As cllct recapped on the 50th anniversary of Tommy John's injury in July, it's surprising the longtime left-handed pitcher is not more collectible and isn't in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Back then, we didn't have time to speak with John directly, but for the 50th anniversary of his actual surgery (Sept. 25, 1974), we made it happen.
Rovell: Can you believe it has been 50 years?
John: Not really.
Rovell: So, it's a July game at Dodger Stadium against the Expos, and something goes wrong.
John: Yeah, I pretty much knew I ripped my elbow. I went into the clubhouse, and (team doctor) Dr. (Frank) Jobe told me to see him at 2 p.m. the next day. I went in, and he showed me how my elbow was not working the way it should be. We didn't have an MRI so that was the best he could do at the time. We tried to have it heal on its own for six weeks, but felt toward the end it wasn't gonna work.
Rovell: And then Jobe, despite the fact that he had never done something like this, calmly told you what he was about to do?
John: He said we are take a tendon called the Palmaris Longus out of your right wrist, and I'm gonna graft it on your left elbow with the idea that it will accept it as the new ligament.
Rovell: And again, he had never done this. But you felt comfortable?
John: Dr. Jobe had worked on my arm before in 1972, and I had so much confidence. If he said to me, "Tommy, I have a better plan. How about we go take a bucket of German Shephard dog poop and rub it on second base, it will help your ligament," I would have done it.
Rovell: Dr. Jobe was one of the best, if not the best, othopedits in the world. Did you ever think what would have turned out if you didn't play for the Dodgers, and you didn't get to him?
John: It was the right place at the right time, and I just like to thank the fact that that big guy up in the sky must have been a Dodgers fan.
Rovell: How tough initially was it to get back?
John: During spring training, I started throwing off the mound to our bullpen catcher, Mark Cresse. Just 10 or 15 minutes, and I started throwing more and more to where eventually I got in games and could throw seven innings.
Rovell: Your career lasted another 14 years, and you finished seventh all-time in career starts (700), with 57 percent of those starts coming after the surgery and 56 of your starts ending in a win. You have some big gaudy numbers in many places.
John: I think I should be in the Hall of Fame, but I don't have a say.
Rovell: Who is the person who most perfusely thanked you for proving the surgery to be successful?
John: John Smoltz.
Darren Rovell is the founder of cllct.com and one of the country's leading reporters on the collectibles market. He previously worked for ESPN, CNBC and The Action Network.