PHOENIX — Milwaukee Brewers right fielder Corey Hart needs surgery on his right knee that will sideline him for up to a month.
About 15 minutes before the Brewers’ spring training opener, the club scratched Hart from the lineup because of swelling in his right knee. He went for an MRI that revealed the tear. The Brewers said he’ll miss three to four weeks.
Hart hit .285 with 26 homers and 63 RBI last season, when he hit leadoff during Rickie Weeks’ prolonged absence from the lineup. Two years ago, he went deep 31 times and drove in 102 runs.
Weeks was a late scratch Sunday with right shoulder tightness.
ATHLETICS: Cuban defector Yoenis Cespedes worked out with the Oakland for the first time, taking batting practice with Manny Ramirez. Cespedes’ signed a $36 million, four-year contract, the highest for a Cuban defector. The signing is a big splash for a low-budget franchise that surprisingly outbid some big-spending clubs for the slugging outfielder who starred for Cuba in the 2009 World Baseball Classic.
METS: New York first baseman Ike Davis said he feels fine despite being diagnosed with valley fever, a fungal infection that is released from the dirt in desert regions of the Southwest and can cause extreme fatigue. Davis lives in Arizona in the offseason. The Mets said the illness is expected to resolve itself. The Mets also said third baseman David Wright will miss the first two exhibition games because of soreness around his left ribcage.
ROCKIES: Colorado pitcher Alex White has apologized to his teammates after being briefly jailed following an arrest on suspicion of drunken driving. White, 23, was arrested Saturday while in Arizona at spring training. He went 2-4 with an 8.42 ERA in seven starts with the Rockies last season.
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