Sammy Sosa’s unproductive season with the Baltimore Orioles is apparently over.
Orioles vice president Jim Beattie said Saturday that it’s “doubtful” Sosa will return to the team from his Miami home, where the outfielder has been rehabilitating a toe injury since Sept. 7.
“Obviously, the further along it gets, the harder it is to bring him back,” Beattie said. “We’ve been calling and talking to him, and we just have to see where he is the next day or so.”
There is no compelling reason for Sosa to play the final week of a horrid season in which he hit .221 with 14 home runs and 45 RBIs.
The Orioles were long ago eliminated from contention, and Sosa hasn’t played since Aug. 25.
Sosa, who was traded in February to the Orioles from the Chicago Cubs, ranks seventh on the career home run list with 574. But he never got it going this season – he was in a 5-for-50 skid when placed on the disabled list – and likely won’t be asked to return.
“I’m sure there was a lot of stuff that contributed to his lack of production for us,” manager Sam Perlozzo said. “He’s certainly in good shape and hits the ball well in batting practice. It just didn’t happen for him.”
Sosa was bounced out of Chicago after a rocky final season with the Cubs in which he left the final game before its conclusion. But he was a model player in Baltimore, at least in terms of his work habits.
“He went about his business, probably too much, hustled all the time for us. He was a pleasure to be around and gave you 150 percent all the time. … He did all the things a good teammate is supposed to do,” Perlozzo said.
“There were times when he looked like Sammy Sosa,” Perlozzo added, “but it just wasn’t enough.”
Braves: Frustrated by stiffness in his right shoulder, pitcher John Smoltz would like to rest before the playoffs if Atlanta clinches the NL East before his scheduled start Wednesday.
Smoltz, 38, has been bothered by the shoulder for a few starts.
He gave up three runs and eight hits in six innings in a no-decision against Florida on Friday night after pushing back his start two days.
“There’s a bunch of what-ifs. Smoltz said, “If we win the next three or four days, it’s all a moot point.”
Athletics: Right-hander Rich Harden could be available to pitch out of the bullpen as soon as today after being sidelined more than a month with a strained muscle below his throwing shoulder.
“He may be available (today), depending how he feels,” pitching coach Curt Young said Saturday after the A’s rallied to beat the Texas Rangers 7-6. “That would be good, very encouraging.”
Nationals: Rick Short, the 32-year-old minor leaguer who flirted with batting .400 at Triple-A New Orleans and finally reached the majors this season, will have surgery today to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder.
He’s expected to be out of action for up to six months, but team doctor Wiemi Douoguih, who’ll perform the operation, said the Nationals hope Short can return during spring training.
Astros: The team will be able to finish the regular season at Minute Maid Park as scheduled, general manager Tim Purpura said.
Houston was largely spared by Hurricane Rita, and Purpura said the ballpark wasn’t damaged at all in the storm.
The Astros are scheduled to return home from a road trip Wednesday night to host the Cubs for a four-game series to end the regular season.
Yankees: New York surpassed the 4 million mark in home attendance, becoming the third major-league franchise to reach the milestone.
