Lewis Yocum (November 8, 1947 – May 25, 2013) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

orthopedic surgeon Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics ( alternatively spelt orthopaedics), is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgical and nonsurgical means to treat musculoskeletal ...

. Born in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, Yocum earned his undergraduate degree at

Western Illinois University Western Illinois University (WIU) is a public university in Macomb, Illinois. It was founded in 1899 as Western Illinois State Normal School. As the normal school grew, it became Western Illinois State Teachers College. History Western Illin ...

in 1969, his medical doctorate at the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (U of I, Illinois, University of Illinois, or UIUC) is a public land-grant research university in Illinois in the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana. It is the flagship institution of the University ...

in 1973, after which he completed both his internship and residency at

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

in Chicago. Yocum gained prestige by extending the careers of several

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

players, by repairing injuries that once would have ended their playing days. He also served as the team physician to the

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...

major league club during 36 years, and was a specialist consultant to numerous dance companies based in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. Specialized in sports medicine, shoulder, elbow and knees, Yocum worked along with

Frank Jobe Frank James Jobe (July 16, 1925 – March 6, 2014) was an American orthopedic surgeon and co-founder of the Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic. Jobe pioneered both elbow ligament replacement and major reconstructive shoulder surgery for basebal ...

, who performed the original

Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, colloquially known as Tommy John surgery (TJS), is a surgical graft procedure where the ulnar collateral ligament in the medial elbow is replaced with either a tendon from elsewhere in the patient's bo ...

. He was also a panel reviewer for the ''

American Journal of Sports Medicine ''American Journal of Sports Medicine'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal that publishes papers in the field of Sport Sciences. The journal's editor is Bruce Reider, MD. It has been in publication since 1972 and is currently published by SAGE P ...

'', a board trustee at

Centinela Hospital Medical Center Centinela Hospital Medical Center is a non profit hospital located in Inglewood, California United States. History The hospital serves 369 beds, and also offers a level II emergency department, orthopedic care, advanced cardiac services, perip ...

, and authored numerous publications and books. The Los Angeles Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic was founded by Jobe, who shared the workplace and a close friendship with Yocum for 35 years. Along with James Andrews, Yocum and Jobe became the most renowned orthopedic surgeons for professional sports people. The careers of countless big leaguers benefited from Yocum's expertise, among others pitchers

Ted Lilly Theodore Roosevelt Lilly III (born January 4, 1976) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. Lilly attended Yosemite High School in Oakhurst, California, and Fresno City College. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Mont ...

(knee),

Stephen Strasburg Stephen James Strasburg (; born July 20, 1988) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Washington Nationals of Major League Baseball (MLB). Strasburg was selected by Washington with the first overall pick in the 2009 Major League ...

(Tommy John),

C. J. Wilson Christopher John Wilson (born November 18, 1980) is an American auto racing team owner and former professional baseball pitcher. Wilson pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Texas Rangers from 2005 to 2011 and the Los Angeles Angel ...

(elbow) and

Jordan Zimmermann Jordan M. Zimmermann (born May 23, 1986) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Nationals, Detroit Tigers, and Milwaukee Brewers. Zimmermann was a two-time MLB All-Star, an ...

(Tommy John), as well as outfielder

Jacoby Ellsbury Jacoby McCabe Ellsbury ( ; born September 11, 1983) is an American former professional baseball center fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox from 2007 through 2013 and then played for the New York Yankees from 2 ...

(ribs), slugger

Kendry Morales Kendrys Morales Rodríguez (born June 20, 1983) is a Cuban-Dominican former professional baseball designated hitter and first baseman who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Seattle Mariners, Minnesota ...

(leg repair) and infielder

Dustin Pedroia Dustin Luis Pedroia (born August 17, 1983) is an American former professional baseball second baseman who played his entire Major League Baseball career for the Boston Red Sox, from 2006 to 2019. He was a four-time All-Star, and won the Americ ...

(foot). In May 2013, the Angels club named their training room in his honor, with pitcher

Jered Weaver Jered David Weaver (born October 4, 1982) is an American former professional baseball starting pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Los Angeles Angels and San Diego Padres. Weaver was drafted in the first round (12th overall ...

placing a placard with Yocum's name above the room's door in the clubhouse. Although Yocum never operated on Weaver, the pitcher often talked with him about anything he was feeling. Yocum died in

Manhattan Beach, California Manhattan Beach is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, United States, on the Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast south of El Segundo, California, El Segundo, west of Hawthorne, California, Hawthorne and Redondo Beach, California, Red ...

at the age of 65, following complications from

liver cancer Liver cancer (also known as hepatic cancer, primary hepatic cancer, or primary hepatic malignancy) is cancer that starts in the liver. Liver cancer can be primary (starts in liver) or secondary (meaning cancer which has spread from elsewhere to th ...

. He was married to Elizabeth B. Yocum with whom he had two children.New York Times obituary

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yocum, Lewis 1947 births 2013 deaths American orthopedic surgeons Deaths from cancer in California Deaths from liver cancer Physicians from Chicago Physicians from California Western Illinois University alumni