Yankees' A-Rod To Have Hip Surgery, Could Miss First Half Of Season
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- The Yankees say Alex Rodriguez will have surgery on his left hip and will miss the start of the season and possibly the entire first half.
Rodriguez has a torn labrum, bone impingement and a cyst, the team said Monday. The Yankees said he will need to follow a pre-surgery program over the next four-to-six weeks and the team anticipates he will be sidelined four-to-six months. That timetable projects to a return between the start of May and mid-July.
A-Rod had right hip surgery on March 9, 2009, and returned that May 8. The Yankees said this operation will be "similar but not identical."
"He is always going to have hip issues to deal with. That's just part of his winter program," Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said Sunday, according to the New York Post.
A-Rod hit .272 with 18 home runs and 57 RBIs in 2012. He drew the ire of Yankees fans after a postseason that included poor play, benchings and a flirting controversy at Yankee Stadium.
"Doctors believe that there is a very strong possibility that Rodriguez's hip condition may have had a negative effect on his performance during the latter stages of the season and the playoffs," the team said in a statement.
A-Rod's surgery in '09 was performed by Dr. Marc Philippon in Colorado. This time, Dr. Bryan Kelly at the Hospital for Special Surgery will be tasked with repairing A-Rod's hip.
"Very interesting that A-Rod's surgery will not be performed by Dr. Philippon," tweeted the Daily News' Mark Feinsand. "A-Rod swore by the guy in 2009."
The 37-year-old injured his hip before the playoffs and had to visit the emergency room in October due to the pain, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com.
"(A-Rod) on pain medication throughout #Yankees' post-season," Rosenthal tweeted. "Pain so severe ... after one of (ALDS) games, he had to be taken to emergency room and spent night there."
Rodriguez is owed $114 million over the final five years of his contract.
Does this explain A-Rod's nightmarish postseason? Be heard in the comments below...
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