Davis diagnosed with thyroid cancer

March 28, 2008 · Paul Raymond · Jump to comments

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Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Doug Davis has been diagnosed with thyroid cancer. Despite the cancer, Davis plans on staying with the team for a few weeks. Tonight, Davis will be making his scheduled start at Chase Field. Davis also plans on making a few starts in the month of April and then undergo surgery at the end of the month. After the surgery, he’ll be sidelined indefinitely. “We’re not sure about the timetable after that,” Hall said. “We’re deeply saddened and concerned for Doug but we’re still in the process of collecting facts and applying that to timing.”

Considering all things, you have to call Davis the ultimate team player. Randy Johnson won’t be back till late-April at the earliest so it sort of looks like he wants to get the team by till then. Davis has always been a favorite of mine, back to his Milwaukee Brewers days. Over this career, Davis has gone 75 and 75, with a 4.34 era over 1200+ innings.

Thyroid cancer is fairly common, striking almost 18,000 Americans a year. Most patients wind up cured or at least live many years with the disease. This is a good sign for Davis, especially if spotted early. Davis is 32 now, so there is a chance he can come back from this and still be an effective pitcher.