From cleveland.com:
Cleveland Indians' Grady Sizemore won't play in World Baseball Classic because of strained groin
by Paul Hoynes / Plain Dealer Reporter
Friday February 27, 2009, 10:44 AM
Chuck Crow/The Plain Dealer
Grady Sizemore won't play in World Baseball Classic.Updated with audio, 12:50 p.m. EST
GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Grady Sizemore has withdrawn from the World Baseball Classic because of a strained left groin muscle. Sizemore and teammate Mark DeRosa were scheduled to join Team USA Sunday in Clearwater, Fla., for training camp.
"It was a tough decision," said Sizemore. "It was something I was looking forward to doing. In the end, I did what I felt was best for the team, myself and the USA team.
"I was excited to compete and work with this team and play for my country. But I'm not doing them any good to show up with an injury and I'm not doing my team any good if I leave here for three weeks, try to battle through and injury and return here and I'm still hurt.
"That was the deciding factor. It wasn't that I didn't want to play. It was that I didn't want to battle through an injury that could get worse and not be ready for the season.".
Sizemore played in the Indians' first two Cactus League games and looked good. He went 3-for-6 with a double and two RBI. Sizemore, nursing the injury for the last week, tested it by stealing second base in the fourth inning of Thursday's 15-9 loss to Arizona.
A team official said Sizemore felt pain and talked to manager Eric Wedge after the game about withdrawing from the WBC. Sizemore made his decision final this morning when he reported to the Indians player development complex. The Indians informed Bob Watson,the general manager for Team USA.
"I tried to test the groin on both days," said Sizemore. "I felt pain after both games."
Wedge said Sizemore will be shut down for a while.
"We'll have to pull him back," said Wedge. "He won't be playing games for a little while. We'll see how the treatment goes and work off Grady."
Wedge did not think the injury would keep Grady out of the season opener April 6 against Texas.
"We've got plenty of time left in camp to work Grady back into games," he said.
Sizemore and Detroit's Curtis Granderson were expected to share center field for Team USA. The only other outfielders on the WBC roster are Ryan Braun and Brad Hawpe.
After Thursday's game, Sizemore told reporters he was excited about going to the WBC. He did not mention the injury and said his only concern was leaving his teammates for a big part of spring training.
"I wasn't going to reveal anything until I talked to the training staff, Wedgie and Team USA," said Sizemore.
Sizemore, who said he strained the groin while catching fly balls in center field, started his offseason conditioning early to get ready for the WBC. When asked if that may have led to the injury, Sizemore said, "I don't know. I did speed up the process this offseaon, but I don't think that was a factor. . .I can't say it happened because I trained differently."
The Indians probably aren't shedding too many tears that Sizemore isn't going to the WBC. No ballclub wants to lose their best players for a big chunk of spring training.
Wedge said, "I feel bad for Grady because I know how important it was for him to play. I know how conflicted he is right now."
Tribe players expected to join DeRosa in the WBC include reliever Rafael Perez (Dominican Republic), Shin-Soo Choo (South Korea) and minor leaguers Nick Weglarz (Candada), Sung-Wei Tseng and Chen-Chang Lee (Chinese Taipei) and Damaso Espino and Paolo Espino (Panama).
_________________
~*Michele*~ |
hope he gets better fast...
