Injured Minnesota Twins closer Joe Nathan takes clean route as he recovers from surgery

New York Daily News—May 23, 2010   

He is still a sports deity in Pine Bush, N.Y. - where he was a high school baseball star in the hamlet 80 miles north of the Big Apple - but injured Twins closer Joe Nathan can walk the Manhattan streets in relative anonymity, as he did Friday afternoon before taking in the Broadway hit "Wicked" with his wife Lisa.

Nathan is in town to have a follow-up visit with Mets doctor Dr. David Altchek of Hospital for Special Surgery, who performed his earlier surgeries. The righthander had bone chips removed from his throwing elbow after the playoff ouster, and then had Tommy John surgery on the same elbow in March, shelving him for the 2010 season.

Sporting a pink semi-circular scar on the inside of his throwing elbow, Nathan says he hopes "it allows me to play for another six or so years" - despite the sacrifices. The 35-year-old will start throwing in two months and who has one year guaranteed left on his contract.

Read the full story at nydailynews.com.