# Who is the Greatest Athlete Whose Career Was Ruined Due to Injury? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [July 5, 2008, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347 "2008-07-05T03:26:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![DragonAsh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/db5fbb/32.png) [@DragonAsh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DragonAsh)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2009, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/81 "2009-10-06T12:58:22Z")
Herschel Walker sleep-walked his way through his years in Minnesota. I’ve seen kittens run around with more toughness. Wow, two whole pages and no one mentioned Kirby Puckett? He still had a few good years in him, and I think he would have gotten to 3,000 hits without the injury. Nobody was going to suggest that the Puck wasn’t a first-round HoF-caliber player - plus you had his entire attitude and playstyle (and he gets in based on his 1991 WS game six exploits alone) - but put his numbers up against other players that only played for 12 seasons, and it’s not such a slam-dunk case. In fact, his numbers aren’t all that different from, say, Don Mattingly, who isn’t in the HoF and probably doesn’t belong there. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2009, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/82 "2009-10-06T13:00:57Z")
How about Mickey Mantle? Take away his knee injury, and he might well have topped Ruth before Aaron did. ---
**Author:** ![MichaelQReilly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@MichaelQReilly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MichaelQReilly)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2009, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/83 "2009-10-06T13:57:26Z")
> [@Snarky\_Kong](#): > > Another soccer player, and this one’s probably an equivalent of Ken Griffey Jr., but Ronaldo. His career wasn’t ruined as he’s the all time leading goal scorer in the World Cup, but before he had knee trouble he was the most dominate forward of all time. He never regained his blistering pace and cutting ability, but he was still considered one of the best forwards in the world. He blew out his knee again recently, and while his career was on the downswing, he still had a couple good years left and now it’s unlikely that’ll happen. Yeah, but how much of it was partying and whoring with transexuals? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2009, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/84 "2009-10-06T15:20:02Z")
Sterling Sharpe ---
**Author:** ![zamboniracer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/e9a140/32.png) [@zamboniracer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zamboniracer)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2009, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/85 "2009-10-06T15:38:14Z")
> [@DragonAsh](#): > > Wow, two whole pages and no one mentioned Kirby Puckett? He still had a few good years in him, and I think he would have gotten to 3,000 hits without the injury. Nobody was going to suggest that the Puck wasn’t a first-round HoF-caliber player - plus you had his entire attitude and playstyle (and he gets in based on his 1991 WS game six exploits alone) - but put his numbers up against other players that only played for 12 seasons, and it’s not such a slam-dunk case. In fact, his numbers aren’t all that different from, say, Don Mattingly, who isn’t in the HoF and probably doesn’t belong there. Forgive the hijack, but Mattingly never played in a World Series, let alone in the postseason. Puckett starred in two World Series. That’s the big difference (and to my mind an entirely legitimate) between them. Puckett is a legit HOFer IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![Stormcrow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/0ea827/32.png) [@Stormcrow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stormcrow)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2009, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/86 "2009-10-06T16:27:51Z")
Another baseball player to consider is Eric Davis. Spectacular player, frequently injured. Managed to have a long career, but missed a lot of time and was reduced to part-timer long before he should have been. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Scud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Tom\_Scud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Scud)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2009, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/87 "2009-10-06T16:31:49Z")
Probably not the best ever, but J. R. Richard seemed to be finally getting full control of his stuff and turning into a truly dominant pitcher when he had the stroke that ended his career. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2009, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/88 "2009-10-06T16:51:29Z")
Can I get a cite for baseball players being “athletes”? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2009, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/89 "2009-10-18T22:33:47Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Can I get a cite for baseball players being “athletes”? 😉 No . That does not deserve one. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2009, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/90 "2009-10-19T15:44:24Z")
Nick Eddy was a Notre Dame star who had about 125 carries in his entire NFL career. He blew out a knee and never had any kind of career at all. ---
**Author:** ![mbetter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/53a042/32.png) [@mbetter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbetter)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2009, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/91 "2009-10-19T16:39:37Z")
Eric Lindros? ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2009, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/92 "2009-10-19T17:12:16Z")
> [@Stormcrow](#): > > Another baseball player to consider is Eric Davis. Spectacular player, frequently injured. Managed to have a long career, but missed a lot of time and was reduced to part-timer long before he should have been. I went to the last two games of a home series between the Royals and the…Orioles? My brother and I sat in the very top deck of Kaufman Stadium - which is a very steep incline from where home plate is. For the first game, Davis cranked a foul ball straight back - you could hear the seams on it as it whizzed by our heads. For the second game, Davis comes up, my brother and I joke about getting ready for another screamer coming our way (and how that could never happen a second time), and sure enough - nearly nails us in the head, pounding into a seat 3 rows behind us. ---
**Author:** ![Justin\_Bailey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/justin_bailey/32/8792_2.png) [@Justin\_Bailey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Justin_Bailey)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2009, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/93 "2009-10-19T23:01:43Z")
> [@DragonAsh](#): > > Wow, two whole pages and no one mentioned Kirby Puckett? He still had a few good years in him, and I think he would have gotten to 3,000 hits without the injury. Nobody was going to suggest that the Puck wasn’t a first-round HoF-caliber player - plus you had his entire attitude and playstyle (and he gets in based on his 1991 WS game six exploits alone) - but put his numbers up against other players that only played for 12 seasons, and it’s not such a slam-dunk case. In fact, his numbers aren’t all that different from, say, Don Mattingly, who isn’t in the HoF and probably doesn’t belong there. I think after Kirby beat the shit out of some woman (and it likely wasn’t his first time) pretty much ruined any goodwill he got from fans. Especially because he was such a fun-loving guy in his playing days and the “new Kirby” was such a 180. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/94 "2009-10-20T00:38:35Z")
I think the OP is trying to get little-known players, rather than great players who had tragedy in their lives. I would nominate: Len Bias [Marcus Dupree](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marcus_Dupree) Ernie Davis Herb Score [Monica Seles](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monica_Seles#1993_stabbing) [Vince “Ow the Tarp!” Coleman](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vince_Coleman) ---
**Author:** ![dougie\_monty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@dougie\_monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dougie_monty)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/95 "2009-10-20T08:02:41Z")
Make what you will of these baseball players: Kid Nichols Ed Delahanty Chief Louis Sockalexis Nick Altrock Ray Chapman Mickey Cochrane Lou Gehrig Boo Ferris George Sisler Jim Piersall (OK, his career wasn’t cut short, but he might have really flourished in the game had he not had the mental breakdown) Claude Passeau Nelson Briles Freddie Fitzsimmons Karl Spooner Roy Campanella Eddie Waitkus Monty Stratton ---
**Author:** ![Dead\_Cat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9fc29f/32.png) [@Dead\_Cat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dead_Cat)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/96 "2009-10-20T12:00:37Z")
I’m not convinced about Senna - I think he was on his way out by 1994 anyway, Schumacher was clearly outpacing him in every race and would have won the title that year anyway, in what was seen as an inferior car (at least initially). I don’t think Senna had another title in him. A better nomination from motor racing, IMO, is Jim Clark, 5 times Formula 1 champion who died in his prime. I don’t know about George Best, either - I think his problems were much more mental than physical, though we could count mental illness as an injury I suppose. If so, Ronnie O’Sullivan is a prime candidate. I’d also agree with upthread suggestion of Duncan Edwards. ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 3:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/97 "2009-10-20T15:23:25Z")
My gut answer is Bo Jackson, but I’ll throw in a name that I didn’t notice on this thread yet: J. R. Richard. An incredible pitcher for the Astros in the 1970’s, he suffered a stroke in 1980. If he could have continued pitching as he did before the stroke, he probably would have been somewhere in the Nolan Ryan-Randy Johnson-Roger Clemens area of the pitching pantheon. Added on edit - looks like someone DID mention him, I just hadn’t noticed until a second read-through. Oops! ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/98 "2009-10-20T15:49:22Z")
> [@Superhal](#): > > [Vince “Ow the Tarp!” Coleman](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vince_Coleman) Coleman’s career was cut short from an injury? He was 35 years old his last season in the majors. As a speed guy, I can’t imagine there being many good years left for Vince. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/99 "2009-10-20T22:25:53Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > Coleman’s career was cut short from an injury? He was 35 years old his last season in the majors. As a speed guy, I can’t imagine there being many good years left for Vince. I’d put him in the “career was ruined” category. When I checked up on his stats, he stole 145 based one year in the minors. He stole 110 as a rookie, then broke 100 twice more, but then faded away. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2009, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347/100 "2009-10-20T22:30:10Z")
Random story: My friend and I were basketball fans, and I was asking for his opinion about some players for my fantasy basketball team. Him: Why don’t you take Player X? Me: Nah, he’s out with a hamstring, his career is over. Him: Magic Johnson played for years with a bad hamstring. Me: Yeah, and look what happened to him. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-is-the-greatest-athlete-whose-career-was-ruined-due-to-injury/455347.md?page=6)