Christmas cards are great in any form

One if by Land. Two if by Sea. Three if by Drone. Four if by Email. Nobody will remember how it got here, only that it did.

It all started so innocently. My sister Helen was in Las Vegas for a conference in February of 2012. In the lobby were a few men at a table talking baseball and signing autographs. The two former major leaguers were trying to generate some interest. They asked for questions from the relatively small audience. My sister called me and asked for some baseball trivia. Talking about baseball never goes out of season. The guy at the table closest to my sister asked for her phone. First, a question to me followed by a few jokes, and the two hours flew right by.

I knew the ending, but I had to look up the career for left handed pitcher, Dave Dravecky. 64 wins with 57 losses. Lifetime Earned Run Average - 3.13. Fewer hits than innings pitched. 0.60 postseason ERA. One National League Championship Series shutout. One lifetime home run. Spending eight years in the big leagues(The Show). We shared the same birthday (Valentine's Day). I was mesmerized as we spoke.

Dave Dravecky underwent his first operation Oct. 7, 1988, after a cancerous tumor was diagnosed in the primary throwing muscle of his left arm. Doctors conducted an eight-hour operation to remove a malignant tumor and nearly half the deltoid muscle, and told him he never would pitch again.

Ten months later, on Aug. 10, 1989, Dravecky pitched seven shutout innings for the San Francisco Giants in a 4-3 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.

But five days later, while pitching against the Montreal Expos, his left arm snapped and he collapsed on the mound in agony.

The bone healed and Dravecky was considering another comeback when the arm was broken again, this time during a freak on-field celebration with his teammates when the Giants clinched the 1989 National League pennant with a victory over the Chicago Cubs.

"As soon as the doctor told me the cancer had returned , I knew the score. He was my friend and it wasn't easy on him. I trusted him. I had faith in him. He did what was best for me and my family and I am grateful."

"In as much as there is a certain amount of fear involved in losing my arm, it is a sense of almost relief that I feel," Dravecky said. "The pain and discomfort of that time is now about to end and I look forward to once again doing the things I enjoy."

After recovering from the surgery, Dravecky went on to begin a new career as a motivational speaker. He has written two books about his battles with cancer and his comeback attempt: Comeback, published in 1990 and When You Can't Come Back, coauthored with wife Jan and Ken Gire in 1992.

Those are my stocking stuffers. Merry Christmas to all.

Paul Murphy

Follow me on Twitter at @_prmurphy