Rangers History Today: 'Doc' Helps Save A Life
On this date in Texas Rangers history, George ‘Doc’ Medich lived up to his nickname.
On July 17, 1978, the Rangers were in Baltimore to face the Orioles at old Memorial Stadium. Medich wasn’t pitching that day, but a 61-year-old Orioles fan needed Medich to step up and help him out.
Most ballplayers get their nicknames naturally. George Medich’s nickname was an easy one: ‘Doc’, and it wasn’t necessarily for show. Medich attended the University of Pittsburgh, where he was a medical student while playing baseball. He wasn’t a licensed physician at the time, but he knew enough to help the Orioles fan out when he was suffering a heart attack.
Medich rushed up into the stands and administered mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and an external heart massage to the fan, keeping him alive until medical help arrived. The fan survived.
It wasn't the first time Medich rushed into the stands to help, either. He did the same thing in 1976 as a Pittsburgh Pirate.
Medich pitched 10 years in the Majors and won 124 games, spending five years with the Rangers. His final season was with Texas and Milwaukee in an eventful year. He gave up the stolen base that allowed Rickey Henderson to break Lou Brock’s single-season record, and he pitched in the World Series with the Brewers. He retired after that season.
Also on this date …
July 17, 1979: Pitcher Jim Kern was the only Rangers player in the All-Star Game, held in Seattle.
July 17, 2018: In Washington D.C., outfielder Shin Soo-Choo was the Rangers’ lone representative in the All-Star Game.
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