Is Baseball's Top Shoulder Doc OK?
This image was lost some time after publication. Buried in a Houston Chronicle was this disturbing tidbit:
Renowned orthopedist Dr. James Andrews was expected to check the progress of Bagwell's right shoulder's mobility in Birmingham, Ala. "Dr. Andrews suffered a heart attack over the weekend, so we don't know where his situation stands," [Astros general manager Tim] Purpura said. Bagwell, who had surgery in June and returned in September, continues to work out and undergo extensive physical therapy in Houston in hopes of playing this year. "I don't know what's going on," Bagwell said of the visit with Andrews.
Dr. James Andrews, of course, is the guy who mastered Dr. Frank Jobe's Tommy John surgery and is the foremost shoulder and knee guy; he's the reason John Smoltz, Kerry Wood, you name it, are still pitching today. Surely his heart attack is more worthy than a notebook tidbit in an offseason Houston Chronicle story. Come to think of it ... that story is the only place we've seen any mention of this. We hope Purpura just has his facts wrong, because a heart attack for one of the most influential doctors in sports would deserve, we think, a little more than, "Hey, what about my shoulder surgery?"
Bagwell Update [Houston Chronicle] (third item)
(Update: Sources confirm that Dr. Andrews did have a heart attack and is currently in intensive care. He is stable, however, and recovering. We wish him well.)
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