For Tommy John, another comeback Ex-pitcher managing Yankees’ farm team

Call it another Tommy John comeback.

The former major league pitcher, whose name became synonymous with reconstructive arm surgery, was in Portland last week to get acclimated to minor league ball, as a coach.

The former 20-game winner for the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees is the new manager for the Yankees’ single A short-season team in Staten Island.

It was John’s second trip to Portland. He was a coach for the Eastern League’s Harrisburg Senators in 2002. It was his fourth trip to Maine.

“Two times I came up and ran in a 10K run that [Sea Dogs manager] Stump [Merrill] had in the fall, which they had before one of the Bowdoin football games,” said John, 61. “I would drive up from Newton, N.J., and usually stay at the Holiday Inn at Bath. I’d run in his race and then we’d tailgate and go to L.L. Bean on the way home.”

Despite the Yankees’ current struggles, John – who looks like he can still go out there and give a team four or five innings of work – still considers New York the team to beat.

“You know, as much as George Steinbrenner keeps a greater eye on it, these games are important and a win in April is the same as it would be in September, but still it’s the team that’s gonna win the most games and the Yankees are gonna win the most games,” John said. “It’s just that they’re not playing real well right now, but when they start breaking out, it’ll be a long season for a lot of teams.”

His eight seasons wearing Yankee pinstripes were the most with one team. He pitched seven years with the Chicago White Sox. Although Boston was not one of the six teams he played for in his 27 major league seasons, John has come to respect and even appreciate Red Sox fans.

“I think the Boston fans are great. I actually loved playing in Fenway because I got a lot of energy from those fans,” he said. “If you pitch well, you shut them up. Well … only for a while, and then they come back.”

John then shared one of his favorite baseball stories.

“I was warming up in Fenway one time and it was a day game. This fan was on me … When you’re warming up in that bullpen, the fans are about two feet back of you,” John recalled. “So I’m warming up and this guy’s on me … I mean, every time I threw the ball in the dirt, he was getting on me. So at the end of the warmup period, I sat down, toweled off, got some water and asked Jeff Torborg if he had a good ball I could have.

“So I had a good ball and signed it. I wrote “to the greatest fan ever” and then on the sweet spot I signed Tommy John. So when the first inning was over, I said, ‘Hey, you.’ Guy says ‘Yeah?’ and I threw him the ball. He looks at it and says ‘Hey, this is really nice, but you still [stink].’ ”

John could only laugh.

“I said thanks,” he said. “That’s fine. I can respect that kind of fan who sticks with their team all the time.

“I think the New England fan … You know, they’ve had some good teams with the Red Sox. They really have. They’ve had good football and basketball teams with the Patriots and Celtics. They just haven’t won the big baseball prize.”

John’s team will be stocked with recent draftees and its season will run from June through early September.

“Hopefully, my guys are still going to class and not skipping,” he said. “We’ll see what kind of team I have after the draft.”

With a 288-231 lifetime pitching record and two World Series rings, John should command plenty of respect from his rookie players.

“If you can teach them anything, you teach them respect for the game and the people in it,” John said. “I think you have to know the history of the game because if you don’t know the history of it and why the game’s great, it’s hard to have respect and appreciation for it.”

John has coached high school, college and pro ball. He is coming off a stint as a manager in the Arizona Fall League.

“I’ll just go out and see what happens. I’m in the twilight of my career so I’ll just see where this career takes me,” said John. “Who knows where I’ll wind up. Maybe I’ll manage the Bangor American Legion team next year.”