Angels' doctor removes inflamed tissue

• Recommend0
• Tweet0
• Comments0
• Email
• Print

NEW YORK -- Yankees first baseman Jason Giambi had arthroscopic surgery Tuesday to remove inflamed tissue from his left knee.

Anaheim Angels team physician Dr. Lewis Yocum operated on Giambi in California.

Yankees spokesman Ben Tuliebitz said the surgery was successful, and no additional operation would be needed. Giambi is expected to be ready for the start of spring training in mid-February, Tuliebitz said.

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said during their World Series loss to Florida that Giambi played late in the season with an inflamed tendon and patella tendinitis.

Giambi hit .250 and led the Yankees with 41 homers and 107 RBI, but slumped early in the season because of an eye infection and late in the year because of the knee injury.

He batted .237 with four homers and six RBI during the postseason. He hit .235 (2-for-17) with one homer against the Marlins, his only RBI of the World Series.

Giambi was limited mostly to designated hitter late in the year. After playing first base in Games 3 and 4 against Florida, he was out of the starting lineup for Game 5.

Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press

• Recommend0
• Tweet0
• Comments0
• Email
• Print
• Subscribe