CLEARWATER, Fla. — PHILLIES
Knee bothering Utley
Philadelphia Phillies All-Star second baseman Chase Utley has patella tendinitis in his right knee and missed his second consecutive game Sunday.
Utley had a magnetic resonance imaging scan on Saturday.
“It’s been bothering him enough and bothering me enough, frankly, to go ahead and precautionary do that,” General Manager Ruben Amaro Jr. said of the MRI. “Rather than really pushing him early, we’re going to kind of take it easy on him so there are residual effects throughout the year.”
Utley has been taking regular batting practice. His knee becomes painful in explosive baseball movements, such as running and fielding.
“It’s a little tendinitis in the knee,” Utley said. “ I’vehad it in the past. It comes and goes. It’s not going [away] as fast as I wish it would, but I think at this point it’s better to be safe than sorry. I’d rather miss a few games here than in the season.”
The Phillies do not have a definitive timetable for when they expect Utley to play in a spring training game.
“There’s no reason for us to push him now and make it a problem later,” Amaro said. “When he’s comfortable playing in games, we’ll play him in games and go from there.”
Utley, who turned 32 in December, played in 115 games last season, his fewest since becoming an everyday player. Although he said the team “hasn’t even explored” the option of surgery at this point, he is no stranger to going under the knife.
Utley has had three surgeries in the last four years: his right wrist in 2007, on his right hip after the 2008 season and on his right thumb last July. Before last season, Utley had been averaging 152 games per season from 2006 to 2009.
CARDINALS
Berkman sore
JUPITER, Fla. - St. Louis Cardinals right fielder Lance Berkman says his left elbow is sore, but he’ll still play in today’s spring training opener against Florida.
The elbow on Berkman’s throwing arm began hurting during the offseason as he tried to strengthen it in preparation for the move from first base to the outfield.
“It’s just something that I need to be careful with and not let it get to the point where it limits me in any way,” Berkman said.
Berkman has avoided throwing the ball hard in recent days. He played with a protective sleeve over the elbow during Sunday’s coach-pitch scrimmage. He fielded three fly balls during the mock game, but his only throw of consequence was lobbed to cutoff man Skip Schumaker.
Manager Tony La Russa said Berkman would “probably” play in the outfield today. Teams have the option of using a designated hitter in early spring training games.
INDIANS
Choo injured
GOODYEAR, Ariz. - Shin-SooChoo’s elbow is a little sore. Suddenly, the Cleveland Indians have another concern in their outfield.
The club’s star right fielder was kept out of Cleveland’s starting lineup for the spring training opener against Cincinnati on Sunday to rest his left elbow, which flared up in recent days. Choo had Tommy John ligament replacement surgery on the same elbow in 2007, but said the current soreness is unrelated to that procedure.
Choo plans to be the Indians’ designated hitter for a few games and hopes to be back playing in the outfield by the end of the week if his elbow feels better.
He was initially worried about the soreness, but an MRI showed no structural damage.
“The good news is it’s not inside the joint,” Choo said. “It’s outside. Everything is good. It’s not a big issue.”
While Choo’s injury doesn’t appear to be serious, it has to be worrisome for the Indians, who lost 93 games last season and are currently without center fielder Grady Sizemore.He’s following his own program as he recovers from offseason microfracture knee surgery and may not be ready for opening day.
It’s understandable if the Indians want to be overly cautious with Choo, who batted .300 with 22 home runs and 90 RBI last season.
Choo said the Indians’ medical staff believes he may have hyperextended his elbow during the offseason. He began his throwing program in late January and it’s possible he increased his distance too quickly and put unnecessary strain on the joint.
Choo didn’t take much time off after the season ended. He played in the Asian Games in November, helping South Korea win the gold medal.
Choo said he had no problems throwing at 90 feet on Sunday and will test his elbow from 120 feet today. He’ll throw from 150 feet on Wednesday, and hopes to be back in right on Thursday.
Sports, Pages 16 on 02/28/2011