GUEST BIO

Born without a right hand, Jim Abbott as a boy dreamed of becoming a great athlete. Raised in Flint, Michigan, by parents who saw in his condition not as a disability but an extraordinary opportunity, Jim
would go on to an improbable athletic journey, carrying him from Flint onto some of the grandest stages in sports.
Playing football and baseball, Jim was a two-sport standout at Flint Central High School before attending the University of Michigan, where he would become a 3 year starter, earning All-Big Ten and All-American honors.
honors. As a collegiate player, Jim was named the winner of the Golden Spikes Award and the Sullivan Award, which is given to the top amateur athlete in the United States.
While in college, Jim would also play on two USA Baseball teams, first the Pan American Team, where he carried the U.S. flag in the opening ceremonies at the Indianapolis Speedway, and then the following summer, traveling to the Olympics in Seoul, Korea, where he would pitch a complete game 5-3 victory over Japan for a Gold Medal.
Professionally, Jim was selected in the 1st round of the MLB draft in 1989. He would go on to play ten Major League seasons for the Angels, Yankees, White Sox, and Brewers.
In 1991, Jim finished 3rd in the American League Cy Young voting, and in 1993, Jim would pitch a 4-0 No-Hitter for the New York Yankees in Yankee Stadium. Jim retired from baseball in 1999 and has spent large portions of his time supporting and advocating for
those in the limb difference community. Jim Abbott’s story serves as encouragement for all that is possible in the face of great odds. Jim and his family spend time in Southern California and Northern Michigan.