B.J. Upton provided a serious power presence in the middle of the Rays' lineup during their postseason run, hitting seven home runs and driving in 15 in the first two rounds of the playoffs. This was following a disappointing 2008, in terms of power, for Upton -- he dipped from 24 to nine home runs in just one season. Upton underwent surgery on his left -- non-throwing -- shoulder after the Rays finished the World Series late last October. While his recovery is said to be going well, he's planning on having to miss the first week of the upcoming 2009 season.
"It's coming along a lot faster that we thought it would but at the same time we can't rush it," he said Wednesday.Honestly, it would behoove the Rays to push him back even further if need be. There's no reason to rush Upton back and risk further injury, especially when they'll get the chance to check out what young speedster Fernando Perez can do in center-field.
"They said cold weather is probably going to be an issue with it, make it ache a little bit. So we're going to be careful with it and hopefully when they get back off the road I can start up."
Perez came on the scene late last season when the Rays expanded their roster in September. He's a big-time base-stealer, who actually displayed some power in the bigs as well. He'll garner high on-base numbers, and score runs -- he scored 18 in only 23 major league games last year. If Perez shines with Upton out, it gives the Rays even more roster flexibility.
Either way, the lingering effects of Upton's shoulder injury don't look like they'll have a huge negative impact on the defending AL champs.
