Tommy John Surgeon Dies at 83
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Tommy John, Pitcher Who Gave His Name to Career-Saving Surgery, Dies at 83 After tearing an elbow ligament, he underwent a risky procedure and returned at his best, changing baseball and giving new hope to injured players.
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Washington PostTommy John, whose elbow surgery transformed baseball, dies at 83 The lefty made four All-Star teams while pitching for the White Sox, Dodgers and Yankees. An innovative procedure extended his career to 26 seasons.
NPR NewsTommy John, who won 288 games during a 26-year big league career and became the first pitcher to successfully return following groundbreaking elbow surgery that later was named after him, has died. He was 83.
The Guardian USJohn pitched for six clubs, including the Yankees, the Chicago White Sox (1965-71) and the Los Angeles Dodgers (1972-74, 1976-78). He missed the 1975 season after the surgery by Jobe, who was the Dodgers’ team doctor.
NBC NewsEven without the accolade, John was one of the best-known pitchers in all of baseball thanks to the surgery that bears his name. Some of the sport’s most celebrated modern pitchers have had the procedure, including Shohei Ohtani, Justin Verlander, Gerrit Cole and Jacob deGrom.
USA TodayThank you, Tommy John: MLB pitching careers saved by the groundbreaking surgery - USA Today Thank you, Tommy John: MLB pitching careers saved by the groundbreaking surgery USA Today
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Joshua Báez became the first player to hit three home runs in his first three at-bats in the major leagues, leading the St Louis Cardinals to an 8-4 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Saturday.
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ABC NewsCardinals rookie outfielder Joshua Baez made MLB history by becoming the first player to hit three home runs in his big league debut. August 15, 2026
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John recorded 2,245 strikeouts but never led either league in wins or strikeouts. He had the second-most wins of any pitcher since 1900 not to be elected to the Hall of Fame. From 1995 through 2009, John was on the Hall of Fame ballot, but he never received more than 31.7% of the votes, falling well short of the 75% required for election.
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NBC NewsHe won 288 games in his 26-year career and recorded 2,245 strikeouts. But John never won the coveted Cy Young Award, a distinction given every year to the MLB’s best pitcher that season.
4 details only one outlet reported
Independent claims that didn't surface elsewhere in our corpus. Treat as supplementary — not corroborated across outlets.
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01 USA Today The Dodgers placed left-handed pitcher Justin Wrobleski on the injured list on Sunday, Aug. 16.
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02 The Guardian US TMZ.com reported that the pitcher died at his home in Florida, surrounded by his family, including his wife, Cheryl. John had recently been in hospice care.
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03 NPR News "If you put it in dollars and cents, I think there's no question that Tommy John is the most valuable reconstructive procedure there is," Dodgers team physician Dr. Neal ElAttrache told The Associated Press in 2024.
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04 NBC News In case you missed it A man was arrested in connection with a shooting that wounded five people , one critically, outside residence halls at Virginia State University, near Richmond, early Saturday, officials said. A 13-year-old girl — the only survivor after a gunman killed five people in rural Michigan — called 911 after she was shot four times , state police official and her family said. Hundreds of fans lined the streets of a seaside Welsh village to bid farewell to the late singer Bonnie Tyler as her coffin was brought home. Joshua Báez became the first player to hit a home run in each of his first three at-bats in the majors, leading the St. Louis Cardinals to an 8-4 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Saturday.
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