Surgery and Baseball

[ruben safir]

http://sabr.org/bioproj/person/a7ac6649

But something happened in 1934 that almost ended his career. While
legging out a double for Rochester, Mize felt a painful snap in his
groin. The injury limited him to 90 games, but he batted .339, drove in
66 runs and hit 17 homers. It was good enough for the Cincinnati Reds to
buy him from the Cardinals in the spring of 1935 for $55,000 (a sum that
qualified as a bona-fide star investment in the midst of the Great
Depression). But it was a conditional deal – Mize had to prove he was
healthy enough to play. He couldn’t.

Spurs had developed on his pelvic bone, a result of the groin strain
months earlier. He couldn’t swing a bat without wincing, couldn’t dig
out low throws, and ran even more slowly than usual. So the Reds sent
him back to the Cardinals, whose club surgeon, Dr. Robert Hyland, said
he was fit enough to play the 1935 season in Rochester. Mize didn’t last
three months. He was hitting .317 after 65 games, but the pain and
immobility forced him out of action and he went on the voluntarily
retired list. At the age of 22, he thought his playing days were over.

Hyland performed a daring bit of surgery that winter, and by the time
spring training began, Mize had made an amazing recovery. He made the
Cardinals’ big-league roster and by midsummer had moved Collins off
first base. Mize’s rookie campaign was nothing short of brilliant – in
126 games he batted .329, with 19 homers and 93 RBIs. Moreover, he was
on pace to lead National League first basemen in fielding percentage had
he played in enough games to qualify. Mize actually led his league in
percentage, assists, and putouts twice each. Then again, he also led in
errors twice and finished second in that dubious category three other
times. “He was a big, lumbering guy, and some groundballs got by him,
sure, but if he could reach it, if he ever got his hand on the ball, he
held it,” Don Gutteridge said.