one of nine vaccinated members of the Yankees’ traveling party – five staffers, three coaches and Gleyber Torres – to test positive, but the only one to have lingering symptoms.

A week after his diagnosis, Nevin’s fevers increased to the point where he went to the emergency room.

Though he felt better after receiving a COVID treatment, his fever returned the same evening.

The next morning, Nevin – quarantined at Tampa – suggested to Blake that they head outside for a walk.

But Nevin quickly grew tired just 15 minutes into the stroll and “unbeknownst to me,’’ Blake placed a call to Yankees head athletic trainer Tim Lentych.

“I’ve only known Nev for a short time, but there’s something else wrong,’’ Blake told Lentych.

Blood tests were ordered the next morning and Nevin was summoned back to the hospital that night, diagnosed with a staph infection in his bloodstream.

“That phone call probably saved us a lot of things,’’ said Nevin. "It could have been a lot worse.''

'A special moment'

Each time he has signed a Yankees contract, Nevin has received a clause granting him permission to be at his son’s big league debut – wherever it is.

But Nevin was convalescing in quarantine when Tyler Nevin debuted on his 24th birthday, May 29, at Chicago.

Tyler’s mom and brother, a college baseball player, were in the ballpark.

��I had a great seat. I was on the couch,’’ Nevin said through tears, recalling how he watched Tyler’s first big league at-bat, a double off White Sox lefty Dallas Keuchel.

“Not being able to see him right after the game, that part gets you a bit,’’ said Nevin, who was able to speak to his son by phone right before he took the field.

“I couldn’t be prouder of him. It was still a special moment, without a doubt.’’

Gaining strength

Nevin has been appreciative of the many messages he’s received, including the Yankees fans he’s interacted with along the third-base line over the years.

“Our fans are unbelievable,’’ he said. “And I’ve learned a lot through Twitter, they know a lot about coaching third.’’

Nevin will make the Yankees’ next road trip, starting Tuesday, and hopes to return to the third base coaching box soon.

“I feel good, comparatively, to where I’ve been,’’ Nevin said before the Yankees’ home series opener against the Boston Red Sox.

“Getting my strength back, my energy, that’s the main thing,’’ he said. “I’m still going through some treatments for a little while that will keep me off the field.’’

An asthmatic, Nevin says that receiving a COVID vaccine probably prevented a worse diagnosis.

“My lungs were never in jeopardy,’’ he said. “That’s the first thing they checked.’’

If he weren’t in pro baseball, Nevin is not sure if he would have been vaccinated by now.

Yet, “what it did for me, I would certainly encourage anyone who asked me to certainly get it,’’ Nevin said.