Matt Williams breaks lower leg By Thomas Harding MLB.com
TUCSON -- This was not the kind of repeat the defending World Series champion Arizona Diamondbacks had in mind.
Once again, they'll have to play without Matt Williams, their third baseman and cleanup hitter, for a large chunk of the season. That was the case last year, when Arizona endured Williams' absence for 47 games with a strained left hamstring.
Williams suffered a broken lower left fibula and a dislocated left ankle while fielding grounders early Monday. Williams underwent surgery Monday night at the Biltmore Medical Mall in Phoenix.
Dr. Michael Lee and Dr. Pete Mitchell performed the surgery during which an eight-hole plate was attached to the damaged fibula and a large screw was used to hold the ligament that connects the fibula to the tibia. The deltoid ligament in the inner aspect of the injured ankle was also repaired.
Dr. Lee termed the operation a success and said there were no complications.
Williams was placed in a limited weight-bearing splint and will remain in the hospital at least overnight. Dr. Lee said he expects Williams to switch to a non-weight bearing cast within the next 10 days and he will likely have to wear that cast for approximately six weeks.
In a release Monday night, the club said it is not certain when Williams would be able to return to the field. Williams had told teammates earlier on Monday that he could be out until the All-Star break.
"Whoever plays out there will do a great job and I'll work hard to get back as soon as possible," said Williams, 36, who suffered a Spring Training injury for the second time in three seasons.
Williams was placed on the disabled list May 18 with a hamstring injury in May and missed 47 games. But Diamondbacks manager Bob Brenly juggled the lineups and batting order and the Diamondbacks went on a 29-18 run.
"I thought one of our strengths last year was not only our versatility but our willingness to be versatile," Brenly said. "Once again, that's going to be tested this year."
In Williams' absence last season, Jay Bell and Craig Counsell shared third base. Also, Brenly used a cleanup-by-committee strategy, with eight different players in that spot during the regular season, as well as five in seven World Series games.
Defensively, about the best that can be said is the injury prevents any problems that could have arisen from Bell's announcement that he views himself a starting second baseman. Bell lost that job to Counsell, then to Junior Spivey last year and became a utility player.
Brenly said he could use Bell, Counsell, Greg Colbrunn,Spivey or Danny Klassen at third. Brenly raised the possibility of using Bell and Counsell interchangeably between second and third, depending on matchups and defensive needs. Non-roster invitee Chris Donnels, Los Angeles' Opening Day third baseman last season, also becomes a factor at the position.
Offensively, Brenly is hoping for shades of last season. Never mind that the oldest team ever to win a World Series is a year older. And never mind San Francisco's signing of Reggie Sanders, whose 16 games in the cleanup spot were third-most on the Diamondbacks to Williams' 61 and Mark Grace's 43.
"I just continue to look back to last season and see how effective we were, even with the uncertainty in the batting order on a day-to-day basis," Brenly said.
During Spring Training 2000, Williams' own foul ball fractured his right foot, and he did not make his season debut until May 23. He also suffered a strained right quadriceps and went back to the disabled list in late June, and was limited to 96 games for the season.
"If there's going to be any injuries you'd rather have them now, early, so that when you need them at the end of the year guys will be at full strength," said outfielder Luis Gonzalez, whose dream season of 57 homers had much to do with Arizona being able to absorb Williams' offense.
Bell is coming off his worst season in four with Arizona -- .248, 13 HR, 46 RBI. But he posted a .295 average in June as Williams missed the bulk of his games.
"Far be it for us to wallow in self-pity," Bell said. "We've got the opportunity to do good things. We're a very talented team."
Counsell, 31, received a career-high 458 at-bats last season and batted .275 with four home runs and 38 RBIs. He helped a ninth-inning rally that eventually led to Arizona's Series-ending, 3-2 Game 7 victory when he was hit by a pitch from Yankees relief ace Mariano Rivera.
"I get ready to play everywhere, so it doesn't really change much for me," Counsell said.
Williams finished with a .275 batting average and keyed the stretch run, with nine of his 16 home runs and 34 of his 65 RBIs coming after Aug. 1.
"Just his presence in the lineup, his reputation, his potential forced teams to reckon with him," Brenly said. "They always had to have an eye on when he was going to come up, and certainly it changed the pitches that the guys ahead of him in the lineup got. That's what you look for from an impact player."
In an effort to make a lasting impact this season, Williams lost 12 pounds. He was taking extra fielding practice when the injury occurred.
"I was really looking forward to Opening Day," he said. "I'll be working hard to get back."
Once again, the Diamondbacks will try to make coming back worth the while.
Thomas Harding is a reporter for MLB.com. Steve Gilbert, who covers the Diamondbacks for MLB.com, contributed to this report. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
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