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DEVIL RAYS NOTEBOOK

Zobrist Sent To DL With Right Oblique Injury

Published: Aug 20, 2007

ST. PETERSBURG - The prudent approach for Ben Zobrist would be to accept that his season likely is finished, but he has his reasons for wanting to delay that decision as long as possible.

An MRI exam taken Sunday afternoon revealed the Devil Rays shortstop had "slightly torn" the oblique muscle in his right side on a swing the evening before. That's what the doctors told Zobrist, though Manager Joe Maddon described the injury as "a pretty good oblique pull."

Either way, it's an injury that certainly will take more than the minimum 15 days Zobrist will spend on the disabled list to heal properly. Akinori Iwamura missed more than a month earlier this season with the same injury and he was pushing hard to return throughout his rehab. Unlike Iwamura, Zobrist is racing the calendar as only 39 games remain for the Rays this season.

At this stage, he is not assuming his season is over.

"I don't know that for sure; I'm hoping for the best," he said. "I'm hoping that in a couple weeks I'm going to be able to start doing some things on it."

It's easy to understand Zobrist's motivation to return. His two stints with the Rays this year have been a colossal disappointment, particularly at the plate. The 26-year-old is hitting .155 (15-for-97) with one homer and nine RBIs in limited playing time, and he has collected just three walks to go with 21 strikeouts.

Zobrist has always hit in the minors, with a .324 career average entering this season and a .273 mark (with 43 walks and 38 strikeouts) in 60 games for Durham this year.

The contrast between those sets of numbers is an indication of why his desire to come back and finish on a positive note heading into the offseason is so strong.

"I'm in the big leagues and I want to get back on the field and show them I can do it," he said. "Lately it just hasn't gone as well as I would have liked it to go, obviously - that's why I want to get back out there as soon as possible, so I can get that opportunity again."

IN THE MEANTIME: Maddon plans to give Josh Wilson the majority of starts at shortstop from here on out, with Brendan Harris remaining at second base. Joel Guzman will back up Wilson and also figures to see some time at first base, third base and DH as needed. Maddon said he might give Guzman a look at 2B, too.

Maddon said there's a possibility B.J. Upton could be brought back in from center field to play 2B if the game situation dictates, but he would prefer to do so only in an emergency situation.

SUCK IT UP: Rays starter James Shields absorbed a liner from Grady Sizemore squarely on his right calf in the fifth inning but managed to talk Maddon into letting him stay in the game. He retired the next four batters he faced to end his six-inning stint, striking out the last three.

"Joe knows me," said Shields. "You've pretty much got to drag me off on a wheelchair or a stretcher to get me off the mound. No matter what, I'm going to try to talk my way out of it, because you've got the adrenaline, you've got the game situation - that's just the way I am. A little line drive back at me's not going to kill me."

REHAB WATCH: Rocco Baldelli will begin a rehab assignment tonight at Vero Beach, where he is scheduled to get two at-bats as the DH. He'll DH again Tuesday and take Wednesday off with the team before getting his first start in CF Thursday.

RHP Jay Witasick (right elbow strain) will continue to pitch for Durham for the time being. There's a chance he may not be activated from the DL until rosters expand Sept. 1.

BIG DIG: Several representatives of the Rays, from Shields to principal owner Stuart Sternberg, will be on hand in Port Charlotte at 11 a.m. today for a groundbreaking ceremony at the Charlotte Sports Park.

Renovations are set to begin at the facility which once housed the Texas Rangers during spring training and will become the Rays' spring base of operations in 2009.

Marc Lancaster