Tyler Baze - put the whiskey down, son

[banter]

While at Del Mar the first week of August 2011, I took special notice of Tyler. I disagree with those who said he was riding poorly.

He was doing the best he could without the best of mounts, which is all one can ask of or expect from a rider trying to rebuild his career after returning from an injury. His horses often ran better than it appeared they would on paper. And he loved on those horses.

Another thing--we know that his injury threatened him with blindness and that surgery was required to repair his eye sockets and such. We also know that his nose was broken and that additional surgery was required to fix his nose. Does anyone know, can anyone confirm, whether or not he also required reconstructive surgery on his face? It's not that I could see scars; his skin and features looked fine. It's just that he didn't look like the Tyler I recognized before the accident. His face seems distinctly changed--not simply his nose but his mouth and the angles of his cheeks and so on.

At any rate, I think he's an amazingly talented jockey who has been through hell the past year, and I wish him every success in whatever he decides to do with his life. If that decision means coming back as a jockey, then godspeed to him. He has my support and my respect.