In 1968, he finished fifth in the American League (AL) with a 1.98 earned run average (ERA) and was named to his first All-Star team, though he missed the end of the season after he was injured in a fight with Dick McAuliffe.

[26] White Sox' general manager (GM) Ed Short noted that this was unlikely given that the pitch before the fight came on a 3-2 count, resulting in a walk for McAuliffe.

[14] In 1970, John got the Opening Day start but struggled, giving up six runs (five earned) in 4+2⁄3 innings as the Twins beat the White Sox 12–0 on April 7.

John also finished fourth in walks (101, behind Sam McDowell's 131, Mickey Lolich's 109, and Jim Rooker's 102), and he led the AL in wild pitches, throwing what would be a career-high 17.

[47] John was traded along with Steve Huntz from the White Sox to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Dick Allen at the Winter Meetings on December 2, 1971.

[53] In his first start of 1973 for the Dodgers, on April 8 against the San Diego Padres, John threw scoreless ball for 7+1⁄3 innings, earning the win in a 4–0 victory.

[4] He led the NL in wins coming into the All-Star break but was left off the roster, as the Dodgers already had Andy Messersmith and Mike Marshall on the team.

Initially, he was uncertain how serious the injury was; Dr. Frank Jobe, the Dodgers' team physician, advised John to rest the arm for a few days and treat it with ice.

[14] With his career in doubt, John decided to allow Dr. Jobe to attempt a revolutionary surgical operation, ulnar collateral ligament reconstruction.

[4] The surgery was performed on September 25, 1974, and it took four hours; Jobe made holes in the humerus and ulna bones of John's left arm and used anchors to insert the tendon in what was roughly a figure-eight shape.

Jobe gave the operation 100-1 odds of being successful, but John had it anyway, as his other option was to start working at a friend's car dealership in Terre Haute.

He attended spring training with the Dodgers in 1975, by which point he had recovered the full range of motion of his arm but still lacked feeling in some of his fingers, preventing him from gripping the ball properly.

[96] John pitched particularly well against the White Sox, throwing shutouts all three times he faced them, including a two-hit performance on April 16 when he retired 13 hitters in a row at one point.

[102] In 36 starts, John won a career-high 22 games while losing nine, recording a 3.43 ERA, 78 strikeouts, 56 walks, and 270 hits allowed in 265+1⁄3 innings pitched.

[4][109][110] Hundreds of letters and cards poured in from well-wishers, including people who wrote that they hated the Yankees and George Steinbrenner but were rooting for Travis to pull through.

[110][111] Travis ultimately made a full recovery; he threw out the first pitch at a playoff game against the Brewers later that year, and by 1988, he was playing Little League Baseball with his brothers.

[116] John allowed just one run against the Athletics in Game 1 of the ALCS, earning the win, but he was replaced on the mound by Ron Davis after the sixth inning because his right ankle was bothering him.

[119] In Game 4, he was sent in during the seventh inning of a 6–6 tie because the bases were loaded, and John had a propensity for inducing ground balls, which would have likely resulted in an out and possibly a double play.

Instead, Steve Yeager hit a sacrifice fly against him, and Davey Lopes added an RBI single; the runs did not count on John's record, but the Yankees lost the game 8–7.

[126][127] In 30 games (26 starts) for the Yankees, John had posted a 10–10 record, a 3.66 ERA, 54 strikeouts, 34 walks, and 190 hits allowed in 186+2⁄3 innings, throwing two shutouts as well.

[128] John made seven starts, posting a 4–2 record, a 3.86 ERA, 14 strikeouts, five walks, and 49 hits allowed in 35 innings pitched as the Angels clinched the AL West.

[14] Port succeeded Bavasi as the Angel GM in 1985, and no coach worked with John at all during spring training until he finally asked Frank Reberger to assist him.

[14] Bill Madden of the New York Daily News speculated that John, a ground-ball pitcher, suffered from late-season injuries to Yankee infielders Willie Randolph and Mike Pagliarulo, their replacements not being quite as capable fielders.

"[188] In a 2016 interview, John pointed out that his 164 wins following the surgery were one shy of the amount that Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax had over his entire career.

[4] In 2012, Lindsey Berra of ESPN noted that roughly one in seven major league pitchers had undergone Tommy John surgery at some point in their careers.

[64] Doug Miller of MLB.com wrote that "baseball history was altered – some would say saved – forever" when John returned from his recovery, observing that "Today, the tearing of a pitcher's ulnar collateral ligament is no longer a career-ending calamity.

[191] John was a soft throwing sinkerball pitcher whose technique resulted in batters hitting numerous ground balls which often induced double plays.

[192] Rick Cerone, who caught John with the Yankees, said of the fastball, "It looks like a real good pitch to hit until about the last 10 feet, then it sinks about two or three inches outside.

The complex was the site of John's last non-professional game in 1961, when he was a member of the Terre Haute Gerstmeyer High School Black Cats.

[212] He has no relation to the Tommy John Underwear company and considered suing the founder over the use of his name but abandoned the idea after attorneys wanted $250,000 to represent him.