One of the greatest stories that occur in sports is the player comeback. It is so celebrated that MLB gives out the Comeback Player of The Year Award in both leagues every season. In 2021, the winner in the National League was Buster Posey, who won it for the second time in his career. The first time, in 2012, Posey came back from a horrific injury that ended his 2011 season to win the MVP award and lead the Giants to a World Series Championship in 2012. In the American League, the winner was Trey Mancini, who underwent an operation to remove a malignant tumor and 6 months of chemotherapy. Five months later, he was on the field again and won a World Series ring with the Astros in 2022. Amazing comebacks like these are somewhat rare, but do happen and today we’ll be counting down 10 more inspiring comeback stories. Before getting to the main list, however, I have two more honorable mentions in addition to Posey & Mancini.

Honorable Mention: WW2 Heroes

Former MLB pitcher Bob Feller serving at WW2

An extremely honorable mention goes to all the players who stopped their careers and went to serve their country in World War II, many of whom returned to the majors just as good if not better after three or more years of not playing the game. Some of the bigger names include Hank Greenberg, Yogi Berra, Warren Spahn, Bob Feller, Joe DiMaggio and Ted Williams. Ted Williams hit 521 home runs despite missing three entire seasons due to the war. Had the war not happened, he would have easily surpassed 600 homers and 3,000 hits. Many players were also seriously injured and still fought back to continue their careers. Cecil Travis suffered frostbite and nearly had his feet amputated and still returned to the Majors. Dixie Howell was held at a German POW Camp for 6 months. When he was finally freed by the Allied Forces, the 6’2” pitcher whose normal weight was 210 weighed 135 lbs. After missing five full seasons, he came back to go 8-3 with a 2.93 ERA for the White Sox.

Honorable Mention: Drew Robinson

In one of the most incredible stories in professional baseball history, we have former Texas Rangers prospect Drew Robinson. Robinson played 7 seasons in the minor leagues, hitting 20+ home runs in 2015 and 2016, then making the Rangers Opening Day Roster in 2017. He struggled and ended up bouncing back and forth between the big leagues and the minors, finishing the year with a .224 average and 6 homers. Robinson was eventually traded to the Cardinals, where he spent most of 2019 in the minors. So far, his MLB career had not gone the way he had hoped. On January 6th, 2020, he signed as a Free Agent with the Giants. Unfortunately, that was the year Spring Training suddenly ended due to Covid-19. Robinson returned to his home in Las Vegas, struggling with severe depression during a very depressing time. He decided to end his life, and attempted to do so with a handgun which he aimed at his temple and fired. Miraculously, he wasn’t killed and decided he wanted to live, calling 911 for help. He lost one eye, along with his sense of smell and taste. Robinson figured his baseball career was over, but after taking a round of batting practice, realized his ability to see the ball and time his swing wasn’t much different. The decision to swing must be made within a split second and muscle memory plays a huge role. As long as he could see the ball with one eye, Robinson believed he could still play. And the Giants gave him the opportunity. In an incredible comeback, Drew Robinson returned to professional baseball in 2021 and played in 38 Triple-A games for the Sacramento Rivercats. He hit three home runs, but unfortunately struggled to make consistent contact and never made it back to the big leagues, which is why he’s an honorable mention. Still, the fact that Robinson survived a suicide attempt using a gun to the head, lost an eye and still hit three more professional home runs is an incredible story of its own. Now, let’s get to the Top 10.

10. Tommy John

He has a name that no baseball fan hasn’t heard of. But long before Tommy John’s name was known for a surgery, he was a prospect with the Cleveland Indians. He had a great curveball and established himself as one of the premiere starters in the game after being traded to the White Sox. In 1968, he made the All Star Team and had an ERA of 1.98. Later, after being traded to the Dodgers, he went 16-7 in 1973 with a 3.1 ERA. In 1974, he was 13-3 with a 2.59 ERA. At this point, he had had a more than solid 12 year big league career, leading the league in shutouts twice and in win-loss percentage twice. Unfortunately, it was at this time when he had what was considered at the time to be a career-ending injury – a torn UCL. There was no coming back from that. That is, until orthopedic surgeon Frank Jobe, who worked for the Dodgers, performed a ligament replacement surgery on John. It was a revolutionary procedure that has since become standard surgery for pitchers, allowing them to continue their careers after injuries that were once career-ending. Tommy John indeed recovered while missing the 1975 season and returned in ‘76, going 10-10 with a 3.09 ERA. The next year, for the first time in his career, he won 20 games and finished 2nd in the Cy Young voting. The procedure was a massive success as Tommy John not only recovered but appeared to be even better. He made three straight All Star Teams and won 20 or more games in 3 out of 4 seasons. John played an incredible 14 more seasons after the surgery, giving him a 26 year career in which he won 288 games. He should certainly be in the Hall of Fame. The surgery has, of course, since been known as Tommy John Surgery, or simply “Tommy John.” Although his comeback has since become standard, since he was the first to do it and came back with such an insane degree of success, Tommy John is included in today’s list of the Top 10 comebacks of all time.

9. Jose Rijo

Most hardcore baseball fans from the late 80’s and early 90’s will remember Reds pitcher Jose Rijo, who was a constant in the Reds rotation for many years. In 1991, he went 15-6 with a 2.51 ERA, finishing fourth for the Cy Young Award. He won 111 games over 12 seasons, made an All Star team and led the Reds to a World Series ring in 1990, utterly dominating the A’s by going 2-0 with a 0.59 ERA. In 1995, he was limited to only 14 starts due to elbow injuries. Later that offseason, he had to have Tommy John surgery. Unfortunately, shoulder injuries in 1996 caused further issues and Rijo ended up needing 4 major surgeries. He was basically done with baseball and in October of 1998, became an unrestricted free agent who hadn’t played in 3 years. 1999 came and went and Rijo was unable to play. At this point, he was already considered a Reds legend who had a great 12-year career. He even appeared on the 2001 Hall of Fame Ballot, receiving one vote. Then, on July 1st, in the middle of the 2001 season, the Reds signed the 36-year old Rijo. Now coming out of the bullpen, Jose Rijo began his rehab assignment in Single A more than five years after his last professional pitch, as some one who had already appeared on the Hall of Fame Ballot. He worked his way through Double A then Triple A and finally got his call back up to the big leagues, where he had a 2.12 ERA in 13 appearances. He returned in 2002 as well, pitching out of the bullpen and starting 9 games before retiring. Rijo’s story may not be the most dramatic, but considering he was out of the game long enough to appear on the Hall of Fame ballot and still came back to give the Reds a strong bullpen arm is absolutely amazing and Jose Rijo makes #9 on this list.

8. Sean Burroughs, 3B

Coming in at #8 is third baseman Sean Burroughs, the son of Jeff Burroughs, who hit 240 big league home runs. Sean was supposed to be even better. As a child, he was a baseball prodigy, elite as both a pitcher and hitter. Burroughs threw back-to-back no-hitters in the Little League World Series and later led the USA to a gold medal in the 2000 Olympics. Burrough’s Minor League career started with a bang when he hit .363 in A Ball with 85 runs driven in. In 2001 in Triple A, he hit .322. Sports Illustrated touted him as a “can’t miss” prospect. And at first, they seemed to be right. Burroughs hit .286 in his first full season then .298 in 2004. He had a solid on-base percentage, didn’t strike out much, and looked like he was on a path to a successful big league career, Then, his career suddenly fell apart. A slide into second base at Dodger Stadium caused a broken blood capsule in his leg. He was traded to Tampa Bay, where he hit just .190 and spent most of 2006 in Triple A. He played in a few minor league games with the Mariners organization in 2007 and then was out of baseball. Burroughs ended up wandering the streets of Las Vegas, struggling with substance abuse. Burroughs said that when he was at his worse, he was eating cheeseburgers out of garbage cans. Fortunately, his story doesn’t end there. Nearly three years after his last professional game, Burroughs decided to try to get his life together and play baseball again. He says “I was out of shape with big, black bags under my eyes. Bad hair, hadn’t shaved for weeks on end. Hadn’t eaten anything other than french fries and Sluprees.” Burroughs moved back in with his parents, started working out, got back in baseball shape and called his agent to find any opportunity anywhere. His agent got in touch with the Diamondbacks and convinced them to sign him to a Minor League deal. He tore Triple A up that year, hitting .412, earning a callup to return to Major League Baseball. He hit .273 with the Diamondbacks, hitting his first MLB home run in 6 years. Burroughs retired after 2013 and never became the superstar he was expected to become, but had one of the most inspiring comebacks in MLB history.

7. Matt Bush

Matt Bush as a young prospect with the Padres organization

Up next is the #1 overall pick in the 2004 MLB Draft, Matt Bush. He was a shortstop and pitcher with an incredible arm and powerful bat. In High School, Bush hit .450 with 11 home runs while maintaining a 0.73 ERA on the mound. He was a 5-tool talent with an insane ceiling. However, troubles began before his professional career even got going. He was suspended for taking part in a fight outside of a bar in Arizona. He eventually hit just .192 with no home runs in his first Minor League season. The next season, his first full year, he hit just .221 with 2 homers in A Ball despite 453 at bats. Things weren’t looking on the field for the first overall pick. Off the field, things were even worse. He was arrested a second time for fighting in a bar, and received multiple DUIs. He showed up to games hung over and in 2007, hit .204 with a single home run. The Padres considered him a complete bust and traded him to the Blue Jays, who put him on a zero tolerance policy. That lasted about a month when Bush reportedly threw a baseball at a woman’s head, then banged on her car window after she drew markings on his face at a party. The next day, he was released and missed the entire 2009 season. Every comeback attempt from there was thwarted by another of his insane antics. In 2012, he was set to began the season in Triple A with the Rays organization, now as a pitcher, until he crashed his car three times in a matter of hours, first colliding with another car on an illegal U-turn, then hitting a light pole, then knocking a 72-year old man from his motorcycle, severely injuring him. He left each scene of each accident. He spent the entire 2012 season in jail and was charged with a long list of counts including one count of DUI with serious bodily injury and two counts of leaving the scene of an accident. He was released from prison in October 2015 and hadn’t played a game of professional baseball in over four years. He got a job at Golden Corral and, in an attempt to return to the game, held a showcase right there in the Golden Corral parking lot, since it was the only place was allowed to go. Incredibly, he impressed Rangers scouts enough that they brought him to Texas in December for a more formal tryout and to make a very long story short, Bush signed with the Rangers, went to the Minors and earned his first call up to the Major Leagues, 12 years after being taken first overall in the 2004 MLB Draft. Bush was kept on a no-tolerance policy with several requirements and stipulations and this time, he stuck to it. He went 7-2 with a 2.48 ERA in 2016 and began an MLB career that continues today with the Milwaukee Brewers. Although there’s no possible way to excuse Bush’s behavior early in his career, he did serve his time and completely change his life, while making one of the most improbable comebacks of all time.

6. Rick Ankiel

Coming in at #6 is a former pitcher named Rick Ankiel. In High School, Ankiel was a stud, going 11-1 with a .47 ERA and 162 strikeouts in 74 innings. He was a hot name in the draft and was selected in the 2nd round by the St. Louis Cardinals, receiving a signing bonus of $2,500,000. He immediately impressed in the low minor leagues, striking out 222 batters in 161 innings with an ERA of 2.63. The next year between Double A and Triple A, he was even better with a 2.35 ERA and 194 strikeouts in 134 innings. He didn’t walk a ton of hitters and showed the same confidence he had in High School. There was no reason to think Ankiel wouldn’t be an Ace in the big leagues. He had an impressive rookie season in 2000, going 11-7 with a 3.5 ERA and 194 strikeouts, finishing second in the Rookie of the Year voting. The Cardinals made the playoffs that year and in Ankiel’s first playoff start, something strange happened. After throwing two scoreless innings, he suddenly had a complete meltdown, walking four batters and throwing 5 wild pitches in one inning. It was considered a freak incident and since the Cardinals won the game, no one thought much more of it. That is, until his next start, Game 2 of the NLCS, when 5 of Ankiel’s first 20 pitches went past the catcher. He was removed. In his next appearance, it was more of the same – he faced four batters, walked two and threw two wild pitches. Rick Ankiel had the yips. He returned to the team in 2001, and his problems were not fixed. In 24 innings, he walked 25 batters and threw five wild pitches, causing a demotion to Triple A where he went completely next level, walking 17 batters and throwing 12 wild pitches in 4 1/3rd innings. Later, a left elbow sprain and Tommy John surgery kept him largely out of MLB for the next two years. His career was basically over. Or was it? During 2005 Spring Training, Ankiel announced he was switching to the outfield to be a hitter. He had to start his career all over, going back to Single A, where he showed impressive power, earning a callup to Double A. Unfortunately, he injured his knee in 2006 Spring Training and missed the entire year. Was this the end of his career? Not even close. In 2007 in Triple A, Ankiel crushed 32 home runs, earned a promotion to the big leagues, and smashed a home run in his first big league game as an offensive player. He went on to play 7 years in the big leagues as a hitter, finishing his career with 251 home runs along with some dramatic postseason bombs, such as a game winning home run for Atlanta in the 2010 NLDS against the Giants. For one of the best pitching prospects in the game to get the yips and completely lose his control then turn around and have an extremely strong career as an MLB hitter despite not regularly hitting since High School is absolutely incredible and Rick Ankie’s comeback is one of the greatest in MLB history.

5. Tony Congliaro

Next up is Tony Congliaro, who played mostly for the Boston Red Sox. His pro career started in 1963 when he tore up the Minor Leagues, hitting .363 with 24 home runs. The next year, he was in the Red Sox lineup and hit .290 with 24 home runs followed by a league leading 32 bombs in 1965, becoming the youngest American League player to ever lead the league in home runs. The Red Sox had a superstar on their hands and he made the All Star Team in 1967. He hit his 100th home run at just 22 years old. Then, everything changed during a game on August 18th, 1967 against the California Angels. Facing pitcher Jack Hamilton. A pitch struck Congliaro in the face, causing a linear fracture of his left cheekbone, a dislocated jaw and severe damage to his left retina. He was carried off the field on a stretcher and it was questionable if he would ever play again. Congliario’s eyesight was permanently damaged. He missed the next two seasons entirely. Then, in 1969, 2 and a half years after playing his last game, Congliario attempted a comeback. The Red Sox were happy to give him the opportunity, but didn’t know what to expect. Congliario’s comeback was astonishing as he hit 20 home runs with a .255 average driving 82 runs. The next year, he set a career high in home runs and RBIs with 36 and 116 respectively, while hitting .266. His amazing comeback inspired the Tony Congliaro Award, which has since been awarded to those who overcome adversity. Unfortunately, his eyesight worsened as he entered his thirties and Congliario was forced to retire, but the fact that he came back from such a horrific injury to play four more years, including a career year is truly inspirational.

4. Josh Hamilton

Josh Hamilton after being drafted first overall by the Devil Rays

Coming in at #4 is another #1 overall pick in the MLB Draft, Josh Hamilton. He was an absolute beast in High School, hitting .529 with 13 home runs in 25 games in his Senior Year. He could fly on the basepaths and had a cannon for an arm. The Tampa Bay Devil Rays took him first overall in the 1999 Draft and that year, he hit .312 with 10 home runs in the low minor leagues. The next year, he made the South Atlantic League All Star Team, hitting .302 with 13 home runs in 96 games. Unfortunately, things began in unravel in 2001 after he was involved in a car accident, resulting in injuries to his parents. After landing on the disabled list due to back injuries, Hamilton hung out at tattoo parlors, purchasing two tattoos a day while abusing cocaine and alcohol. He had plenty of cash, with a $3.96 million bonus, and used it to fall deeper and deeper into this new lifestyle. The Devil Rays sent him to the Betty Ford Center, but he checked himself out after just 8 days. In 2003, he failed to show up for a mandatory drug test and was suspended by MLB. He was out of baseball completely now, graduated from cocaine to crack, and lived the life of a junkie, even stealing from his family to feed his addiction. A few times, Hamilton tried to come back to baseball but continued to either relapse or get arrested. Finally, in 2006, a man named Roy Silver hired Hamilton to work at his Baseball Facility in Florida, where he stayed clean and slept on an air mattress in one of the offices. In 2007, after being removed from the 40-man roster, the Cubs claimed Hamilton in the Rule 5 Draft, promptly trading him to the Reds. Part of the stipulation of the Rule 5 Draft is the player must stay on the Major League Roster for an entire season or be returned to the original team, in this case the Devil Rays. Hamilton tore it up in Spring Training in 2007 and earned a spot on the roster, making his big league debut 8 years after being drafted. He hit .292 with 19 home runs, an absolutely incredible feat considering he had barely played the game in the past 5 years. The Reds traded him to the Rangers that offseason, and he became an absolute superstar in Texas, hitting .304 with 32 home runs and an insane 130 runs driven in. He got the attention of every MLB fan at the home run derby that year, smashing a record 28 home runs in the first round. He made 5 straight All Star teams, won an MVP in 2010 and hit four home runs in a single game. He eventually experienced some relapses and injuries, which slowed his career down, but Josh Hamilton had a ridiculous 5-year stretch in Texas, proving that had he never fallen into a lifestyle of drugs & alcohol, Hamilton would have easily had a Hall of Fame career and possibly been one of the greatest to ever play the game. Still, the fact that he came back from depths of darkness he was in to come back and be a superstar MVP player is still incredible and one of the greatest comebacks of all time.

3. Dave Dravecky

Next up is a pitcher named Dave Dravecky. He was a solid left-handed arm in the San Diego Padres rotation for several years in 80’s, making an All Star team in 1983 and maintaining an ERA around 3 every season. Only July 4th, 1987, the San Francisco Giants traded for him, along with Craig Lefferts and Kevin Mitchell, for Mark Grant, Mark Davis and Chris Brown. He pitched well for the Giants, including a shutout performance in the 1987 playoffs against St. Louis. In 1988, he was pitching well with a 3.16 ERA after 7 starts when a cancerous tumor was found in his pitching arm. It was a rare and aggressive tumor known as a desmoid tumor. Unfortunately, it was positioned on his left deltoid muscle, a muscle that is needed by pitchers to even pitch. Doctors would have to remove the tumor and surrounding muscle, a huge portion of his arm, in order to save his life. The surgery was performed in October of 1988 and half of the deltoid muscle was removed. The humerus bone was frozen as well in order to kill all of the cancerous cells. Doctors advised him that he would never pitch again. Dravecky had other plans. His rehab was astonishingly fast, going from not being able to move his arm at all, to lifting 1 lb. Dumbbells, to actually pitching all in a matter of months and by 1989 Dravecky already felt ready to pitch again, although doctors urged him to wait until at least 1990. They feared that the frozen humerus bone could snap if stressed too early. But Dravecky was determined to return that year and he did, returning to the minors in 1989 on rehab assignment, where he threw 3 complete games. There is no possible chance a pitcher would be allowed to complete any games so early in their comeback attempt today, given the circumstances. But in 1989, it happened – he threw three complete games and a shutout with an ERA 1.8, convincing the Giants he was ready for his official comeback game. It occurred on August 10th, 1989, in an amazing day at Candlestick Park. Dravecky pitched 8 innings, defeating the Reds 4-3, despite the doctor’s prediction that he would lose 95% of the use of his left arm. It was one of the most inspiring comebacks of all time and there was absolute magic in the air that day in San Francisco. Unfortunately, it was short-lived as during his next start in Montreal, he felt a strange tingling in his arm, continued to pitch anyway and broke his arm on a pitch. Later, the cancer returned with a vengeance and he had to have his arm amputated. Although he probably should have waited until 1990 to come back as doctors recommended, Dravecky is an absolute amazing athlete with incredible determination and his comeback was one of the most inspiring moments in baseball history. Dave Dravecky continues to travel the country and give motivational speeches today.

2. Eddie Waitkus

Coming in at #2 on my list of the Top 10 Inspirational MLB Comebacks of all time is first baseman Eddie Waitkus. He began his pro career with the Cubs organization in 1939, hitting .326 in the minor leagues and earning his first promotion to the big leagues by 1941. In ‘42, he spent the year in the Minors, hitting .336 for the Los Angeles Angels of the Pacific Coast League. Then, WW2 happened. He was a hero, earning four bronze stars. On one occasional, he left his foxhole, entering into enemy gunfire to save his comrade’s life. He returned to baseball in 1946, after missing three entire seasons due to the war, and hit .304 for the Cubs, eventually becoming an All Star first baseman. But the story doesn’t end there. This was just the first comeback. In June of 1949, Waitkus was hitting well for his new team, the Phillies, with a .306 batting average. But there was a mad fan from Chicago who had worshiped Waitkus named Ruth Ann Steinhagen. She had created a “shrine” to him with hundreds of photos and newspaper clippings. Steinhagen even set a plate for him at the dinner table. After he left to play for the Phillies, she fantasized about killing him. When the Phillies came to Chicago for a series against the Cubs, she checked into the same hotel he was staying in and had the bellboy give him a note urging him to see her for some important information that he would want to know. When he arrived at her room, she shot him with a .22 caliber rifle. There are some disputes over what, if anything, was said, but according to Watkus’s friend and roommate, Waitkus told him that she said “If I can’t have you, nobody else can.” The bullet barely missed his heart and during the operation, he almost died several times. Incredibly, Waitkus recovered and returned in 1950 and played 6 more years in the Majors. He hit .289 in 1951 and .291 in ‘53. His story was part of the inspiration for the film “The Natural.” Eddie Waitkus makes #2 of this list because he not only made an amazing comeback from being a war hero, but he also came back from being shot and nearly killed by an insane fan.

1. Lou Brissie

My #1 most inspirational comeback in MLB history goes to former MLB pitcher Lou Brissie. Brissie was born in Anderson, South Carolina in 1924 and grew up in the town of Ware Shoals, a location where the most popular baseball was played in local textile leagues. Brissie’s career began in 1940 on the Ware Shoals baseball team. He was a talented young pitcher who, as a dominating lefty at 6’4”, caught the attention of Philadelphia A’s manger Connie Mack in 1941. He signed with the Athletics on 1941 with the understanding that he would pitch for three years in college and then begin his professional career. Unfortunately, before he could complete his college career, war broke out and he joined the United States Army. Before going off to war, he was stationed at Camp Croft in South Carolina. One day on leave, he rejoined the War Shoals team for a game and struck out 22 batters. By 1943 he had been deployed to Italy, and his unit, the 88th Infantry Division, saw a lot of action and suffered many casualties. After 14 months fighting, in December of 1944, his unit came under heavy artillery fire. At least 12 men were killed in the attack and one explosion went off near Brissie, whose last memory before falling unconscious was of himself half in and half out of water with one foot severely damaged and the other completely missing. He was left for dead and found several hours later, with his left tibia and shinbone shattered into 30 pieces. Doctors informed him the leg would need to be amputated but Brissie persuaded them to try and save it so he could eventually play ball again. He had 23 surgeries and 40 blood transfusions performed over 2 years, reconstructing his leg with wire. Connie Mack heard about the severity of the injury and wrote to Brissie, saying that his duty was to to get well and whenever he was ready to play, Mack would make sure he got the opportunity. “That meant an awful lot to me,” said Brissie. “It was a tremendous motivator.” Eventually, after a year of rehab, he could walk with a cane. In 1945 as Shibe Park, he held a workout for Connie Mack, trying to pitch on crutches. Mack later said, “I’ll never forget how he looked last summer, he had just undergone an operation and was about to undergo another one. He was on crutches and I thought, ‘Poor boy. He’ll never be able to pitch again.’” For another year, he kept rehabbing and pushing through pain to learn how to pitch again. Finally, in 1947, 6 years after he first signed with the A’s, Connie Mack gave him the opportunity he promised. He was sent to A Ball and was amazing, going 23-5 with a 1.91 ERA and 278 strikeouts. After the Minor League season, he was promoted. Against all odds, Lou Brissie made it to the big leagues. In 1948, he went 14-10 with a 4.13 ERA, kicking off a 7 year Major League career. After retirement he confirmed that he pitched through severe pain every game. His career ERA in a respectable 4.17 and there’s no telling how good he would have been had the injury never occurred. But what he did was even more impressive and is #1 on today’s list as the most inspirational comeback in baseball history.

And that does it for today’s article on the most inspirational comebacks in MLB history. There are many others I’m sure I missed so please feel free to share them in the comments section below. Thank you so much for checking out the blog and remember, as Lou Brissie once said, “If someone tells you that you cannot climb the mountain, you set out and find a way to do it.”