The Los Angeles Dodgers are looking to turn around a harsh losing streak and return to their march toward a third straight World Series championship as soon as possible.
But on Saturday, the results on the diamond were put aside for a moment when a franchise legend, multi-time All-Star, multi-time World Series champion and former broadcaster issued a goodbye to all of his fans after a historic career.
Former Los Angeles Dodgers All-Star Tommy John Sends Heartfelt Message As Health Wanes
For more than five decades following his playing career with the Dodgers, New York Yankees and others, Tommy John’s name has been inseparable from one of baseball’s most significant medical breakthroughs. Now, after the former pitcher was admitted into hospice care, he sent a message to fans.
“Thank you to all the fans who supported me and my teammates for 26 years. I will never forget you,” John said in a written message shared by the Yankees, according to MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch.
John, 83, is currently in hospice care at his home in Bradenton, Florida, bringing a difficult new chapter to the life of a pitcher whose career once appeared to be over before it truly began. In 1974, John was pitching for the Dodgers when he suffered a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his left elbow. At the time, such an injury was widely considered career-ending.
Instead, orthopedic surgeon Dr. Frank Jobe attempted an experimental procedure that would eventually become known as Tommy John surgery.
“Thanks to Dr. [Frank] Jobe, who saved my arm and made it possible for me to continue pitching,” John added in his goodbye message. “That surgery has since gone on to save the careers of countless pitchers, including many of the very best in the game today.”
The numbers illustrate just how extraordinary the second act of his career became. John went 124-106 with a 2.97 ERA during his first 12 major league seasons, then returned from surgery to go 164-125 with a 3.66 ERA over the remainder of his career.
Former Los Angeles Dodgers Star Sends Emotional Goodbye
John’s longevity made him much more than the namesake of a surgical procedure. He became a four-time All-Star and eventually worked as a broadcaster for the Minnesota Twins and New York Yankees after his playing career ended.
Now, however, John is confronting a health battle that has prompted him to look back on his decades in baseball.