MLB Fan Choking on Hot Dog Saved By Pitcher's Dad

Nats pitcher Joe Ross' doctor dad gave a woman the Heimlich
By Josh Gardner,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 11, 2021 9:00 AM CDT
MLB Pitcher's Doctor Dad Saves Choking Fan
Joe Ross delivers a pitch during the third inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers   (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

A Washington Nationals away game in San Francisco could have ended in tragedy were it not for starting pitcher Joe Ross' doctor dad. While watching his son play the Giants at Oracle Park on Saturday, Dr. Willie Ross noticed a woman near him in the stands who appeared to be in distress. Dr. Ross, a pediatrician at Stanford Hospital, told the Mercury News, the woman first seemed to signal to a companion that she was okay. When he realized she wasn't, he approached her and employed the Heimlich maneuver.

Two pieces of hot dog were dislodged. However, the woman still seemed distressed. Dr. Ross was then able to dislodge a third piece of hot dog that he described as "big as my thumb" to its first knuckle. The victim, described as an embarrassed but thankful 53-year-old retired nurse, then appeared to recover. Per Sports Illustrated, the doctor shook hands with members of a cheering crowd. Meanwhile, if it seems like Ross kept a cool head, it may be because he's reportedly done this before--and not just in a hospital setting. San Francisco Chronicle baseball reporter Susan Slusser tweeted following the incident that Ross once saved a stroke victim at a California amateur league field. (More Washington Nationals stories.)

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