Tommy John surgery
noun
Tom·my John surgery
ˈtä-mē-ˈjän- 
plural Tommy John surgeries
: a surgical procedure in which a torn ulnar collateral ligament of the elbow is replaced with a tendon graft typically obtained from a superficial muscle of the forearm : ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction
Dr. Timothy Kremchek, the medical director for the Cincinnati Reds, specializes in an elbow-ligament reconstruction procedure commonly known as Tommy John surgery, named for the Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher who first underwent it, in 1974.—
Sara Corbett
Sara CorbettBut as an outfielder he hurt his throwing arm and had to have Tommy John surgery before the year was out.—Kelli Anderson
Kelli AndersonExamples of Tommy John surgery in a Sentence
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Instead Fried is morphing into another ace while Cole makes his recovering from Tommy John surgery on his right elbow.
—Larry Fleisher, Forbes.com, 19 Sep. 2025
And that isn’t even factoring in Patrick Sandoval, who won’t make it back in time from Tommy John surgery; Dustin May, who underperformed before getting hurt; or Walker Buehler, who flat out didn’t work out.
—Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 16 Sep. 2025
Command can often be the last thing to fully return after Tommy John surgery.
—Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2025
He was optioned to Triple-A several times over the last two years, then underwent Tommy John surgery last summer.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Sep. 2025
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Larry Fleisher, Forbes.com, 19 Sep. 2025
And that isn’t even factoring in Patrick Sandoval, who won’t make it back in time from Tommy John surgery; Dustin May, who underperformed before getting hurt; or Walker Buehler, who flat out didn’t work out.
—Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 16 Sep. 2025
Command can often be the last thing to fully return after Tommy John surgery.
—Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2025
He was optioned to Triple-A several times over the last two years, then underwent Tommy John surgery last summer.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 12 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for Tommy John surgery
Cite this Entry
“Tommy John surgery.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Tommy%20John%20surgery. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
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Tommy John surgery
noun
Tom·my John surgery
ˈtäm-ē-ˈjän-
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