Oct. 18, 1963 - Mickey Mantle quietly slipped into New York late Wednesday afternoon and, this morning, was operated on for the removal of cartilage from his left knee. “A complete success,” concluded Dr. Sidney Gaynor (left), the Yankee physician who performed the surgery. Mantle went under the knife at 10 a.m. at Lenox Hill Hospital. Seventy minutes later, the operation was completed. “Everything went according to plan,” said Gaynor. The high-priced and somewhat delicate Bomber center fielder is expected to be hospitalized for about a week. He’ll then rest at home in Dallas for several weeks. By January, he’ll be able to resume his hobby, golf, and also will begin jogging. “There’s no reason why Mantle shouldn’t be able to report to camp on time,” Gaynor predicted. “And by the start of the season, he should be completely recovered and ready to play.” Mantle’s knee injury developed as a delayed reaction to an accident in a night game in Baltimore on June 5. He got hurt in a futile leap for a sixth-inning home run to center field by Brooks Robinson. As he came down, the spikes on his left shoe caught in the wire fence, twisting his leg. It wasn’t until Mickey was trying to work his way back into playing shape in July lthat his left knee gave way. It was then discovered there was torn cartilage in that joint. Because of the broken foot and the knee, Mantle got to play in only 65 games this season. He was at bat only 172 times, but hit 15 home runs and batted .314.
