Gary Sheffield News

"Near the end of his news conference after Sunday's victory, Tigers manager Jim Leyland made one statement that could resonate for the rest of the season. "The one thing a manager always has is the lineup card," he said. "That's the only trump card you've got. And I'm going to make that perfectly clear. If guys aren't going to play hard -- if they're going to cash in -- I'm going to play other guys. That's the way it is." Leyland emphasized that he has not seen any lack of effort this season. If anything, he believes some players tried too hard in the face of elevated expectations. He described it as "a little stage fright.""

"The trainers say he's as healthy as he's been in his two years with the Detroit Tigers, but Gary Sheffield and his numbers say otherwise. "I'm healthy enough to play. It's better than at the start of the season. I'm encouraged by that," the 39-year-old said of his surgically repaired shoulder, scoffing at the notion that he's better than he was before his torn labrum was discovered. Sheffield, a career .296 hitter in his 19 previous seasons in the big leagues, is batting .217 with five home runs and 18 RBIs in 55 games this summer."

"Minutes after his ninth-inning hit ended the marathon game that began Wednesday night, Gary Sheffield was asked if he ever doubted whether he would be completely healthy again. No. No. Never," he said. "No doubt. There is no doubt in me." The believers surely grew in number Thursday afternoon after he smashed a game-tying home run in the ninth inning off St. Louis closer Ryan Franklin."

"Designated hitter Gary Sheffield returned from the disabled list Tuesday and said before the game that he felt as healthy as he has all season. Then he hit one of his classic meteor homers in the seventh inning and said afterward, "My shoulder feels great, so I'm encouraged. I'm 100%." And Jeff Larish should feel pretty good, too, considering how Tigers manager Jim Leyland praised him after Larish was sent to Triple-A Toledo to make room for Sheffield."

"The Tigers might activate Gary Sheffield from the disabled list as early as today. President and general manager Dave Dombrowski said Sheffield was scheduled to fly to Detroit for a meeting with team officials today. Sheffield has been on a minor league rehabilitation assignment with Class A Lakeland since the start of last week. A left oblique strain forced Sheffield to the disabled list May 27. He batted .154 (2-for-13) and hit two home runs in five games with Lakeland."

"At one point, it seemed possible that Gary Sheffield would rejoin the Tigers before Tuesday's series opener against St. Louis. Now the date of his return is uncertain after a two-day hiatus in his rehabilitation assignment at Class A Lakeland. He missed Friday's game to attend a graduation; Saturday's game was rained out. Leyland said Sheffield likely would play for Lakeland on today and tomorrow. Beyond that, his schedule wasn't set."

"Gary Sheffield will today begin a rehabilitation stretch with Class-A Lakeland as he recovers from a strained oblique muscle. Sheffield last appeared in a Tigers game May 26, when he was 0-for-2 in a 1-0 loss to the Angels. Sheffield could rejoin the team late this week or, more likely, ahead of Detroit's next home stand, which begins June 24 against St. Louis."

"Tigers slugger Gary Sheffield began this season coming back from off-season shoulder surgery. On Tuesday night, after he was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a strained oblique, he recounted how hard it has for him to get healthy this season. “I feel good, and then I slide into second and break (the tip) of my finger,” he said, referring to the mishap in the season’s third game. “Then you’re still dealing with your shoulder. Then I get to the point where I can take extra batting practice and work on my swing and start swinging better. Then this."

"It’s a painful and unwanted way for the Tigers to add a left-handed hitter. Minor-league slugger Jeff Larish was called up Tuesday when designated hitter Gary Sheffield went on the disabled list. For everything else that has happened to the Tigers, it remains true that the only time they have been a consistent offensive force in the last two seasons is the 2 ½-month stretch last season when Sheffield was healthy and producing."

"Gary Sheffield is back on the disabled list, but not because of his shoulder. This time it's because of his left side, or in medical terms, his left oblique. Sheffield was diagnosed on Tuesday to have an oblique strain severe enough to warrant time on the 15-day DL. To replace him on the roster, the Tigers have purchased the contract of first baseman Jeff Larish from Toledo."

"Leyland and Dombrowski will meet today -- an off day before the Tigers open a three-game series against Seattle at Comerica Park. The Mariners (18-27) have the second-worst record in the American League; the Tigers have the worst. Leyland did not elaborate on the issues he planned to discuss, but some are obvious. One is Dontrelle Willis. He has had spotty control since spring training and walked four in his most recent rehab start. Galarraga, who replaced him, has become the team's most consistent starter. Another issue is Gary Sheffield. Team officials have determined that persistent pain in his right shoulder will prevent him from playing leftfield on a regular basis. ..."

"Last week, the Tigers announced they were moving Gary Sheffield from designated hitter to leftfield. I asked Sheffield what would happen if he reinjured his shoulder out there. He said if that happened, it would be time to go home. As it turns out, his shoulder is already hurting. This was obvious before, but the Tigers finally admitted it when they shelved the Sheff in Left experiment. But Sheffield isn't going home. Very few players would leave $25-million-plus on the table, and Sheffield definitely isn't one of them. I don't fault him for that; he has a legal right to the money. But the fact is that Sheffield's salary is looking more like dead weight."

"Nine days after it began, the full-time move of Gary Sheffield to leftfield has ended, at least for now. "His shoulder isn't right, and I don't think it's made any better by playing the outfield, because he can barely lob the ball in," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said Wednesday. "The longer I think about it, it doesn't make sense that the shoulder can get better when you're playing, swinging and having to throw than serving as DH.""

"Gary Sheffield's move to left field has ended, at least temporarily. The problem is his aching right shoulder, which has made it all but impossible to make throws from the outfield. Tigers manager Jim Leyland held Sheffield out of Wednesday's lineup against the Royals at Kauffman Stadium in a game the Tigers lost, 2-0. Leyland said Sheffield will be back at designated hitter for this afternoon's series finale. The plan, tentatively, is to start Sheffield in only one game this weekend when the Tigers play at Arizona."

"Leyland has great respect for Bonds and his abilities. Would Leyland be amenable to having Bonds with the Tigers if Sheffield finds the bat does not return?"

"Dwight Gooden watched nephew Gary Sheffield blast a 2-2 pitch from Phil Hughes deep over the left-field fence in the top of the third inning for what proved to be the decisive hit at the Stadium Tuesday night. The two share more than lineage and a history in pinstripes. They're also nostalgic when it comes to the city's ballparks."

"Next time, Johnny Damon should make Gary Sheffield hitchhike to work. Damon drove Sheffield to the Stadium yesterday, only to watch his pal repay the favor by helping drive Yankee starter and loser Phil Hughes to an early shower."

"There has been enough discouragement to have prompted a couple loose references to retirement. Sheffield was brushing aside those words during this past weekend's series against the Angels."

"In Sunday night's long-awaited Tigers lineup, the first time manager Jim Leyland has been able to write down the batting order he's wanted to use all along, the lowest batting average belonged to Gary Sheffield. The veteran slugger then proceeded to go 0-for-4 and his average dropped to .159. But to those who think Sheffield should be moved out of the third spot, Leyland has this response: "I still think he's one of the most feared and respected hitters."

"Sheffield -- hot or cold -- is always a compelling figure, and Tigers manager Jim Leyland talked about the designated hitter at length before Sunday night's 6-2 loss to the Angels at Comerica Park:"

"They're tough as nails -- most of them unable to play injured, of course, but more than willing to play hurt. Gary Sheffield has been playing with not just one, but two sore shoulders. Placido Polanco's back has been stiff. Their willingness to play through tough times evokes what Sparky Anderson once said: "Pain don't hurt you.""

"When the Tigers' offense was purring last summer, Placido Polanco and Gary Sheffield were two of its most crucial components. Both missed Sunday's game with injuries that are not going away, and the team isn't certain when they will return. At the very least, they will miss today's series finale."

"Early last August, about the time Gary Sheffield's shoulder injury coincided with the Tigers' late-summer swoon, he was asked to describe how he felt at the plate."

"In the clubhouse, Sheffield saw an opportunity for the healing to begin. He walked a few feet from his locker to that of Miguel Cabrera and spoke briefly with the club's third baseman."

"To hear Gary Sheffield describe the injured tip of his left ring finger, you would have thought it was falling off. On Thursday, he thought it looked deformed. On Friday, he said it had just sort of been dangling after he hurt it on a slide into second."

"Tigers designated hitter Gary Sheffield suffered a potentially serious injury to his left index finger when he slid into second base in the eighth inning Thursday at Comerica Park. Sheffield said he "tore the tendon a little bit." The club didn't immediately announce whether Sheffield would go on the disabled list. He will be reevaluated today."

"What's worse than the Tigers being 0-3? Being 0-3 and not knowing if new third baseman Miguel Cabrera and designated hitter Gary Sheffield are hurt or healthy, that's worse."

"Designated hitter Gary Sheffield started Opening Day for the 20th straight season. According to Retrosheet.org, it's the longest such streak among active players."

"Q. How do you feel with two weeks to go until Opening Day? Are you pretty much on schedule? Is your shoulder (surgically repaired during the offseason) fine?"

"Designated hitter Gary Sheffield said he hoped to play today against Pittsburgh, after leg cramps kept him out of the lineup the past two days."

"Gary Sheffield returned to camp Saturday after spending the previous three days in Tampa, at hearings regarding a dispute with former agent Scott Boras."

"But for perspective, I sought out one of the wise men in the Tigers' clubhouse, 39-year-old slugger Gary Sheffield, who played in the 2004-06 Yankees lineups that included Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Jason Giambi and the various ghosts of Lou Gehrig. Sheffield has been around. He knows how baseball humbles the hyped. Um, Gary, too early to say if these Tigers measure up, right?"

"Gary Sheffield missed Tuesday's game, although the Tigers designated hitter's absence had nothing to do with any injury or problems following offseason surgery."

"But they have to keep that confidence from morphing into complacency. Gary Sheffield will make sure of that. He can't forget that he was part of the greatest choke in baseball playoff history."

"Tigers Designated hitter Gary Sheffield will miss an undetermined number of exhibition games this week to attend hearings in his dispute with former agent Scott Boras."

"On a pitch that got away from Todd Jones, one that sailed up and in instead of low and away, Gary Sheffield had to hit the dirt -- fast and hard."

"Still embroiled in a lawsuit with his former agent, Scott Boras, Tigers designated hitter Gary Sheffield verbally launched into Boras on Thursday before the team's spring-training workout. Prompting the outburst is the fact that Sheffield will miss one of the Tigers' early exhibition games because of matters involved in the suit that dates to 2004."

"Gary Sheffield stirred things up Thursday by calling Scott Boras, his former agent, a "bad person" in part for going after money the All-Star says he doesn't deserve."

"Sheffield has played for all kinds of managers dur ing his 20-year career and is known to say exactly what he believes. He believes Joe Girardi is a perfect fit for the Yankees New York Yankees now that the Joe Torre era has come to an end."

"Gary Sheffield can expect to play the outfield in most, if not all, of the Tigers' nine games this season in National League cities. In those interleague games, Sheffield's prime position -- designated hitter -- won't be in use."

"Gary Sheffield's 2007 season went downhill after he was hurt playing the outfield, and it later turned out he had a labrum tear in his right shoulder that required offseason surgery. But Sheffield will be back as a part-time outfielder for the Detroit Tigers in 2008, manager Jim Leyland said Monday."

"How severe was the tear of Gary Sheffield's torn labrum? How do the Tigers really feel about his chances for a full recovery and regaining his usual violent swing?"

"Gary Sheffield's arm will be in a sling for a month, but by spring training, the inconvenience should be forgotten."

"It wasn't until Gary Sheffield underwent arthroscopic surgery Monday that the Tigers discovered the full extent of damage to his right shoulder."

"Gary Sheffield said he should know by Thursday whether he will undergo surgery on his right shoulder or rehabilitate the injury instead."

"Tigers designated hitter Gary Sheffield has always made decisions about his health based on how it affects his teammates and organization. When it comes time to decide whether to have offseason right shoulder surgery, Sheffield has to think of himself."

"Tigers designated hitter Gary Sheffield returned to Comerica Park on Tuesday afternoon and claimed he's healthy enough to return to the lineup Thursday."

"Tigers designated hitter Gary Sheffield said Tuesday he expects to return to the lineup Thursday, the first day he's eligible to be activated from the 15-day disabled list."

"Gary Sheffield said this was the plan all along, that he would give his shoulder about a week to improve, and if it didn't, the next step would be the disabled list. And that's what the next step was on Monday, when the Tigers placed Sheffield on the 15-day DL retroactive to Aug. 22 because of the persistent pain in his right shoulder."

"In what Tigers manager Jim Leyland called a big blow to his team, the club Monday placed designated hitter Gary Sheffield on the 15-day disabled list with a sore right shoulder."