Orange County's Only Sports Medicine Talk Show, Doctor in the Dugout, Airs Live each Saturday on Angels Radio AM830 KLAA

Orange County's Only Sports Medicine Talk Show, Doctor in the Dugout, Airs Live each Saturday on Angels Radio AM830 KLAA

Pop quiz: How many sports injuries occur each year in the United States?

Answer: More than 10 million!

Whether you’re a hard-core or casual athlete, sports injuries are the bane of the physically active. Is it a sprain, or did I pull something? Why is my knee swelling after my run? What are the symptoms of a concussion?

These can be common questions among the many adults, seniors, teens and parents of children in hyperactive Orange County. To help educate the community about common sports injuries and, more importantly, how to prevent them, Angels Radio Station AM830 KLAA hosts Orange County’s only live sports medicine show, Doctor in the Dugout. The hour-long sports medicine and injury-related talk show airs Saturdays at noon. Now in its third season, the show is hosted by the witty and jocular Dr. Alan Beyer, an orthopedic surgeon and sports medicine specialist who serves as Executive Medical Director of Hoag Orthopedic Institute in Irvine.

The loquacious doc has seen it all in his more than 30 years in private practice and brings his expertise in sports medicine and orthopedic surgery to the mic every weekend to educate and entertain listeners.

“Every day in our orthopedic hospital, our physicians, nurses and staff treat people in pain,” said Dereesa Reid, chief executive officer of Hoag Orthopedic Institute. “We wanted to develop a community-based educational program that would help prevent injuries and provide insight into common sports and orthopedic conditions. That’s why we sponsor Doctor in the Dugout,” she said. “There’s nothing like it on the air in Orange County.”

In addition, Reid said they were fortunate to have as its host a sports enthusiast and very knowledgeable orthopedic surgeon in Dr. Beyer. “It’s not easy to host an hour-long show and keep the information easy to understand, entertaining and relevant to the audience,” she added. “Dr. Beyer has a developed quite a following and has helped many people in Orange County, from professional athletes to the weekend warrior.”

Dr. Beyer’s loyal audience has gotten used to such celebrity guests as Johnny Bench, Chuck Finley, Lakers’ Trainer Gary Vitti, Doug deCinces, Jim Abbott and Angels team doctors Dr. Robert Grumet and Dr. Michael Shepard, among many others.

Dr. Beyer mixes guest physicians who practice every medical specialty that might be of interest to sports enthusiasts into his in-studio roster lineup, and each brings their unique perspective on a number of topics. He leaves at least two segments for live call-ins and e-mails.

Each week Dr. Beyer covers a variety of current events in the world of sports and sports medicine. “I think it’s important to highlight what is happening right now in sports and sports injuries to the listener,” said Dr. Beyer, who spends three to four hours each week preparing for the show. “If Peyton Manning’s foot is injured, listeners want to know how did it happen and what is the prognosis. Blake Griffin breaks his hand and everyone wants to know what a ‘spiral’ fracture is. We try to keep the information topical but use it as teaching tool to help the everyday athlete,” he said.

In a community like Orange County, sports and athletics are part of the cultural fabric. “You can drive down any street and see adults, teens, even seniors who are participating in some kind of outdoor physical activity,” he emphasized. “Education is the cornerstone to preventing injuries and I hope my show helps keep people active. When I am at community events or sports activities, folks ask me all the time about their sports injuries or odd pains. It comes with the territory of being a sports medicine physician. I understand the culture of competition and try to help with insight, education and humor during the show, just as I do when I’m asked by others at the golf course playing in a foursome.”

A longstanding passion for watching sports and a fascination with athletic feats drove Dr. Beyer to become an orthopedic surgeon with fellowship training in sports medicine, just as it drove him to be a sports medicine broadcaster. The overarching theme for Doctor in the Dugout has been what Dr. Beyer calls, “medical analytics,” which he considers one of the final frontiers yet to be cultivated for athletic health and performance. Dr. Beyer welcomes guests with expertise in sports medicine and other specialties for conversations on how athletic health and performance are optimized.

“Hearing first-hand from professional athletes about how they deal with injuries and pain can help us all,” Dr. Beyer said. “I like digging deeper into the dialogue so we reveal more context and humanity about what it’s like to train and perform at a world-class level. It’s a passion for me personally and I like to share what others have to say about very current sports issues such as concussions, stem-cell therapy or the use of performance-enhancing drugs. People have come up to me and said they have benefitted from what they heard discussed on the show. If we can address medical issues that athletes and the average person can understand in layman’s terms, and with real world examples, we can help make a difference in getting someone back to what they love doing.”

Doctor in the Dugout airs each Saturday at noon on AM830 KLAA. You can hear previous episodes via the podcast, which can be found at DoctorInTheDugout.com.