Not All Heroes Have Ligaments
Ole Miss’ Tim Elko can’t stop, won’t stop hitting grand slams on a torn ACL, is already the hero of the College World Series
After a year off due to the pandemic, the College World Series is back and making up for lost time. Still in Regionals, we have seen everything short of a UFO sighting so far, including a magic ball, a game-blowing balk, and, of course, the Kenny Powers impression to end all Kenny Powers impressions. But so far no one has made a bigger statement than Ole Miss exercise science major Tim Elko, who has CRUSHED two grand slams—including one in the second inning of the Regional Finals against Southern Miss on Monday—on a torn ACL. Behold the grit.
That one-legged nuke paired nicely with his gimpy grand slam on Friday, but he wasn’t done just yet, tacking on a solo dinger in the fourth inning for good measure. For those of you keeping score at home, that brings Elko’s statline at the dish since tearing his ACL on April 5th to .305 with seven home runs. Save some for the rest of us, kid.
It’s not exactly Kirk Gibson's '88 heroics, but they’re still carving the statue of this kid in Oxford as we speak. Hopefully the sculptor remembers to include an ice pack, however, because you can see Elko’s not moving too well rounding the bases. Anyone can stand there and swing the bat, but maybe all those home run trots are starting to take their toll.
Thankfully Elko can now put his feet up for a couple days, with Ole Miss holding on to beat Brett Favre’s alma mater 12-9, advancing to face Arizona in the Tuscon Super Regional this weekend. Who knows, a dry heat might even be good for those busted ligaments.