Associated Press
The baseball notebook …
NEW YORK ó Alex Rodriguez has a new problem.
Hours after Rodriguez played Tuesday for the Dominican Republic in a tuneup for the World Baseball Classic, the New York Yankees announced he would get his ailing hip checked by a specialist.
An exam Saturday revealed a cyst in Rodriguez’s right hip.
ODOM’S DEATH
The grieving family of a minor league pitcher who died six months after being traded for 10 baseball bats said John Odom’s overdose came after a night of partying gone wrong.
The medical examiner’s office in Atlanta ruled that the player’s Nov. 5 death at age 26 was an accident caused by drugs and alcohol.
“John Odom did not commit suicide,” a family representative wrote in an e-mail to The Associated Press.
“His death is a result of an election night out partying with his ignorant friends that turned tragically wrong. While he made some very poor decisions that night, John loved life more than anyone we’ve ever known, and he absolutely did not intend to kill himself,” the statement said.
SANTANA UPDATE
PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. ó New York Mets ace Johan Santana wants the ball on opening day.
Santana threw 46 pitches off a mound early Wednesday in his most ambitious and productive bullpen session since the start of spring training, and made it clear he wants to start for New York on April 6 in Cincinnati despite concerns over his tender elbow.
“I appreciate everything they’re doing trying to protect me and trying to keep me healthy,” Santana said. “But I’m a professional and I know exactly what it takes for me to be ready. I’ve been doing this for years now and I know exactly what I have to do and I’m pretty sure I’ll be ready for opening day.”
RAYS
PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. ó Rays manager Joe Maddon didn’t wait to watch Tampa Bay’s best pitchers in spring training. He picked right-hander James Shields on Wednesday as the team’s opening-day starter.
RANGERS
SURPRISE, Ariz. ó Rangers right-hander Brandon McCarthy has been scratched from his scheduled spring training start Friday because of tightness in his right shoulder, another setback for the pitcher plagued by injuries the past two seasons.