THE BASEBALL RELIQUARY ANNOUNCES
DR. FRANK JOBE, JIM “MUDCAT” GRANT, AND LUIS TIANT
ELECTED TO THE SHRINE OF THE ETERNALS

            The Board of Directors of the Baseball Reliquary, Inc., a Southern California-based nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering an appreciation of American art and culture through the context of baseball history, is pleased to announce the 2012 class of electees to the Shrine of the Eternals.  The Shrine of the Eternals is the national organization’s equivalent to the Baseball Hall of Fame.
            Dr. Frank Jobe, Jim “Mudcat” Grant, and Luis Tiant were elected upon receiving the highest number of votes in balloting conducted during the month of April 2012 by the membership of the Baseball Reliquary.  The three electees will be formally inducted into the Shrine of the Eternals in a public ceremony on Sunday, July 15, 2012 at the Donald R. Wright Auditorium in the Pasadena Central Library, Pasadena, California.
            Of the fifty eligible candidates on the 2012 ballot, Dr. Frank Jobe received the highest voting percentage, being named on 34% of the ballots returned.  Following Jobe were Jim “Mudcat” Grant with 33% and Luis Tiant with 33%.  Runners-up in this year’s election included Lefty O’Doul (32%), Dizzy Dean (30%), Manny Mota (29%), Don Zimmer (29%), Steve Bilko (27%), Charlie Finley (25%), and Glenn Burke (24%).  Voting percentages for all fifty candidates appear at the end of this announcement.
            Elected to the Shrine of the Eternals in his tenth year on the ballot, DR. FRANK JOBE is a renowned orthopedic surgeon who revolutionized the medical care and prolonged the careers of baseball pitchers with his groundbreaking tendon transplant procedure now known as the “Tommy John” surgery.  In 1974, Dodgers pitcher Tommy John was diagnosed with a torn ligament in his left (pitching) elbow, apparently ending his career.  In an experimental surgery, which he estimated at the time as having 1% odds for a successful outcome, Jobe transplanted a tendon from John’s right forearm to his left elbow, turning him into the game’s first “right-handed southpaw.”  After more than a year of rehabilitation, John and his “bionic arm” returned to the mound, where he pitched for 14 more seasons and racked up 164 of his 288 career victories before retiring at the age of 46.  Today, the procedure is commonplace among professional and amateur pitchers.  It has been estimated that Jobe performed more than 1,000 Tommy John surgeries himself and that nearly 200 major leaguers – not all of them pitchers – have had their careers extended by the procedure.  Some have even reported that they had more velocity after coming off the operating table than before, although Jobe attributes this more to stronger rehabilitation.  Now 87 years of age, Jobe has retired from his medical practice but still consults with patients and doctors at the famed Kerlan-Jobe Orthopedic Clinic in Los Angeles, and serves as special advisor to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
            Elected to the Shrine of the Eternals in his eighth year on the ballot, JIM “MUDCAT” GRANT has become one of baseball’s greatest ambassadors.  If all you know about Grant is that he was the first African American to win 20 games in a season in the American League (21 wins in 1965 for the AL champion Twins), you’re missing the rest of a great story.  During a 14-year major league career (1958-1971), spent mostly with Cleveland and Minnesota, Grant won 145 games and saved 53 others, but the Lacoochee, Florida native was as prized for his community leadership, social grace, and cultural ability as he was for his competitive skills.  Sporting a killer set of muttonchop sideburns, the stylish swinger led his own musical group called Mudcat and the Kittens.  Grant has written and published his own poetry, in addition to a book, The Black Aces, which chronicles outstanding African-American hurlers and their stories of triumphs over racism.  He tirelessly promotes baseball, education, and multiple charitable and community causes nationwide.  
            Elected to the Shrine of the Eternals in his tenth year on the ballot, LUIS TIANT was one of the most popular Boston Red Sox players ever, renowned for his practical jokes and post-game cigars in the locker room and for his natty leisure suits and mod hairpieces on the town.  The son of Luis Tiant, Sr., one of Cuba’s greatest pitchers, Luis, Jr. won 229 games in a 19-year major league career (1964-1982), baffling hitters with an unorthodox delivery which saw him swiveling practically all the way around to center field before unleashing pitches from different release points.  His breakthrough season came in 1968 with Cleveland when he went 21-9 with an AL-leading 1.60 ERA.  He won 20 games three times for Boston, and helped the Red Sox to the pennant in 1975, winning two games in the World Series, including a five-hit shutout of Cincinnati in game one.  The gregarious “El Tiante” was one of the most respected players of his era, not only by his teammates and opposing players, but by the media and fans.  In recent years, the Luis Tiant Charitable Foundation has provided much-needed financial support to a variety of children’s charities, and youth and family assistance programs.
            Dr. Frank Jobe, Jim “Mudcat” Grant, and Luis Tiant will join 39 other baseball luminaries who have been inducted into the Shrine of the Eternals since elections began in 1999, including, in alphabetical order, Jim Abbott, Dick Allen, Roger Angell, Emmett Ashford, Moe Berg, Yogi Berra, Ila Borders, Jim Bouton, Jim Brosnan, Bill Buckner, Roberto Clemente, Steve Dalkowski, Rod Dedeaux, Jim Eisenreich, Dock Ellis, Mark Fidrych, Curt Flood, Ted Giannoulas, Josh Gibson, Pete Gray, William “Dummy” Hoy, Shoeless Joe Jackson, Bill James, Bill “Spaceman” Lee, Roger Maris, Marvin Miller, Minnie Minoso, Buck O’Neil, Satchel Paige, Jimmy Piersall, Pam Postema, Jackie Robinson, Lester Rodney, Pete Rose, Casey Stengel, Fernando Valenzuela, Bill Veeck, Maury Wills, and Kenichi Zenimura. 
            In the coming weeks, leading up to the Shrine of the Eternals Induction Day on Sunday, July 15, 2012, further details will be announced, including the Keynote Speaker and the recipients of the 2012 Hilda Award (named in memory of Hilda Chester and honoring a baseball fan’s exceptional devotion to the game) and the 2012 Tony Salin Memorial Award (presented annually to an individual dedicated to the preservation of baseball history).

THE SHRINE OF THE ETERNALS:  2012 VOTING PERCENTAGES

Dr. Frank Jobe – 34%

Jim “Mudcat” Grant – 33%

Luis Tiant – 33%

Lefty O’Doul – 32%

Dizzy Dean – 30%

Manny Mota – 29%

Don Zimmer – 29%

Steve Bilko – 27%

Charlie Finley – 25%

Glenn Burke – 24%

Chet Brewer – 22%

Charles M. Conlon – 22%

Rube Foster – 22%

Effa Manley – 22%

Dan Quisenberry – 21%

Lisa Fernandez – 19%

Eliot Asinof – 18%

Eddie Feigner – 18%

Vic Power – 18%

Charlie Brown – 17%

Dr. Mike Marshall – 17%

J.R. Richard – 16%

Rube Waddell – 16%

Ernie Harwell – 15%

Tug McGraw – 15%

Rusty Staub – 15%

Hideo Nomo – 14%

Phil Pote – 14%

Annie Savoy – 14%

Bert Campaneris – 13%

Fred Merkle – 13%

Conrado Marrero – 12%

Joe Pepitone – 12%

Jefferson Burdick – 11%

John Montgomery Ward – 11%

Fay Vincent – 10%

Steve Blass – 9%

Annabelle Lee – 9%

David Wells – 9%

Bill Bergen – 8%

Jose Canseco – 8%

Hector Espino – 8%

Curtis Pride – 8%

Toni Stone – 8%

Bucky Dent – 7%

Wilbur Wood – 7%

Gary Bell – 5%

Charles “Victory” Faust – 5%

Chuck  Stevens – 5%