April 10, 2004

Boys of summer speak out against chewing

By Steve Zimmerman
Ashland Daily Tidings

Former major league baseball catcher Joe Garagiola gave Atlanta Braves outfielder Chipper Jones an earful recently when the two discussed chewing tobacco and baseball.

"Chipper told me chewing is a baseball tradition," Garagiola said. "I told him getting cancer and dying isn't a tradition."

Garagiola, and others involved in the anti-spit tobacco program NSTEP (National Spit Tobacco Education Program) are bringing the problem to light just in time for the opening this week of the major league baseball season and while the high school and college baseball seasons are still in full swing.

Garagiola, who played with the St. Louis Cardinals and Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1950s and

	Former major league catcher Joe Garagiola talks with younger players about the dangers of chewing tobacco. Submitted Photo

is now the voice of the Arizona Diamondbacks, knows firsthand the dangers of chewing tobacco. He lost his best friend, former major leaguer Jack Kroll, to oral cancer. Kroll lost part of his tongue to the cancer in 1993. One year later he was dead.

Then Garagiola met Bill Tuttle, who played with the Minnesota Twins, Kansas City and Detroit. Garagiola and Tuttle were traveling the country speaking out against the dangers of spit tobacco and representing NSTEP at major league baseball spring training camps in Florida and Arizona.

Tuttle also contracted oral cancer from chewing tobacco during his baseball career.

"Bill Tuttle fought the disease and fought it hard," Garagiola said. "He had five humongous operations, the longest 13 1/2 hours. When he and I would walk into a baseball clubhouse in 1997, it would horrify, the tale. Bill lost half his jawbone and half his gums to cancer. He died losing one piece of his face at a time."

Tuttle's wife, Gloria Tuttle-Fischer, still visits teams during spring training to talk to the young players about using spit tobacco. Stern faced players sit and watch the petite widow, listening intently to her every word.

"My husband started chewing tobacco in 1954," she tells the players. "Three days later, he was addicted and he chewed for 37 years. In 1993, his mouth became infected and when he went to the doctor he had a tumor in his mouth."

Five years later, after numerous surgeries, Tuttle was dead at the age of 69.

Tuttle-Fischer recalled the first surgery her husband underwent.

"The doctor told Bill his surgery to remove the tumor would likely take two to two and one-half hours," she said. "I waited in the waiting room and as the hours passed, I began to wonder what was going on. Finally, after 13 1/2 hours, the doctor came out and told me the surgery was done."

After that surgery, and the four others, Tuttle lost the whole right side of his face, his jawbone and teeth.

Tuttle began chewing after suffering an injury while playing with the Detroit Tigers. Tiger Hall of Famer Al Kaline played with Tuttle. He was lucky to have never started chewing tobacco.

"I wish NSTEP had been around in 1954," he said. "Bill Tuttle was a good friend of mine. He started playing in the big leagues at the same time I did. It would have been nice in those days to have someone there to tell us about the dangers of chew. It is a terrible, terrible habit and I get really upset when I see young players or young kids think because they put tobacco in their mouth, it will make them a better player."

Kaline talked about the peer pressure he felt as a young player to chew.

"The older players, when I first started playing, tried to get me to chew," he explained. "I tried it, I got sick and never tried it again. I am glad I never became a part of that."

One player who did chew and has since quit and been successful in quitting is Montreal Expo catcher Greg Zaun.

"I would use up to two cans of chew per day," he said. "I wouldn't just buy one or two cans per day, I would buy one or two logs. I quit several times but the last time was four years ago with the help of a patch."

Garagiola said as long as there are players using spit tobacco, he will be there, with NSTEP, to deliver the warning.

"It has been and still is an uphill battle," he said. "People blame baseball for the spit tobacco problem. But these guys came into the league chewing. (Boston Red Sox pitcher) Curt Schilling began dipping when he was 15 years old and Chipper Jones began when he was 13. We have to stop it in the middle schools and high schools and we have to stop it among police officers, firemen, and airline workers who work in smoke-free workplaces."

Ashland High School baseball coach Jason Robustelli said he does not have a chew problem with his baseball team. Oregon high school rules ban tobacco use by players, coaches and officials.

"Tobacco of any kind is banned by the Oregon Schools Activities Association," he said. "A player cannot come to practice with dip. What they do before and after practice is their own business but I don't have anyone on my team that chews even recreationally."

Robustelli did add that he has had assistant coaches who have chewed and he has had to ask them to keep it away from the field.

The association policy specifically states that the use of tobacco products by contest officials at interscholastic events is prohibited. If an official is reported to be using a tobacco product during an event, that official is subject to having his or her certification as an official invalidated.

The association also strongly recommends that local school districts prohibit members of their coaching staffs from using tobacco products of any kind at any time that coach is involved in coaching, be it a practice or a game.

One of the brightest players today, New York Yankee Tony Clark, is blunt when it comes to baseball players and chewing tobacco.

"I have made a concerted effort to try and let guys know they don't need to mess with this stuff," he said. "We have got a lot of guys who chew from time to time but they really don't need to. So it is important to educate them and give guys an opportunity to get checked out."

Garagiola echoed Clark's words. He said education is the key word in NSTEP's name.

"I can't tell players to quit," he said. "All I can do is tell them of the dangers and raise their awareness level. We have seen progress and the signs are there that people are waking up and are more aware of the dangers of spit tobacco.

"Let's face facts, spit tobacco is a gross product. That is why it is called spit tobacco."

Tuttle-Fischer watched helplessly as her husband died piece by piece. Tuttle considered himself a connoisseur of chocolate ice cream. But at the end, he could not even enjoy that treat.

"The radiation treatments dried up his mouth," she recalled. "Foods he used to love, like chocolate ice cream, he didn't like after he finished his radiation treatments. And he wanted a pork chop so bad, he just loved pork chops. But he could not eat meat anymore after losing his teeth and gums. He couldn't eat anything that could not be mushed up because they could not put teeth in his mouth."

Tuttle-Fischer said those who chew have to quit. If they can't do it for themselves, then they should do it for their loved ones.

"The family saw this wonderful dad and grandpa suffer so much," she said. "He was not able to do the things with his kids and grandkids he so enjoyed. He always said he was just an old country boy who liked all the things country boys liked. It got so bad during his cancer that his grandkids were afraid of him because he looked so terrible.

"And my husband always drove me everywhere, he always helped me carry in the groceries and he always opened my car door. All of a sudden, this strong courageous man who was such a gentleman could no longer even drive. And that was one of his biggest trials. First, I know he didn't like my driving and second, that was a part of his life and now it was gone."