Klesko could be facing surgery on his shoulder

By: BRIAN HIRO - Staff Writer | Wednesday, April 5, 2006 11:29 PM PDT ∞

SAN DIEGO ---- Padres first baseman Ryan Klesko could soon have surgery on his left shoulder that would sideline him for as long as four months.

Klesko, who started the season on the disabled list, met with manager Bruce Bochy and the club's training staff before the Padres' game Wednesday night to discuss his options.

They appear to be these:

< Klesko can undergo surgery now and shoot for a return in the season's second half.

< He can play through periodic discomfort while continuing to receive treatment.

"I'm doing some soul-searching, trying to figure out what I'm going to do," Klesko said. "Do I want to play healthy for three months or ride this out, ride a roller coaster?"

Klesko provided some insight into which direction he's leaning by saying he doesn't want to repeat his experience of last year, when he dealt with neck and back pain after the All-Star break en route to batting .211 with four home runs and 18 RBIs in the second half.

"I definitely learned my lesson on that part of it," Klesko said. "You don't want to mess with anything that affects your swing."

Klesko had an MRI exam Tuesday that revealed a degenerative condition in the AC joint of his left (throwing) shoulder. Trainer Todd Hutcheson said it was similar to the arthritis in Klesko's right shoulder that led to surgery in September 2003.

Asked if Klesko will require surgery, Hutcheson said: "It depends on how his shoulder feels in the next couple days. If it starts to feel better, we can get him ready to play. We're not ready to throw in the towel yet."

Klesko said the surgery would be an arthroscopic procedure that would put him out for two to four months, depending on the severity of the damage.

"The MRI showed enough for us to have concern," Bochy said. "He could be facing surgery."

Klesko has gotten two cortisone shots in the past three months to calm inflammation, with the most recent coming on March 25. He said he felt "great" on Monday, when he was driving home runs during batting practice before the Padres' Opening Day win San Francisco.

"On the good days, I feel nothing," he said. "But lifting weights, push-ups, pull-ups kind of irritate it ---- just smaller things."

Depending on how his shoulder progresses in the next couple days, Klesko could go to the Padres' spring-training facility in Peoria, Ariz., to continue rehabilitation and collect at-bats in minor-league games. He's eligible for activation from the DL on Monday.

If Klesko misses an extended time, Bochy has confidence in Klesko's replacement, 23-year-old Adrian Gonzalez, who has a home run, two doubles and five hits in his first two games.

"One reason we acquired him is because we thought he was ready," Bochy said of Gonzalez, whom the Padres landed in a January trade with Texas.

Cameron update

Hutcheson said Tuesday's MRI on the left oblique of Mike Cameron turned out better than expected, but that the center fielder's date of return remains about three weeks away.

Before Wednesday's game, Cameron ran and simulated swings in the Padres' hydrotherapy pool.

"Every day it feels better," said Cameron, who strained his oblique during batting practice Saturday.