Isaac HessAbout
Who is Isaac Hess?
Isaac Hess is a former professional pitcher, coach and founder. He pitched seven pro seasons, from 2007 to 2016, on a total hip replacement he had at nineteen, and is the first minor league pitcher to pitch after one. He has coached for 20+ years and founded CageList and MADE Baseball.
The short version
- Full name
- Isaac Alexander Hess
- Born
- 8 August 1985, Phoenix, Arizona
- Pro career
- Seven seasons, 2007 to 2016, as a left-handed pitcher
- The hip
- Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease at age 7; total hip replacement on 25 July 2005, at 19
- Record
- 44-25, 4.55 ERA, 526 strikeouts in 548.1 innings (Baseball-Reference register)
- Championships
- Four: Windy City ThunderBolts 2007 and 2008, Calgary Vipers 2009, Phoenix Prospectors 2013
- Coaching
- 20+ years; pitching coach for the Savannah Bananas' Party Animals in 2024
- Founder of
- CageList and MADE Baseball
- The story →Perthes at seven, a new hip at nineteen, seven pro seasons, in Isaac's own words.
- The timeline →Every season, surgery and championship in order, 1992 to today.
- Press and media →Baseball-Reference records, interviews and video you can check.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Isaac Hess the former pro pitcher?
Isaac Alexander Hess is a left-handed pitcher born in Phoenix, Arizona in 1985 who pitched seven professional seasons between 2007 and 2016 after a total hip replacement at age 19. He won four championships, coached for 20+ years, and founded CageList and MADE Baseball. His Baseball-Reference register shows a 44-25 record, a 4.55 ERA and 526 strikeouts in 548.1 innings.
Was Isaac Hess the first minor league pitcher with a total hip replacement?
Yes. Isaac Hess is the first minor league pitcher to pitch after a total hip replacement. He had the surgery on 25 July 2005 and pitched in the Liga Mexicana de Béisbol in 2010, a league that held Triple-A classification within Minor League Baseball from 1967 until the 2021 reorganization. The closest earlier case is Bo Jackson, who had a total hip replacement in 1992 and returned with the White Sox in 1993 and 1994 as a position player, not a pitcher.
What does Isaac Hess coach?
Isaac Hess coaches pitching and hitting through MADE Baseball, and coaches athletes facing or living with a hip replacement one on one. He has coached for 20+ years and was pitching coach for the Savannah Bananas' Party Animals in 2024.
What is CageList?
CageList is a baseball marketplace founded by Isaac Hess where players find coaches and book batting cages, including backyard cages rented by the hour. Isaac built it himself.
What is MADE Baseball?
MADE Baseball is Isaac Hess's baseball lessons, classes and camps business for players of all ages and skill levels. MADE stands for Motivation, Appreciation, Dedication, EVEryday.
Why did Isaac Hess need a hip replacement?
Isaac Hess was diagnosed with Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease, a childhood hip condition, at age 7. He had a total hip replacement on 25 July 2005, at age 19, and went on to pitch seven professional seasons.
Read more about the hip
- Athletes who came back after a hip replacement
- Hip replacement recovery: the timeline nobody gives athletes
- Twenty-one years on a chromium cobalt hip
- Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease: what happens when that kid grows up
- The man who rebuilt Bo Jackson taught me how to use my hip
More in the writing, or coaching for athletes facing a hip replacement.