Feelin' groovy ...
The Dodgers are already one step ahead of where they were at any point last season: Rafael Furcal is healthy. The strained left knee he suffered in a Grapefruit League game last spring, the one that hampered him all year, is finally healed.
``It was bad when I played last year like that,'' the switch-hitting Furcal said. ``Hitting right-handed, I felt better. But left-handed, I couldn't stand on my ankle. But I didn't say anything because I wanted to keep playing. After the season, I got a lot of treatment before I started playing (in the Dominican Winter League), and that made me feel so good.''
Furcal had a great showing in the Caribbean World Series, going 10 for 25.
``If this team is healthy, I think we will make (the playoffs),'' Furcal said. ``I played last year, but it wasn't the way I was used to playing. I think if Jason (Schmidt) and I had been 100-percent healthy, we could have made it last year. And now, we have Andruw (Jones) to give us another bat.''
Tony Jackson has covered the Dodgers for the Daily News since 2004 and has covered Major League Baseball on a regular basis since 1995. He previously covered the Colorado Rockies and Cincinnati Reds. He is a native of Springdale, Ark., and a graduate of the University of Arkansas.
Comments
"I couldn't stand on my ankle. But I didn't say anything because I wanted to keep playing."
Man, when will players learn that playing through injuries (not merely pain) harms both the player and their team? You'd think they'd see the sometimes permanent damage to others who've done the same and take every precaution necessary to ensure their longterm health.
Posted by: Freshy
|
February 19, 2008 10:38 AM
Freshy is 100% right on. If Furcal had said something, got some treatment and rested through a 15-day DL stint, say over the AS break where he could miss less games, The Dodgers AS A TEAM would probably have been better off. They would have survived ten games of Abreu or even Betemit starting at SS. (Heck, Joe Torre started Wilson at SS for a resting Jeter.)
In any case, the Dodgers' medical staff can't help the players if the players don't tell 'em where it hurts!
Posted by: El Lay Dave
|
February 19, 2008 12:35 PM