Highlights
- Tommy John, the former major league pitcher whose name defines modern elbow reconstruction surgery, died at age 83.
- The surgery prolonged John's own career by 14 years after a 1974 procedure that was then experimental.
- The D-backs have sent multiple pitchers through Tommy John surgery in recent seasons, including Jordan Montgomery, Thyago Vieira, Josh Winder, and Tommy Henry.
- Henry, currently recovering from the procedure, was re-signed by Arizona and is expected to return to the rotation.
Tommy John, the former major league pitcher whose name became synonymous with ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, died at 83, ESPN reported Sunday. The surgery that carries his name extended his own career by 14 years after he underwent the then-experimental elbow procedure.
For the Arizona Diamondbacks, John's death arrives with particular resonance. The franchise has been among the procedure's most frequent customers in recent seasons. D-backs manager Torey Lovullo announced that relievers Thyago Vieira and Josh Winder would both undergo the elbow surgery, according to a report from MLB.com's Mark Feinsand cited by Sports Illustrated, with neither expected to pitch again in 2025. Left-hander Jordan Montgomery, who worked out of Scottsdale Stadium during spring training, was also reported by 12News to be facing the same procedure.
The D-backs also re-signed 28-year-old left-handed starter Tommy Henry, who spent the bulk of 2025 on the injured list recovering from Tommy John surgery, per Sports Illustrated. Henry is expected to return to the rotation.
The procedure John made famous has evolved considerably since his 1974 operation. As Sports Illustrated noted in its coverage of the Vieira and Winder surgeries, Tommy John surgery has become increasingly refined and is no longer the career-ending sentence it once was.
Henry's return timeline will be one to watch as the D-backs head into the offseason.
Sources
Every factual claim in this article traces to one of the sources below. See how we work for the editorial process.
- espn.com retrieved 16/08/2026 18:55
- si.com retrieved 16/08/2026 18:55
- 12News retrieved 16/08/2026 18:55
- si.com retrieved 16/08/2026 18:55
Authored by The Scottsdale Signal. Drafted by AI from primary-source material under our beat-specific editorial guides; reviewed by humans before publish under our five-gate process. Sources retrieved at 16/08/2026 18:55. Every claim traces to a source.
