科学美国人60秒:Baseball Great Thanks Tommy John Surgery, Decries Its Frequency

“I’ve been given an opportunity as one of the only players, the only one right now, to be inducted into the Hall of Fame with Tommy John surgery.”

The great Braves pitcher John Smoltz at his induction ceremony in Cooperstown, NY, yesterday, July 26^th. He was 34 when he had the procedure in which a damaged ulnar collateral ligament in the arm is replaced by a tendon from another part of the body.

“It’s an epidemic. It’s something that is affecting our game. It’s something that I thought would cost me my career, but thanks to Dr. James Andrews and all those before him performing the surgery with such precision has caused it to be almost a false-read, like a band-aid you’d put on your arm. I want to encourage the families and parents that are out there to understand that this not normal to have a surgery at 14 and 15 years old.”

Smoltz then talked about why he thinks so many kids and early-career pros, wind up needing Tommy John surgery.

“Every throw a kid makes today is a competitive pitch, they don’t go outside, they don’t have fun, they don’t throw enough. But they’re competing and maxing out too hard too early, and that’s why we’re having these problems. So please, take care of those great future arms.”

And for any parents considering elective Tommy John surgery in the hope that it’ll enhance an already healthy arm and increase the chances of their kid getting to the majors, here’s what Stan Conte, vice president of medical services for the LA Dodgers, said at a conference of the Society for American Baseball Research in 2014.

 “The parents come in and say, ‘Listen he’s throwing 78 [mph], he’s not going to get a scholarship until he’s throws 83, let’s do the surgery so he can throw 83.’ This sounds ridiculous, but it’s happening on a global scale. It’s ridiculous.”

—Steve Mirsky

[The above text is a transcript of this podcast]