BUTLER TWP — John Crummy's batting gloves are bloodied, but he doesn't mind at all.

At least he's swinging a bat.

The Butler senior underwent Tommy John surgery on May 19, 2008, just before the Golden Tornado's second WPIAL playoff game that year, and has been playing first base the past two seasons.

"The position I prefer is catcher and I'm trying to get back to that," Crummy said.

Crummy missed summer and fall baseball in 2007 and 2008 because of his injured elbow. He made Butler's varsity team as a freshman catcher, but he injured the elbow throwing to second base during the preseason.

"When I was 13, I played tournaments every weekend on fields with 90-foot basepaths and 60-foot distance from the mound to the plate," Crummy said. "I was snapping off a lot of long throws during those games.

"At that age, the wear and tear on my arm ... I eventually hurt it."

Crummy's first doctor recommended six months of rehabilitation and rest. When Crummy returned to the Tornado baseball team in the spring of his sophomore year, he still experienced pain when he'd try a hard throw.

An MRI revealed a torn ligament in his elbow. Crummy moved to first base, batted .341 and helped Butler make the WPIAL playoffs for the first time in 10 years.

In May of that year he had the Tommy John surgery, which consists of having a tendon removed from his hamstring to replace the shredded ligament in his right elbow.

His surgery was performed by Dr. James Bradley, orthopedic surgeon for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

"Rehabilitation time for a professional athlete after that surgery is a year," David Crummy, John's father, said. "Those guys work on rehab all the time because it's their livelihood.

"With a high school or collegiate athlete, rehabilitation time is roughly 18 months."

Crummy returned to Butler's varsity team this spring, again playing first base to save his arm, and hit .391, including .471 in section play. His on-base percentage was .547.

"I'm not at all surprised John came back and played like he did," Butler coach Dave Florie said. "He's got a beautiful swing, just a natural. Plus, he's a baseball lover."

That's why his batting gloves are bloodied. He spends hours in the batting cage, fields ground balls and does something baseball-related every day.

"I love swinging a bat," Crummy admitted. "A player is going to get better or he's going to get worse. Nobody stays the same. I just want to keep getting better."

This summer, Crummy is playing for two teams. He is catching for Mars II in the Eagle County League three days a week and is playing first base for the Mid-Atlantic Rookies, a traveling all-star team that plays 40 to 50 games each summer.

He is playing catcher for the first time since eighth grade. Crummy was a catcher-first baseman on the Butler team that won the 10-year-old state championship in 2002.

Crummy hopes to play for a Division I college in a couple of years, or a high-profile Division II program like Slippery Rock or California (Pa.).

"I want to hit .500 as a senior, increase my power and help us get into the WPIAL and state playoffs," he said. "My arm feels a lot better than it did. I'm just starting to play long toss now.

"I played football until ninth grade, but I'm more cut out for baseball. It doesn't matter how big or fast you are. Baseball is a mentally challenging game."

Crummy's father recognizes how badly his son wants to play baseball.

"Dr. Bradley told him he had to get his elbow fixed if he wanted to play baseball in college," David Crummy said. "There was no hesitation.

"John works very hard at his game. He hopes to be playing for a long, long time."