Abreu's midsection hurting; next, his ears might be burning
SPRING REPORT / WASHINGTON 10, DODGERS 4
The infielder, sidelined much of last season with an abdominal injury, goes to Philadelphia to see a hernia expert. Some of his teammates wonder about his toughness.
VERO BEACH, Fla. -- Rookie infielder Tony Abreu, who came to spring training favored to win a roster spot as the backup to second baseman Jeff Kent, left camp before today's 10-4 loss to the Washington Nationals to fly to Philadelphia, where he was examined by sports hernia specialist Dr. William Meyers.
Abreu missed much of last summer with an abdominal injury that required surgery in October. But problems have apparently lingered, limiting Abreu to three at-bats this spring. That has also led many in the Dodgers organization, most of whom haven't seen Abreu play, to quietly question his toughness.
"Abreu seems to be more hurt than I am. I've never seen this before," said Kent, who has been sidelined for a week himself with a tweaked hamstring. "He's missing a grand opportunity to show his wares."
Abreu was expected to return to Vero Beach late today. Kent, meanwhile, said he already would have been back in the lineup if this were the regular season. But it's not, so he continues to work in the batting cages and on the back field instead of in spring training games.
"There's no rush, no need to prolong the injury by playing on it," said Kent, who has been plagued by quadriceps and hamstring pulls for most of his 16-year career. "It lingers longer when you play on any injury."
In his absence and the unexpected absence of Abreu, the new coaching staff has gotten long looks at Delwyn Young and rookie Chin-lung Hu -- a natural shortstop -- at second base.
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Budget crunch
Proposed budget cuts affecting the Los Angeles Unified School District could deprive the district of the funds it needs to rent facilities such as the Coliseum, Sports Arena and Dodger Stadium for City Section championship games.
But the Dodgers and chief operating officer Dennis Mannion, whose responsibilities include stadium operations, said they are looking for a way around the problem regarding their facility, including the possibility of allowing the district to use the stadium rent-free.
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Injury update
Takashi Saito, nursing a sore right calf, is getting closer to being game ready. He threw 26 pitches to Kent and Mark Sweeney in batting practice, using all of his pitches, and said he felt no pain. A day earlier he moved easily around the mound during fielding practice. ... Nomar Garciaparra worked on his bunting, ran the bases, played catch and hit off a tee for the second consecutive day as he continues to rehab a right wrist that was hit by a pitch last Friday.
kevin.baxter@latimes.com
