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

orthopedic surgeon Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics (American and British English spelling differences, alternative spelling orthopaedics) is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgic ...

. Born in

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, Yocum earned his undergraduate degree at

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

in 1969, his medical doctorate at the

University of Illinois The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...

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

Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...

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

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

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 Greater Los Angeles, Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, ...

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

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

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

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

, who performed the original

Tommy John surgery Ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction, sometimes referred to as Tommy John surgery 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 body, ...

. He was also a panel reviewer for the ''

American Journal of Sports Medicine The ''American Journal of Sports Medicine'' (AJSM) is a prestigious peer-reviewed medical journal specializing in orthopaedic Sports Medicine. As the official publication of the American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine (AOSSM), the AJSM h ...

'', 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. The careers of 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) from 1999 t ...

(knee),

Stephen Strasburg Stephen James Strasburg (; born July 20, 1988) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who spent his entire 13-year Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the Washington Nationals. He is a three-time Major League Baseball All-Star G ...

(

Tommy John Thomas Edward John Jr. (born May 22, 1943), nicknamed "the Bionic Man," is an American former professional baseball pitcher who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 26 seasons between 1963 and 1989. He played for the Cleveland Indians, Ch ...

), C. J. Wilson (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, ...

(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 (leg repair) and infielder

Dustin Pedroia Any addition of 2018 will be reverted. Only players who were on a winning team's active roster during a World Series are listed as "World Series champions" in this context. Note that this is the same criterion as is used by Baseball-reference.com ...

(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 Coastal California, Pacific coast south of El Segundo, California, El Segundo, west of Hawthorne, California, Hawthorne and Redondo Beach, and north ...

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 in which the cancer starts in the liver, or it can be liver metastasis, or secondar ...

. 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 liver cancer in California Physicians from Chicago Physicians from California Western Illinois University alumni