Baseball has taken many steps to try to curb players' appetite for chewing tobacco, which at one point was as ubiquitous in the game as pickoff moves and pinch hitters.
Use has fallen dramatically as it's become known to cause some of the most deadly cancers. The risk of oral cancer is greater than it is for cigarette smokers. Major League Baseball successfully has rid the minors of the stuff through new rules, and language in the new collective bargaining agreement prohibits players, managers and coaches from using smokeless tobacco during televised interviews and team appearances.
It's pretty certain that Tony Gwynn believes that it's still not enough. Gwynn had a second surgery Wednesday to remove another cancerous tumor from inside his right cheek, the cheek where he placed smokeless tobacco during his entire 20-year Hall of Fame career, and another decade afterward.
He came out of surgery Wednesday in good spirits and with good news. Gwynn says believes they've got all the cancer out of his cheek.
"While everything went extremely well and Mr. Gwynn is in good spirits, it is too early to forecast how successful the outcome will be," said a statement from the University of California-San Diego hospital, from an ESPN.com story. "This type of cancer is very rare, accounting for less than one percent of all head and neck cancers. It could take up to 18 months for Mr. Gwynn to regain movement and function on the right side of his face."
Gwynn, 51, hopes to return to coach the San Diego State baseball team in a month.
Related: Five Important Smokeless Tobacco Facts, from Smoking Cessation guide Terry Martin, and a look at the hazards of smokeless tobacco.
Profile: Tony Gwynn
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