All-time favorite athlete whose career was cut short?

Bias. So much promise. Classic "What if" case.

 

Eddy Guerrero

Yes, pro wrestling is predetermined, but he was as athletic as anyone, and fun to watch.

 

Barbaro

 

Aw shit, I was about to use that one because so many great ones have already been used...so I'll go with





Johnny Utah.

 

As a Yankees fan I could argue that Mattingly played 14 years in the majors, so I don't see how his career was "cut short" by injury.
The fact that his numbers declined during his final 7 seasons after injuring his back doesn't mean his career was 'cut short'.

If we're going to put Mattingly in the conversation, then why not Thurmon Munson? Although he played 11 years, his career was cut short (by death).

 

I love Don Mattingly, my all-time fav. baseball player. But... he played 14 seasons.
Fourteen seasons!
Yeah, he had back problems that certainly derailed a would-be HOF career and put him in the realm of pretty good, but he played 14 seasons.
Limited yes. Cut short?


What EStreetJoe said .... Beat me by a few minutes.

 

Vladimir Konstantinov: Fearless defenseman; gentle soul; good, good guy.

For those who don't recall, Konstantinov was seriously injured in a car crash after winning the Stanley Cup with Detroit in 1997. He was in the back of a limo -- he did the smart thing and decided not to drive while celebrating -- and the limo driver turned out to be a dirtbag who had no business being a professional driver. Konstantinov suffered brain damage, among other injuries, and never fully recovered.

I still get angry about this 13 years later.

 

A tie between Gary Anderson and Morten Anderson

 

Two from the "They Did it to Themselves" category: Mike Tyson and Jennifer Capriati.

Both pissed away major chunks of their prime.

 

Capriati ok .. Tyson? He had a 10-year run - aside from Buster Douglas hicciup - and was un-fucking-stoppable.

 

Bernard King
Penny Hardaway

 

But among boxing purists gets almost no respect and is rarely listed with the true greats. Went to prison just as the heavyweight class was coming out of its malaise and would produce guys who could actually have tested him and allowed him to be viewed among the top guys in the sport ever. Just would liked to have seen a stable Tyson as opposed to the idiot we got for so many years.