years he led a league in that category. He tied with Mike Norris for second in the AL in wins, behind Steve Stone's 25. John finished fourth in Cy Young Award voting. The Yankees won the AL East with a 103–59 record, and John started Game 3, with the Yankees facing elimination by the Royals after losing the first two games. With the Yankees leading 2–1 in the seventh, John retired the first two batters but was replaced by Rich Gossage after giving up a double to Willie Wilson; Gossage gave up a home run to George Brett a couple batters later, and the Yankees lost 4–2, though John was not credited with a decision. "I'd like to pitch as long as I can effectively do the job," John told The New York Times during 1981 spring training. "I think I can start another two or three years. I also think I could pitch out of the bullpen for two or three years a la Steve Hamilton and Jim Kaat. I think I could do that effectively - as long as somebody would want to pay me to do it. Everybody needs lefthanded pitching, especially in the bullpen." He made his first Opening Day start for the Yankees on April 9, allowing three runs (two earned) in eight innings as the Yankees beat the Texas Rangers by a score of 10–3. His season was interrupted by the 1981 Major League Baseball strike and also by an incident that occurred on August 13. While the John family was at their vacation home on the Jersey shore, John's two-year-old son Travis toppled out a window and fell three stories onto the hood of a parked car. He was in a coma for about two weeks. John was warming up for a game against the Tigers when he found out the news. He went on national television asking people to pray for his son, and he received permission from the Yankees to stay in New York with his son while he recovered, pitching only home games in the immediate aftermath of the accident while staying at the Grand Hyatt Hotel near the N.Y.U. Medical Center. Hundreds of letters and cards poured in from well-wishers, including people who wrote that they hated the Yankees and George Steinbrenner but were rooting for Travis to pull through. President Ronald Reagan sent Travis a get-well card, as