Gibson Is Out for the Season; Surgery Planned

Kirk Gibson’s season is over.

The Dodgers announced Monday night that last year’s National League most valuable player will undergo exploratory surgery Aug. 15 on his left medial hamstring with the hope that he can be ready by spring training.

Gibson’s 1988 season ended with one of baseball’s memorable home runs, his game-winning shot in the World Series opener against the Oakland Athletics.

For Gibson, however, 1989 ended far from the madding crowd in the quiet of the trainer’s room at Dodger Stadium, where the blows he struck were directed at a punching bag that is part of his rehabilitation therapy.

“The reason for making the decision now is that when he started his rehab on the punching bag, his knee was still sore,� said Dr. Frank Jobe, who will perform the surgery. “It doesn’t look like he’s getting any better. Rather than have him continue to hack away, we’d rather operate and explore the tendon.�

Gibson isn’t expecting any miracle cure.

“There are no guarantees they’ll find something,� he said. “And if they find something, there are still no guarantees. If I’m not a baseball player who relies on speed, I wouldn’t go through this. But there comes a point in time where you do it or you drag it out. Why wait? It’s inevitable.�

Jobe doesn’t know what he’ll find, but he has a guess. He thinks that perhaps part of the tendon behind the knee has been torn and folded over.

“If that’s the case,� Jobe said, “and it would certainly fit the picture based on the way his knee has become sore and inflamed, then we can snip it (the piece of tendon) off and clear up the problem. That should give him plenty of time to return by spring training.�

Gibson, 32, hit .290 in his MVP season with 25 home runs and 76 runs batted in.

He ends this season hitting .213 in 71 games with nine home runs and 28 RBIs.

“This is the last alternative I have right now,� Gibson said of the surgery. “It worries me that this could bother me throughout my career. Everyone knows I want to play the game.�