Tommy John Was a Pitcher Not a Surgery

 

Yesterday Tommy John passed away at age 83. He was a pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 26 seasons between 1963 and 1989. He played for the Cleveland Indians, Chicago White Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, California Angels, and Oakland Athletics. He was a four-time MLB All-Star and has the second-most wins (288) of any pitcher since 1900 not in the Hall of Fame.  Obviously, he deserved to be enshrined in Cooperstown.

He is best known for Tommy John Surgery, medically known as ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) reconstruction, a surgical procedure that replaces a torn ligament on the inner side of the elbow with a tendon harvested from elsewhere in the body.  More than 2400 athletes have undergone that procedure since 1974 when Tommy was the first recipient.  In an interview some years ago Tommy said it should really be called Frank Jobe Surgery and named after the doctor who developed it.

Tommy John's career statistics from Baseball-Reference

Michael Fallon's biography of Tommy John from SABR's Bioproject

Mets 4 Nationals 3 with the Jay Buckley Baseball Tour In Attendance

 

Over the years the family has attended 6 Jay Buckley Baseball Tours seeing games all over the country.  There are many entries in this journal documenting our trips.  Today, Tour 20 was at Citi Field to see the Mets play the Nationals.  We stopped by the group sitting in Section 125 and chatted with Jay for a while;

Lee took a photo with Jay

Christian Scott started the game for the Mets and pitched into the 7th inning.  The highlight of the game was Luis Torrens’ 407-foot homer to straightaway center off Jake Irvin (2-7) put the Mets ahead for good in the fourth.  Kodai Senga struck out 2 in the 9th inning to earn his third save.

Box Score

The crazy thing is the Mets' record is 9-3 after the trade deadline.  Maybe they can end the season with a respectable record.

Cunningham Park in Queens

 

On most Saturday mornings Lee and I like to walk around Cunningham Park in eastern Queens.  I found some information about the park:

• Website from the NYC Department of Parks
• History of Cunningham Park
• Wikipedia Entry

Random Thoughts of the Day August 13, 2026

 

• A neighbor who drives the Q44-SBS told me that about 70% of customers don't pay the fair.  People on SBS buses enter through the back doors that allows loading faster to hasten the trips.  But doesn't that defeat the purpose when so much money is lost to the MTA?
• I don't understand why people talk about their medical problems  through social media.  Some even post photos of themselves in hospital beds.These issues should be private.
• I don't know who is worse, the Dylan enthusiasts or the baseball superfans.  Two young ladies who do a Dylan podcast say they enjoyed the film Hearts of Fire.  I think it is just about the worst thing Dylan ever did.  Some of the baseball "nuts" will travel to all ends of the USA to see games over many years.  They often will see two games in a day.  They'll see the Mets in the day and the Brooklyn Cyclones at night.

Patches by Dickey Lee - Random Oldie of the Day

 

Random Thoughts of the Day - August 8, 2026

 

• Last night I had a dream about visiting the University of Rhode Island, where I was a graduate student from 1972-74.  I last visited the campus in 1978.  I still get snail and email from them asking for money.  Why does my dreams bring me into the past?
• Since the trading deadline, the Mets are now 4-0.  Are they going to do what the Red Sox are doing now, by getting hot?  I doubt it.  Nobody says anything about the human side of professional athletes.  Where do a player and his family live after they are traded in the middle of the season and not know how long the team will keep them? Likewise, many players move from the majors to the minors and back several times in a season.
• I still don't know what percentage of hits to this journal are from real people and how many are from bots.

I am Giving Dating Apps One Last Try

 

I have written about my disappointments with dating apps several times in this journal.  After Karen passed away in 2021, I didn't even want to think about dating for at least one year.  I always thought that it would be nice if I found someone, but it was OK if it didn't happen.  All those years ago, my parents brainwashed me so I wouldn't even think of dating a gentile girl.

I did try a Jewish dating site, but nothing worked out.  Many of the matches were from women who lived 200 or more miles away.  You can't travel so far for a first date.  A friend convinced me that if the intention is not marriage or cohabitation, the difference in religion is not that important.  At my age, I don't think I'll remarry.  At first, I thought I should only seek out widows.  Someone else convinced me that I should not be dismissive of divorced women since the mourning process after a divorce may be similar to mourning after a death.

Since Eharmony was rated the #1 dating app for older adults, I decided to sign up with them.  So far, the results have been the same.  There is a chatting relationship that dies out quickly.  Ghosted again.  I'll stick with it until my agreement with them concludes.  I will not renew and am not optimistic right now.

There are more important things in the world.