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ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Los Angeles Angels slugger Albert Pujols had surgery on his right foot Friday, possibly sidelining him past opening day.
Angels general manager Billy Eppler said Pujols had the procedure Friday in North Carolina to release his plantar fascia, the ligament connecting the heel to the toes. The three-time NL MVP was bothered by plantar fasciitis repeatedly during the season, but played through the pain in arguably the strongest year of his half-decade with the Angels.
Eppler said the surgery typically prevents players from participating in baseball activities for three months, along with another month before they're ready to resume playing in games. Opening day for Los Angeles is April 3, and the Angels hope Pujols can be ready.
"He's at that point in his career where he's keenly aware of what's happening with his body," Eppler said in a phone interview. "I don't put the timetable on Albert like you would with your younger players. We'll just see in Albert's case, as he progresses, what his timetable is."
Pujols, who turns 37 next month, batted .268 last year with 31 homers and 119 RBIs, the fourth-most in the majors — although his .780 OPS was among the worst of his career. He largely served as a designated hitter instead of playing first base due to problems with his hamstrings and feet.
Pujols heads into 2017 with 591 career homers, ranking him ninth in major league history. He is 18 homers behind Sammy Sosa for eighth place.
After playing in pain until the final week of the Angels' disappointing season, Pujols began shock wave therapy on his foot early in the offseason, believing he wouldn't need surgery.
But Pujols' foot became more painful in recent weeks despite the therapy, and he huddled with the Angels' top brass to decide on surgery after his most recent trip to see Dr. Robert Anderson in North Carolina. Continuing with conservative care would have required 10 more weeks, forcing Pujols to miss the first half of the 2017 season if he still required surgery.
"He just felt that the pain had gotten to a point where he was comfortable" having surgery, Eppler said. "If we did delay it, you're just looking at 2 1/2 more months into the season."
Pujols had a different type of surgery on his right foot last winter, but recovered in time for opening day. He also had plantar fasciitis in his left foot during the 2013 season, eventually forcing him out for the year when his fascia snapped.
Pujols has five years and $140 million remaining on the 10-year, $240 million free-agent contract that pried him out of St. Louis, where he won two World Series and became a nine-time NL All-Star.
The Angels haven't won a playoff game since Pujols' arrival and Mike Trout's concurrent emergence as one of baseball's best players. They went 74-88 last season, the injury-plagued club's worst record since 1999.
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