Houston Astros first base coach makes miraculous post-op recovery
Rich Dauer woke up three days after a risky operation on a subdural hematoma.
— -- Houston Astros' first base coach Rich Dauer miraculously beat the odds when he survived an emergency brain surgery on the day of the team's World Series celebration.
As the team paraded through the streets of downtown Houston on Nov. 3 in honor of its first-ever championship title, coach Rich Dauer suddenly began staggering and collapsed on stage during the official ceremony.
The 65-year-old was rushed to Houston Methodist Hospital and was unresponsive by the time he arrived. Doctors determined Dauer had a subdural hematoma [brain bleed] and performed emergency surgery to relieve the pressure on his brain.
Doctors told Dauer’s wife that his chance of survival was only 3 percent and that he would likely have brain damage if he made it through the procedure.
"The doctor told me, 'Call your family,'" Chris Dauer told ABC News. "I called [our three daughters] and said, 'You need to come to Houston because your dad has just ... it doesn't look good."
"I was scared and I just prayed, I said please don't take my husband," she said.
Rich Dauer had slipped on a wet floor and hit his head the night before the ceremony. He thought he was fine because he did not have a headache or other symptoms.
"I hit the right side of my head. I didn't feel any pain and I wasn't hurting. Got up the next day, went to the parade," he told ABC News.
ABC News’ chief medical correspondent Dr. Jennifer Ashton said Dauer’s age, head trauma and use of blood thinning medication were all factors for his subdural hematoma.
"As we age, the brain does shrink a little bit. And when you are on blood thinners, that can increase the risk of bleeding at baseline and if you jar your head and it hits the inside of the skull, it can tear those veins and give you a subdural," Ashton explained today on "GMA."
Dauer woke up three days after the procedure. He said he has no pain or coordination issues.
One of Dauer's daughters, Casey, shared an emotional photo of her father.
"He's a miracle. He's a walking miracle. But I do get kinda tired because he keeps telling me he's a miracle," Chris said of her husband.