James Andrews, MD, has retired at the age of 81, according to a feature from the MLB.
Dr. Andrews' career spans a half-century, and he has helped treat multiple professional athletes in baseball alone, the Jan. 26 feature said. He was a pioneer in sports medicine and treated athletes including Michael Jordan, Troy Aikman, Jack Nicklaus and Hulk Hogan.
Early in his career, Dr. Andrews worked at the Hughston Clinic in Columbus, Ga. and made important advancements in arthroscopy. He also worked wth Frank Jobe, MD, to learn the Tommy John procedure for elbow care.
In 1986 he moved to Birmingham, Ala. to start his own practice. One of his breakout cases was on Roger Clemens who played for the Boston Red Sox in 1985. Less than a year after being treated by Dr. Andrews for a shoulder injury, Mr. Clemens struck out 20 batters in a game.
Dr. Andrews officially ended his work earlier in the month. But he is still involved with the growth of Gulf Breeze, Fla.-based Andrews Medicine and is following up with his last surgical patients.