Tommy John, the longtime Major League baseball pitcher whose name is forever linked to the groundbreaking elbow surgery that saved his career and those of countless others since, has died, officials said Sunday.<\/p>\n
He was 83.<\/p>\n
John is survived by his wife and three children, Tommy, Travis and Tamara, according to a statement from the Los Angeles Dodgers, one of the southpaw\u2019s six major league teams.<\/p>\n
John had been in hospice care, Reuters reported last week.<\/p>\n
\u201cTommy was an exceptional pitcher throughout his career in Major League Baseball, and his courageous role in becoming the first to have surgery that would go on to bear his name can\u2019t be overstated,\u201d Dodgers President Stan Kasten said in a statement.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis impact both on and off the field has been felt by ballplayers of all ages and will be for generations to come,\u201d Kasten said. <\/p>\n
John will be best known for years with the Dodgers and New York Yankees, two of the sports\u2019s most famed franchises.<\/p>\n
He skipped last weekend\u2019s annual Old-Timers\u2019 Day event at Yankee Stadium and issued a statement, announcing his retirement from public life.<\/p>\n
He expressed gratitude to Yankees owners and staff in his farewell, as well as to the doctor who saved his career with a surgery to repair a torn ligament in his elbow.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat surgery has since gone on to save the careers of countless pitchers, including may of the very best in the game today,\u201d John wrote. \u201cThank you to all the fans who supported me & my teammates for 26 years. I will never forget you.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Yankees released a statement following John\u2019s death describing him as a \u201cbedrock\u201d of the team\u2019s pitching rotation and a favorite among the fans. It went on to note that the story of John\u2019s famed surgery overshadowed his work on the mound, which included consecutive 20\u2011win seasons with the Yankees.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe pause to remember the totality of his legacy \u2014 his competitiveness and skill, his penchant for conversation, his kind and gracious nature, and his stature as an athletic and medical pioneer,\u201d the team said.<\/p>\n