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Tommy John spent 26 years pitching in the major leagues. During that span, he won 288 games, struck out 2,245 batters, and finished with a career ERA of 3.34. Despite spending time with both the Dodgers and Yankees during the height of their baseball power, John was never a champion, losing to each of those clubs in the World Series. And though he fell just 12 victories short of 300, and is ranked seventh all time in victories for left-handed hurlers, he is not in Cooperstown.

Fans are often driven by the comeback, watching teams and players battle back into contention after appearing down and out. Willis Reed is immortalized for hobbling back to the court. And with one swing, Kirk Gibson made everyone believe what they just saw. Their contributions led to championships for their teams, which makes them more memorable. But it was Tommy John with a comeback for the ages, rebuilding champions for years to come, one ligament at a time.

Tommy John is not a physician or body part, though the name is more commonly linked to a surgical procedure. He’s a man that refused to hang up his cleats after only 10 years on the mound. He’s a man that turned a career ending injury into 16 additional years and 184 more victories. He’s a man that agreed to a surgical procedure that would replace the ulnar collateral ligament with a tendon from his forearm, a surgery never performed before him, but has since been credited with more baseball saves than anything else.

After tearing the ligament in 1974, John was named the major league’s comeback player of the year in 1976. He was an all-star in ’78, ’79, and ’80, before retiring from the game in ’89. And though he’s long from the game, the name hovers over every big league staff, with the surgery becoming a more common part of today’s game.

John Smoltz, Kerry Wood, David Wells, Mariano Rivera, Tim Worrell, Jason Isringhausen, Russ Ortiz, Mark Wohlers, Eric Gagne, and Chris Carpenter are just a few names included on a long list of pitchers that underwent Tommy John Surgery. It’s a list that would also include NFL quarterbacks Jake Delhomme, Craig Erickson and Rob Johnson, as well as the dual sport superstar, Deion Sanders.

Tommy John isn’t likely to appear in discussions about sports comebacks, but the name rolls quickly from the tongues of athletes needing one. Today’s 12-year old little leaguer may aspire to be the next Clayton Kershaw, Roy Halladay, or Stephen Strasburg, but it may be the little known and hardly mentioned Tommy John of generations past that will allow them to pursue that dream.

He may not be in Cooperstown (yet), but across the diamonds of America, he is legend.