First baseman Carols Pena will not participate for the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic after having surgery Jan. 8 to repair two small tears in his lower abdominal muscle.
"I'm heartbroken," he said. Pena, who said he will be ready by the start of spring training, said he suffered the injury in early August. A cortisone shot allowed him to keep playing through the end of September.
But the pain returned in the postseason, and Pena took another cortisone shot before the start of the ALDS against the White Sox.
Pena missed most of the first two games during the series but managed to hit .500. He batted .269 with three home runs and six runs batted in as the Rays outlasted the Red Sox in the seven-game ALCS.
The injury might have finally taken its toll in the World Series when Pena managed only two hits in the five games against the Phillies.
Pena thought the offseason rest would take of the problem, but the pain persisted and he opted for the surgery after visiting Dr. William Myers in Philadelphia.
"It was a little bit worse than we thought," Pena said. "The left side was all off the bone, and the right side was halfway there."
Pena resumed hitting Jan. 28 and expects to regain the muscle he lost during the rest and ensuing surgery.
"I'm recovering well," he said. "I don't see any reason why I wouldn't be able to go all out in spring training except that they'll be cautious with me."
