Fromer New York Yankees Pitcher and Terre Haute, Indiana Native Tommy John Passes Away at Age 83 Longtime major league left-hander Tommy John, the subject of a revolutionary and eponymous elbow surgery in September 1974, has died, his agent confirmed. He was 83 Years Old. “The New York Yankees mourn the passing of Tommy John, who was a bedrock of our rotation during his time in pinstripes and a longtime favorite of Yankees fans,” the team said in a statement on Sunday. “While his incredible longevity and post-surgery achievements changed the fortunes and trajectory of countless athletes around the world, it also overshadowed his excellence as a pitcher, which included consecutive 20‑win seasons with the Yankees. We pause to remember the totality of his legacy — his competitiveness and skill, his penchant for conversation, his kind and gracious nature, and his stature as an athletic and medical pioneer. The Yankees extend our deepest condolences to his family and friends, including wife Cheryl, daughter Tamara, and sons Tommy III and Travis. We also keep his son Taylor in our hearts.”
The news of John’s death comes just a week after he missed the New York Yankees’ Old-Timers’ Day celebration on Aug. 8. In his absence, he thanked the franchise and fans: “I want to thank the Yankees organization & the Steinbrenner family for giving me this opportunity to say goodbye to everyone, along with all the friends & fans who followed me throughout my 26-year career,” John wrote in a statement. “Thanks to Dr. Jobe, who saved my arm & made it possible for me to continue pitching. That surgery has since saved the careers of countless pitchers, including many of the very best in the game today. “Thank you to all the fans who supported me & my teammates for 26 years. I will never forget you. The day I left for my first job as a pitcher, my father looked at me & said, “Good luck, Tommy. Just remember one thing: whether you make it big in the big leagues or you don’t, you’ll always just be Tommy John from Terre Haute, Indiana. I’ve never forgotten those words. Thank you & God Bless.”
John was born in Terre Haute, Indiana on May 22, 1943, he was an outstanding baseball and basketball player at Gerstmeyer High School in Terre Haute, He had a 28–2 record as a pitcher. Athletics did not get in the way of his schoolwork, as John graduated as Gerstmeyer’s 1961 valedictorian. School faculty forbade John from delivering a valedictory address because of his stutter After pitching at Indiana State, John made his MLB debut with Cleveland in September 1963. He joined their rotation full-time in May 1964, then was traded to the Chicago White Sox in a blockbuster eight-player, three-team trade that notably sent Rocky Colavito from the Kansas City Athletics to Cleveland in January 1965.
John was a star for the White Sox from 1965-71, pitching to a 2.95 ERA and averaging 213 ⅓ innings per season. After being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Dick Allen in December 1971, John continued his excellence, going 40-15 with a 2.89 ERA in 557 ⅔ innings from 1972-74. On July 17, 1974, John felt pain in his elbow while throwing a pitch and exited the game after two innings. “Right at the point where I put force on the pitch, the point where my arm is back and bent, something happened,” John later explained. “It felt as if I had left my arm someplace else. It was as if my body continued to go forward and my left arm had just flown out to right field, independent of the rest of me.”
John was advised to rest and give the injury time to heal. He attempted to play catch about a month later but was unable to do so and faced a potential career-ending injury at age 31. At that point, Dodgers team doctor Frank Jobe suggested an experimental surgery that would replace the damaged ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his elbow with a tendon from his forearm. “Since no pitcher had ever had this kind of operation, no pitcher had ever come back from it,” Jobe later said. “No one knew what to expect. We were making medical history.”
Jobe gave John long odds of pitching again, but the UCL reconstruction procedure, which is now colloquially known as Tommy John surgery, was a success. John missed the 1975 season rehabbing following surgery, then returned in 1976, and began arguably the best stretch of his career. From 1976-82, he posted a 3.15 ERA and averaged 220 ⅔ innings per season. John finished top eight in the Cy Young voting every year from 1977-80 and was the runner-up to Steve Carlton in 1977 and Mike Flanagan in 1979. He was an All-Star from 1977-79 and received MVP votes in 1977 and 1979. John helped the Dodgers reach the 1977 and 1978 World Series, and the Yankees reach the 1981 World Series, though he did not win a championship.
With his new UCL, John pitched until 1989, his age-46 season. He won more games (164) and threw more innings (2,544 ⅔ innings) after his surgery than before (124 and 2,165 ⅔, respectively). John retired with a 288-231 record and a 3.34 ERA in 4,710 ⅓ innings, the 20th most all-time. He played in 26 seasons, the third-most all time behind Cap Anson and Nolan Ryan (27 each). Despite his pitching success and the impact, the surgery that bears his name had on the game, John did not gain induction into the Hall of Fame during his 15 years on the Baseball Writers Association of America ballot (1995-2006) or in five trips through various committees. His 288 wins are second-most in the Modern Era among non-Hall of Famers behind Roger Clemens (355).
John worked as a broadcaster for several teams and as a public relations representative following his playing career. He also did some coaching at the college level, in the minors, and in independent leagues. Tommy John surgery has since been refined and dramatically improved. Dozens of players undergo the procedure each year, including players at the amateur level. It has saved countless careers and changed baseball forever.
Indiana University Athletic Director Scott Dolson receives a contract extension, and a raise Indiana athletic director Scott Dolson signed an amended contract that extends his deal through 2031. According to documents obtained by The Herald-Times, the amendment was finalized on Nov. 25, 2025, a month after the school announced a long-term extension for coach Curt Cignetti. Dolson, a former student manager for Bob Knight who helped transform his alma mater’s fortunes on the gridiron, will make a base salary of $1.15 million a year, up $200,000 from his previous extension. He signed an additional contract amendment in June 2026 that impacted his deferred-compensation plan. The university will now contribute $500,000 each July — up from $125,000 — through the length of the extended deal. Dolson will become fully vested in the deferred compensation account if he remains as the school’s athletic director through December 2031 or is fired without cause before that date.
The other financial incentives and buyout language remained untouched from the previous contract extension Dolson signed in 2024. While Dolson is one of the longest-tenured athletic directors in the Big Ten, his overall annual compensation ranks in the middle of the conference. The Big Ten has a several athletic directors making $2 million or more on a yearly basis, including Penn State’s Pat Kraft, Michigan’s Warde Manuel, Ohio State’s Ross Bjork, Illinois’ Josh Whitman and Minnesota’s Mark Coyle.
Dolson landed his latest extension during IU football’s perfect season. In a two-year span, the Hoosiers went from the losingest program in college football history to national champions. Dolson’s decision to hire Cignetti as Tom Allen’s replacement following the 2023 season helped pave the way for that success. Cignetti has led the Hoosiers to back-to-back College Football Playoff appearances with a 27-2 overall record. At every turn, he’s creditd Dolson and IU President Pam Whitten for giving the football program the support and resources it needs.
In the months following IU’s win over Miami at Hard Rock Stadium, Dolson was named the NACDA Athletics Director of the Year Award, and a finalist for the Sports Business Journal Athletic Director of the Year. Those accolades came as Dolson gained broader national recognition, as one of four athletic directors selected to participate in a roundtable at the White House to discuss potential reforms in college athletics. Coming out of that meeting, Dolson was named to one of the committees President Donald Trump organized to make recommendations around those reforms.
“I think everybody will tell you in the Big Ten all the people that get to work with Scott, he’s tremendous to work with,” Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti said at the conference’s media days. “He’s collaborative. He cares deeply about the entire league. He fights hard for Indiana.” Dolson brought plenty of perspective to the table having guided his alma mater through an era of tremendous turmoil and change. He took over for former IU athletic director Fred Glass at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. After helping the athletic department rebound from a $25 million shortfall, Dolson’s fundraising efforts positioned the school to succeed in the NIL and revenue-sharing era.
Indiana University Football Defensive Coordinator Bryant Haines on depth on the edge: “Let them compete their tails off” In at least one way, Indiana came in second in 2025. At 77.2 rushing yards allowed per game, the Hoosiers finished in the No. 2 spot nationally behind Texas Tech. That’s a fact defensive coordinator Bryant Haines is well aware of. “We were second in the country in stopping the run,” Haines said on BTN last week. “Let’s go ahead and get that number one spot.” As good as Indiana was defensively in their undefeated 2025 national championship season, it’s not unreasonable to believe they might actually be better on that side of the ball this year. And competition for playing time could end up being a major reason why. Especially at the defensive end positions.
Haines was asked how the late cycle additions of Stephen Daley and Kellan Wyatt to the defensive front might impact the other players on the team who had a certain expectation for playing time and are now competing for snaps with them. IU has at least three starter-caliber players at both edge positions, and whoever earns the lion’s share of the action will certainly have earned it. “I think I’m just going to let them compete their tails off. That was my message to them,” Haines said. I said ‘This is a plethora of good guys we can utilize in different ways. I urge you to be versatile, and when your number is called to make a play and you get your one-on-one, take advantage of it and you’ll get more of them.’ I’m going to let those guys compete. There are a lot of playmakers on that defensive front, and they’re all going to have a chance to make some money and get some sacks.”
Haines believes it’s that depth and athleticism on his front line that makes improvement in 2026 on an already very high bar possible. “That’s the key to the drill for us in how we run our defense,” Haines said. “We believe in winning up front and letting those guys play really fast, physical and vertical. Having versatile, twitchy, sudden, violent guys up front, makes the entire defense run.” In addition to edge starters in the base defense, Haines says the staff is still evaluating competition for snaps in his various personnel groupings and short yardage defense. Some of those edge defenders might see the field when Indiana goes with a third linebacker. Haines isn’t afraid to emphasize schemes more often to ensure his best 11 players are on the field. Haines also mentioned the competition at boundary cornerback involving A.J. Harris and Ryland Gandy as one that has his attention. Head coach Curt Cignetti mentioned that earlier in fall camp as well.
Central Indiana Teams donate $250,000 to aid flood victims; find assistance and shelter On Sunday, The Indiana Fever, Indiana Pacers, Noblesville Boom and the Indianapolis Colts today announced a combined $250,000 donation to the American Red Cross to support central Indiana families impacted by historic flooding and severe weather. The donation – $125,000 from the Fever, Pacers and Boom and $125,000 from the Colts – will support the American Red Cross’ ongoing response and recovery efforts. “The financial cost for families, businesses and others is enormous, but the emotional stress can be equally daunting and heavy,” Kalen Jackson, Colts Owner, Chief Brand Officer & President of the Colts Foundation said in a release. “It’s times like these when it’s so important for people and communities to come together to take care of each other.”
Many other organizations across central Indiana are helping residents. Those without pets can go to the American Red Cross shelter at the Washington Township Schools Services Center, located at 8401 Westfield Blvd. Residents with pets can go to the Noble Shelter, 2406 N. Tibbs Ave. ITOWN Church will host a drive-thru distribution from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday at the Fishers campus, located at 12491 E. 136th St., providing food, hygiene supplies and cleaning kits. The lobby of every ITOWN Church campus is stocked with nonperishable food, cleaning supplies and other essentials available for pick up.
ITOWN Church locations: Olson Farms Campus: 12491 E. 136th St., Fishers, IN 46038. Mudsock Campus: 9665 Hague Road, Indianapolis, IN 46256. Bluffton Campus: 2711 N. Main St., Bluffton, IN 46714. Madison Campus: 6607 Providence Dr., Anderson, IN 46013. Westfield Campus: 18250 N. Union St., Westfield, IN 46074 (Launching August 23, 2026). Residents who need help evacuating can text INDYFLOOD26 to 67283 or call the city’s non-emergency line at 317-327-3811. The Indianapolis Foundation is accepting cash donations for residents affected by the flooding.
Indiana University Football Head Coach Curt Cignetti addresses depth at three key positions As Indiana football’s fall camp continues on, the team’s roster and potential difference-makers have come more into focus. IU has a lot of returning talent, along with a strong crop of transfers who will step into big roles this year. The Hoosiers have good depth in a lot of areas as well, but some position groups have depth chart battles or question marks behind the starters. Head coach Curt Cignetti answered some questions about some of those position groups during his press conference Monday.
Offensive Line-Indiana has a pretty established and set starting five on the offensive line: left tackle Carter Smith, left guard Drew Evans, center Bray Lynch, right guard Adedamola Ajani, and right tackle Joe Brunner. The depth behind that group is less certain. IU has youth and inexperience in reserve on the offensive line, but there are players sticking out under the surface. Cignetti named redshirt sophomore Austin Leibfried, redshirt freshmen Matt Marek and Baylor Wilkin, and true freshman Sam Simpson as younger guys who are performing well in fall camp thus far. Some of those names could become important if Indiana suffers any injuries among its starters.
Wide Receiver-IU’s wide receiving corps is loaded, with projected 2027 first round NFL Draft picks Charlie Becker and Nick Marsh leading the way. Tyler Morris missed the entire 2025 season with a knee injury suffered in spring ball but is healthy and playing well in fall camp. He should be a regular presence in the slot. But Cignetti gave sophomore Davion Chandler the type of praise to make him worth watching heading into the regular season. He included Chandler among the top group of IU’s receivers with Marsh, Becker, and Morris. “I think Davion’s made good progress here, recently,” Cignetti said. “He’s got a lot of talent, can play inside and outside.” But after those four, Cignetti said, things are up in the air. Sophomore Lebron Bond and former walk-on turned scholarship player Jackson Wasserstrom are in the mix. Tulane transfer Shazz Preston is an experienced option, but Cignetti said the redshirt senior needs to be more consistent. “Shazz Preston has talent, but he’s got to be locked in assignment-wise and do the right thing play in, play out. He can help us if he can do that,” Cignetti said. “He missed the first three or four practices with a hip (injury). He’s gotten on the field recently, he’s made some nice plays, but we got to eliminate the MA’s (missed assignments), with him.”
Linebacker-The Hoosiers lost Aiden Fisher after last season but return Isaiah Jones and Rolijah Hardy at linebacker. Defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Bryant Haines has experienced players backing up that duo in redshirt seniors Jeff Utzinger and Kaiden Turner. Both have played plenty of football through their IU careers, both on special teams and on defense. The exact pecking order, though, is not yet known. “They know what they do. They played before. Good special teams players, as well,” Cignetti said of Utzinger and Turner. “Competitive situation, as far as the third, fourth, and fifth linebacker right now. Of course, in two tight end (formations), we’d like to play three linebackers. Kellan Wyatt could figure into that mix as a linebacker against 12 personnel. But that’s speculation, because he hasn’t been out there yet.”
Four Indiana University Men’s Soccer Hoosiers Receive Preseason Honors Four members of the Indiana men’s soccer team received preseason praise Tuesday as the Big Ten announced its Players to Watch list, and Top-Drawer Soccer unveiled its preseason Top 100 player rankings. Transfer forward Stephane Njike and returners Josh Maher and Collins Oduro featured in the Big Ten watch list. The conference also announced its preseason coaches’ poll, with Indiana landing at No. 3 behind reigning NCAA Champion Washington and defending Big Ten Champion Maryland. Njike ranked No. 6 on the Top-Drawer Soccer Top 100 list a day after seeing his name in the Top-Drawer Soccer first-team Best XI. Oduro came in at No. 57, an improvement from his 2025 postseason ranking by 27 places (No. 84). Transfer forward Oliver Moller-Jensen ranked No. 85. Njike and Moller-Jensen highlight Indiana’s eight-player transfer class, which Top Drawer Soccer ranked No. 1 nationally in June. The two players combined for 13 goals and 13 assists last season at their previous stops. This summer, they joined forces in USL League Two, helping the Flint City Bucks reach the cup final. Maher and Oduro represent IU’s foundation of returning players. Maher will serve as a co-captain in his third year, following the example set by brothers Jack (2019) and Joey (2023). Oduro is Indiana’s most productive returner to date, recording 12 goals and 13 assists over the previous three seasons.
Indianapolis Colts Rookie & Center Grove alum Caden Curry eager for NFL preseason debut at Lucas Oil Stadium Indianapolis Colts rookie defensive end Caden Curry, a former Center Grove High School star plays his first NFL game at Lucas Oil Stadium this afternoon against the Atlanta Falcons at 1 PM. It’s only the preseason, but Curry is thrilled to suit up for his hometown team in his home stadium. “The crazy thing is all my friends and family mostly already have season tickets, so they already know where their spots are and they don’t have to go out and get more,” Curry said. “That’s kind of awesome. I hope a lot of people are there to come support me and just hoping I can do my job for them.” Curry expects plenty of hometown support for his pro debut at Lucas Oil Stadium, saying he expects at least “fifty to seventy” friends and family in the stands for Today’s game against the Falcons. In the Colts’ preseason opener against the New England Patriots, Curry’s first NFL game action, he recorded six tackles, two of them for a loss and a sack. Not only did Curry fill up the stat sheet with his tackles, but he also batted two passes down at the line of scrimmage.
After leading the Colts’ defense with his six tackles in Thursday’s 13-13 tie with the Patriots, Curry described what led to his success. “I mean, honestly, just blessed to be out there,” Curry said. “And the other 10 guys were doing their job, and I was doing my job and just happened to fall into my lap and not theirs. I’m just so thankful that they did their job to give me the ability to do mine. Really, just playing my game. Obviously, not trying to chase something, chase plays. And just doing my job, like I said, and just doing the most for my team.” Curry’s defensive impact was felt right away, and he said that performance would only boost his confidence heading into the final two preseason games and Week 1 of the regular season.
“I mean it’s just momentum,” Curry said. “If you got it, keep it. If you don’t, go get it. And I feel like it’s something that this whole team kind of works off of, runs off of – pure energy. And we kind of just build off each other. And I feel like that’s something that’s good around this, even in the locker room, you just see guys kind of getting pumped up with each other, and we kind of just bounce off each other. So, it’s kind of nice just have guys like that in your locker room and just having a team like this.” 23-year old Curry grew up less than 30 minutes away from Lucas Oil Stadium, and he will play there for the first time as an NFL player this afternoon at 1 p.m against the Atlanta Falcons.