8/16/2026
Tommy John passed away on Saturday after a long battle with bladder cancer. John will be remembered for what he accomplished on the field but his off the field contributions are and will continue to have a far larger impact on all of baseball.
John’s Career
Although not a Hall of Famer, Tommy John has the credentials and has simply fallen short in the final vote. He played for 26 seasons, was a 4 time All-Star and played for six different teams while racking up 288 career wins.
The 288 career wins is the 2nd most wins for a pitcher still not in the Hall of Fame. His career mark was 288-231. He appeared in 760 games, had 2,245 strikeouts and a career ERA of 3.34. He was a 20 game winner 3 times over his career and played in the World Series 3 times, once for the Yankees and twice for the Dodgers. In an odd twist, John never won a Championship losing both times to the Yankees and the one time to the Dodgers.
His World Series numbers are also brilliant. He pitched 33 2/3 innings with a blazing 2.67 ERA.
John also played for the White Sox, Angels A’s and Indians.
Bigger Impact on All of Baseball
There are many who would argue what he accomplished on the field should have already gotten him into the Hall of Fame. But what he did off the field thnat revolutionized taking care of pitchers arms is where the bigger impact came.
In 1974, John injured his arm and up to this point was simply the end of a pitcher’s career. The tear of the ulnar collateral ligament had ended other careers with no wayt tol repair it to the point of being able to throw a pitch again. But John sought an answer and his own team physician had an idea. John was on board and Dr Frank Jobe the Dodgers team doctor, performed a new surgery that would become “Tommy John” surgery.
Jobe completed the surgery and went back in later to clean up nerve issues so he could properly grip and throw the ball.
John missed the 75 season only to come back in 1976 where he went 10-10 for the Dodgers. In 1977 he went 20-7 and was runner-up to Philadelphia’s Steve Carlton for the Cy Young award.
Experts say the Tommy John surgery is the single most important procedure in all of sports likely responsible for adsditional hundreds of millions of dollars in saved careers.
For more on the career of Tommy John:
Link to MLB’s Bryan Hoch whose coverage you can see on this link
ESPN’s coverage is available on this link
Photo Credit MLB.com
ESN