Cincinnati Reds center fielder Ken Griffey Jr. decided Thursday to give up his attempt to overcome a foot sprain and play again this season.
Instead, he will have a minor knee operation that has been anticipated for weeks, giving him a head start on rehabilitation.
“I think overall in the situation we’re in, it’s probably the smartest thing to do,” Griffey said a day after the Reds officially were eliminated from playoff contention. “If it were the playoffs and we had a chance, then we’d be doing something different. But we’re not, and it’s time that I can get my hamstring closed up for good and my knee fixed.”
He will have surgery Monday to clean out a knee that has bothered him occasionally the past three years. Doctors also will treat the troublesome incision from his hamstring surgery a year ago.
Griffey, 35, batted .301 with 35 homers and 92 RBIs in 128 games, his highest total since he joined his hometown team in a 2000 trade with the Seattle Mariners. He also climbed up the career homer list, joining Mickey Mantle in 12th place with 536.
Orioles: Interim manager Sam Perlozzo said if Rafael Palmeiro had disclosed the name of a teammate who supplied him with the substance that led to his suspension for steroid use, it probably would be best that the first baseman not return to the team this year.
The Sun in Baltimore, citing unidentified sources, reported Palmeiro had identified a teammate by name when he testified before baseball’s arbitration panel in an attempt to overturn the suspension, which followed a positive test for stanozolol.
“If in fact that was true, then it probably would not be a good idea” for Palmeiro to return, Perlozzo said. “It’s all speculation as far as I know.”
Congressional investigators have been interviewing the Orioles following Palmeiro’s 10-day suspension, which began Aug. 1.
Palmeiro went 2-for-26 with one RBI after his return, and was sent home by Baltimore on Sept. 5 for rehabilitation on his right knee and left ankle.
“I know that he still would like to come back,” Perlozzo said. “He doesn’t want to be a distraction and all that. I pretty much told him that as far as I was concerned, it was an organizational decision.”
Orioles executive vice president Jim Beattie said no decision would be made until today at the earliest.
Red Sox: Reliever Keith Foulke returned to Boston for an examination on his left knee, and a source told The Associated Press he’s expected to have surgery and is likely done for the year.
A source familiar with his injury, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told the AP that Foulke is headed for surgery.
White Sox: Manager Ozzie Guillen said if he leads Chicago to the World Series title, he might quit after just two seasons on the job.
Guillen said he has not considering walking away because of the booing he’s getting or job stress – although he admits to sometimes vomiting after losses.
“A pretty good chance, Guillen said, “because I want to leave with my head up and do something nobody else did before. … It would give me a good chance to accomplish everything in my career.”
Guillen signed a contract extension in May. The White Sox picked up the 2006 option on his contract, added two more years and included an option for the 2009 season.
