Dodger Thoughts

Jon Weisman's outlet for dealing psychologically with the Los Angeles Dodgers, baseball and life

Tag: Dr. Frank Jobe

Vin Scully’s transcendent tribute to Dr. Frank Jobe

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photo-4By Jon Weisman

Friends and family paid wonderful tribute to Dr. Frank Jobe today at Dodger Stadium, as Ken Gurnick recaps at MLB.com. Dr. Neal ElAttrache became choked up as he described how Jobe, who died March 6, “touched and affected us in very profound ways.”

But at the risk of telling you exactly what you’d expect, there was something about Vin Scully’s words that transcended. Whatever your expectations might have been, Scully topped them. Paraphrasing Albert Schweitzer, Amos Bronson Alcott, William Wordsworth and the Bible, Scully at once spoke about Jobe and about life itself.

So I requested that we be able to post the entirety of Scully’s remarks online, in the video above.

“Success can be measured by what you receive from your fellow man, but the value of a man is what he gives back,” Scully said. “Frank was successful, but more importantly, he was a man of substance and most certainly of value. He spent a lifetime giving back.

“The tragedy of life is what dies inside a man while he lives. But the triumph of life is to be hopeful, kindly, cheerful and keep the heart unwrinkled. Frank kept his heart unwrinkled, and for that he was triumphant. What then do we ask of life, but to serve, to love, to commune with our fellow man and with ourselves, and from the lap of earth look up into the face of God. The best portion of a good man’s life is his little nameless unremembered acts of kindness and love.”

In case you missed it: Hanley and a hand for Lee

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Texas Rangers vs Los Angeles DodgersBy Jon Weisman

It wasn’t as loud as Hanley Ramirez’s mammoth home run to dead center, accounting for the Dodgers’ only runs in a 2-1 victory over Texas today, but Zach Lee made a nice first impression in his Spring Training starting debut.

Lee allowed two hits in two shutout innings, walking none while striking out one. Bookending Lee was 2013 second-round draft pick Tom Windle, who closed out the final two shutout innings by also allowing two baserunners while striking out one.

Infield candidates Chone Figgins and Brendan Harris had the only other Dodger hits. Dee Gordon had one of five Dodger walks, stole his fifth base in five attempts this spring and made a fine defensive play diving to his right back of second base.

Jesse Sanchez of MLB.com has more on Lee:

Despite the sore lat, Lee said he’s enjoying his first big league camp. He has been spending as much time as he can with Zack Greinke and Josh Beckett.

“I think I’m somewhat like [Greinke], although I don’t think I take it to the extent that he does,” Lee said. “Growing up, and the way I looked at pitching, I was always a cerebral and analytical person. I really thought more about game-planning and what [Greg] Maddux did back in the day, where he was able to pinpoint with location rather than overpower you.”

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Texas Rangers vs Los Angeles Dodgers

Several more fond remembrances of Dr. Frank Jobe emerged today, many of them captured by Sanchez. You also won’t read anything more powerful than what Dodger director of team travel Scott Akasaki or vice president of medical services Stan Conte shared with Kevin Baxter of the Times.

Cliff Corcoran of SI.com shared the five top Tommy John surgery success stories.

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Finally, don’t miss today in Jon SooHoo.

Farewell, Dr. Frank Jobe

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frank.jobeBy Jon Weisman

It doesn’t seem possible to appreciate Dr. Frank Jobe’s importance to baseball. You’d be better off trying to take a closeup of Kilimanjaro.

Think of how many innings, how many careers — how much joy — that Jobe’s innovation brought to the world of this sport.

Somehow, Jobe isn’t in the Hall of Fame, although in essence, he reached exponentially beyond the 300-win and 3,000-strikeout plateaus that typically serve as qualifiers.

Jobe died this morning at the age of 88. You can find an obituary from Ken Gurnick at MLB.com. Here’s what I wrote about Jobe and John in 100 Things Dodger Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die:

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The return of the Cool-a-Coo?

Dodgers at Cubs, 11:20 a.m.
Matt Kemp is resting a tight left hamstring but is available to pinch-hit, according to pregame reports. Kemp has started 123 consecutive games, according to Eric Stephen of True Blue L.A., and played in 392 in a row.

However, the start of today’s game is delayed by rain. 

Dee Gordon, SS
Mark Ellis, 2B
Andre Ethier, RF
Juan Rivera, LF
Jerry Hairston Jr., 3B
James Loney, 1B
A.J. Ellis, C
Tony Gwynn Jr., CF
Aaron Harang, P

Apparently, a Cool-a-Coo resurrection is possible after all.

All my research had shown that Cool-a-Coos, the greatest dessert treat in sports history, had disappeared when the company had gone out of business, but according to Bill Shaikin of the Times, they’re being manufactured by a small company under the name of “Mr. Cool.”

If it’s the real deal, then the Dodgers absolutely need to bring them back as soon as possible. And please, don’t try to sell me on the Its-It. It’s not the same thing.

Elsewhere …

  • Looking ahead: After today’s game, the Dodgers have four consecutive series against their four National League West rivals. Three of those series are at home.
  • According to the Elias Sports Bureau (via ESPN Stats & Information), Chris Capuano had an 0-1 count on 20 of 26 batters he faced Saturday.
  • Teams are starting to shift against Matt Kemp, writes Christina Kahrl for ESPNLosAngeles.com – taking into account his tendency not to pull the ball.
  • John C. McGinley will play Red Barber in the upcoming Jackie Robinson movie 42, writes Dave McNary of Variety.
  • Tommy John surgeon Dr. Frank Jobe, Jim “Mudcat” Grant, and Luis Tiant have been elected to the Baseball Reliquary’s Shrine of the Eternals. They finished in the top three by receiving at least 33 percent of votes. Just missing election this year were Lefty O’Doul (32%), Dizzy Dean (30%), Manny Mota (29%), Don Zimmer (29%), Steve Bilko (27%), Charlie Finley (25%), and Glenn Burke (24%). Induction day is July 15.
  • Steve Dilbeck of the Times becomes the latest to wonder why Jerry Hairston Jr. wouldn’t be the Dodgers’ regular third baseman even when Juan Uribe is healthy. The argument is that Hairston would wear down – the response would be whether Uribe isn’t already worn down.
  • Alex Castellanos and Scott Van Slyke were named Triple-A all-stars for the month of April by Baseball America.
  • Wrightly or wrongly, third baseman David Wright, an obvious trade target for the Dodgers, is likely to remain a Met, writes Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports.com.
  • The Cubs have designated Blake DeWitt (.305 OPS) for assignment.
  • A shoutout to Scott of venerable Rancho Park Pharmacy, thanks to Scott mentioning these words last week when I picked up my prescription: “R.J. Reynolds.”

 

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