BOSTON (AP)—John Lackey will undergo reconstructive elbow surgery and miss the 2012 season, the latest setback in his rough year with the Boston Red Sox.
General manager Ben Cherington made the announcement Tuesday during a news conference at which he was introduced as the successor to Theo Epstein, who left to become president of baseball operations with the Chicago Cubs.
Lackey, a right-hander, was 12-12 with a 6.41 ERA in the second year of a five-year, $82.5 million contract. The Boston Globe reported after the season that he and fellow starters Josh Beckett and Jon Lester drank beer and ate fried chicken in the clubhouse during games in which they were not pitching.
Cherington said the Tommy John surgery would be performed, probably by noted orthopedist Dr. Lewis Yocum, but he did not know when. Lackey had elbow soreness during the season and had an MRI in May or June, Cherington said. He had another one after the season and was examined recently by Yocum in Los Angeles.
gJohn Lackey pitched through circumstances this year that I donft think any of us in this room can fully understand,h Cherington said, gand he got beat up for it a little bit along the way. This guy was dealing with some stuff both on the field and off the field that were really difficult.
gI thought he showed tremendous toughness pitching through that.h
Late in the season, Lackey filed for divorce. His wife has breast cancer.
In May, after a bad outing, Lackey said, gEverything in my life sucks right now, to be honest with you.h
Fans and the media were critical of his pitching. But Cherington hopes Lackey can be a much improved pitcher in 2013.
gI talked to him the other day and hefs really excited about the future, certainly anxious about the surgery and getting that done and the rehab,h Cherington said, gbut (he) knows that hefs a much better pitcher than what he showed in 2011 and I believe hefs going to be a much better pitcher than what he showed in 2011 and we look forward to having him as part of the staff, likely in 2013.h
The usual rehabilitation period from Tommy John surgery is at least 12 months.
Lackey will be the third Red Sox pitcher to undergo the operation this year. Right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka had it on June 10, one day after lefty reliever Rich Hill had the operation.
Matsuzaka could be ready by the middle of next season, the last of his $52 million contract. The Red Sox also paid $51.1 million to his team in Japan, the Seibu Lions, for the right to sign him.
Cherington said Matsuzaka is in Fort Myers, Fla., the Red Sox spring training home.
gHefs throwing,h Cherington said. gHefs in really good shape, looking forward to next year. Hefll have a chance to pitch for us again next year, but not on opening day, but certainly at some point.h
Why is the operation so prevalent among Red Sox pitchers?
gThere are things we can do to help at least push that off for as long as possible. We did that with John,h Cherington said, gbut itfs a hard thing to prevent because of the nature of the elbow joint and what happens to it over a long period of time when youfre putting that kind of strain on it.h
By the end of the 5th inning the Cardinals had commited 3 errors, given up 7 hits, walked 4 and only trailed by one run. I said to myself, "Texas should be up by about 7-3 now. If they end up losing this thing they're going to kick themselves in the ass." :beatyou:
Robert Whiting is an American sportswriter based in Japan. I found this series he did about Hideo Nomo. It was written over a year ago, but it's still interesting:
I just lost one of my biggest reasons to hate the Cardinals:
Tony LaRussa goes out on top
Mon Oct 31 10:59am EDT
Tony La Russa goes out on top, announces retirement from Cards
By 'Duk
When it comes to a long view of the sport, the name Tony La Russa will forever be found atop a list of the best managers in baseball history.
For that reason, it makes poetic sense that the St. Louis Cardinals skipper announced his retirement on Monday morning after 16 seasons with the team and just days after reaching the pinnacle of his profession for a third time. It's rare that any athlete, manager or coach can choose to retire as a champion, but La Russa is doing exactly that. He certainly earned the right to make the decision, having won 2,728 games — the third-highest total in history behind Connie Mack and John McGraw— over 33 seasons with the Cardinals, Oakland Athletics and Chicago White Sox. He won six pennants and three World Series titles and will soon find himself in the Hall of Fame.
While La Russa leaving the game might come as a surprise because we saw so few signs leading up to it, it can't come as a complete shock. La Russa always preferred to manage on one-year contracts so he could evaluate his position after each season. It's also worth noting that three of the 67-year-old's closest contemporaries — Bobby Cox, Joe Torre and Lou Piniella — hung 'em up last season. Though it often seemed like the only way TLR would leave the dugout was in a pine box, he's going ahead and making the call himself.
"Other than some of the personal attachments, I feel good," La Russa said. "I feel good that this is the right decision."
La Russa said there wasn't a single factor that led to his decision, but he began having doubts about returning for 2012 midway through the season. In late August he told general manager John Mozeliak and other team officials.
La Russa says he would have retired win or lose this season, but is this really it for him? Will a retirement filled with TV gigs and wearing red blazers at Busch Stadium homecomings really placate the ever-calculating manager?
Or will the sweet call of the swish of a fungo bat and the daily challenge of constructing a lineup lure him back in a year or two? Only La Russa knows for sure and with more than three decades of experience with playing it close to the vest, there's no way he's going to tip his hand.
But like I said before, La Russa clearly earned the right to make this decision on his own. Whether you loved him or loved to hate him, we were all lucky to watch him work.
LOS ANGELES (AP)—Embattled Los Angeles Dodgers owner Frank McCourt and Major League Baseball reached an agreement late Tuesday to sell one of the sportfs most storied franchises, ending a seven-year run that included four trips to the postseason before recently becoming mired in legal troubles capped by a filing for bankruptcy protection.
A joint statement said there will be a gcourt-supervised processh to sell the team and its media rights to maximize value for the Dodgers and McCourt. The Blackstone Group LP will manage the sale, which could include Dodger Stadium and the surrounding parking lots.
The announcement came as the Dodgers and MLB were headed toward a showdown in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware at the end of the month as mediation between both sides was ongoing.
McCourt and baseball Commissioner Bud Selig have traded barbs since MLB took control of day-to-day operation of the team in April over concerns about the teamfs finances and the way it was being run. McCourt apparently realized a sale of the team he vowed never to give up was in his best interest and that of the fans.
gThere comes a point in time when you say, `Itfs time,hf said a person familiar with the situation who requested anonymity because details of the negotiations had not been made public. gHe came to that realization at the end of today.h
McCourt filed for bankruptcy protection in June after the league rejected a 17-year TV contract with Fox, reported to be worth up to $3 billion, that he needed to keep the team afloat. Selig noted that almost half of an immediate $385 million payment would have been diverted from the Dodgers to McCourt.
The franchisefs demise grew out of Frank McCourtfs protracted divorce with Jamie McCourt and the couplefs dispute over the ownership of the team. The divorce, which played out in public in court, highlighted decadent spending on mansions and beach homes and using the team as if it were their personal credit card. They took out more than $100 million in loans from Dodgers-related businesses for their own use, according to divorce documents.
In bankruptcy filings, attorneys for MLB said McCourt glootedh more than $180 million in revenues from the club for personal use and other business unrelated to the team.
gThe Dodgers are in bankruptcy because Mr. McCourt has taken almost $190 million out of the club and has completely alienated the Dodgersf fan base,h the baseball attorneys wrote.
As the former couple continued to fight over ownership of the team, the Dodgersf home opener against the rival San Francisco Giants kicked off a year of even worse publicity. A Giants fan, Bryan Stow, was nearly beaten to death in the parking lot. Stowfs family has sued the Dodgers, and his attorney said medical bills could reach $50 million.
In the outpouring of public sympathy, attention focused on cutbacks in security at Dodger stadium and fans turned their animosity toward Frank McCourt. Scores of police were dispatched to patrol the stadium after the attack.
Dodgers attorneys claimed Selig deliberately starved the club of cash and destroyed its reputation in a bid to seize control of the team and force its sale.
gAs the commissioner knows and as our legal documents have clearly shown, he approved and praised the structure of the team about which he belatedly complains,h the team said in a statement.
The team was asking Judge Kevin Gross in Delaware to approve an auction of the teamfs television rights as the best path to exit bankruptcy. But the league wanted to file a reorganization that called for the team to be sold.
Last month, Jamie McCourt cut a deal with her ex-husband to settle their dispute over ownership of the team they bought in 2004 for about $430 million.
The terms of the settlement between the McCourts werenft disclosed publicly, but a person familiar with it who requested anonymity because itfs not meant to be public told The Associated Press that Jamie McCourt would receive about $130 million. She also would support the media rights deal worth up to $3 billion.
That removed her from the number of opponents Frank McCourt was facing in bankruptcy court because Jamie McCourt had initially lined up behind MLB and Fox in asking the bankruptcy court to reject his bid to auction Dodgers television rights.
All the bad publicity appeared to drive fans away. There was a 21 percent drop in home attendance from last season and it was the first time in a non-strike year since 1992 that the Dodgers drew fewer than 3 million people.
A new owner would be the third since Peter OfMalley sold the team to News Corp. in 1998. The Dodgers had remained in the OfMalley family since Walter OfMalley moved the team from Brooklyn to Los Angeles