Arthroscopic Surgery

Washington Bullets All-Star forward Bernard King will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his right knee to relieve discomfort from meniscus cartilage that was repaired 17 years ago when King played at the University of Tennessee.King and Dr. Norman Scott, who will perform the surgery, said there is no relationship between the current injury and reconstructive surgery on his right knee in 1985.The arthroscopic surgery will be performed tomorrow morning.The procedure was scheduled after King felt discomfort in his knee Monday while running on a treadmill.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. -- Orioles designated hitter Wilson Betemit underwent successful exploratory arthroscopic surgery on his right knee Wednesday. The procedure isn't expected to extend Betemit's initial recovery time of six to eight weeks from a Grade 2/3 posterior cruciate ligament tear in the knee. “They went in just to look and repair a couple of minor things, so everything in there was good news," Orioles manager Buck Showalter said Thursday. “The anterior cruciate ligament is really good and the PCL looks like it's going to heal.

Due to a knee with all the consistency of yogurt, I was recently forced to undergo arthroscopic surgery.The operation was performed at the Johns Hopkins Outpatient Center by Dr. Carl Johnson, a terrific surgeon who has done nearly 2,000 arthroscopies and could probably do one in his sleep, although he assured me he wouldn't doze off.As best as can be recalled, these are the events that transpired:10:30 a.m.: Like a good soldier, I arrive at pre-op right...

Tiger Woods had arthroscopic surgery on his left knee yesterday to repair cartilage damage, his second operation in five years on the same knee. He is expected to miss at least a month while he recovers. The surgery, announced on his Web site, came two days after Woods finished three shots behind Trevor Immelman in the Masters. He most likely will miss The Players Championship but should return in time to play the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines on June 12. "I made the decision to deal with the pain and schedule the surgery for after the Masters," Woods said.

JUPITER, Fla. - The Orioles reported to spring training with a surplus of second basemen. The challenge is getting through the last two weeks before they run out. A magnetic resonance imaging test on Mark McLemore's right knee yesterday confirmed a cartilage tear. He will need arthroscopic surgery and is expected to miss six to eight weeks. McLemore suffered the injury while rounding first base in Friday's game against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Fort Lauderdale. Team physician Dr. Charles Silberstein examined McLemore, and after a radiologist checked the results of yesterday's MRI, the Orioles' roster underwent another change.

Outfielder Darnell McDonald, his injured right shoulder still not responding to extended rest, will undergo arthroscopic surgery this week and further delay his return to Triple-A Ottawa's lineup. As if the former No. 1 draft pick needed another disappointment. Just when he seemed on the brink of joining the Orioles, his season could be ending much too soon, or at least put on hold for much longer than first anticipated. A magnetic resonance imaging test didn't reveal any structural damage, but the Orioles have arranged for an exploratory procedure after more conservative treatments failed to reduce the inflammation.

BOSTON -- The Boston Red Sox learned yesterday that designated hitter Andre Dawson will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his left knee today. He could be out four weeks.Dawson, 39, hitting .246 with 10 homers and 27 RBIs in 36 games, suffered a "locked" knee while running to first Tuesday night against Cleveland. He had a magnetic resonance imaging test yesterday morning that showed an object -- either a bone chip or a fragment of cartilage -- lodged in the joint of the knee. He was placed on the 15-day disabled list yesterday.

Washington Capitals left wing Randy Burridge, who was expected to be out until January because of surgery on his left knee, is scheduled to have arthroscopic surgery on his right knee tomorrow. The new procedure isn't expected to delay his return.He injured the left knee in Game 2 of the playoff series against the Pittsburgh Penguins. He hurt the right knee Sept. 5. Team doctor Richard Grossman will perform the arthroscopic surgery on his right knee.Meanwhile, the Capitals announced yesterday that their season-opening game against the Maple Leafs in Toronto has been moved from Oct. 7 to Oct. 6.The Maple Leafs requested the switch because of scheduling conflicts.

U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency officials detained Mel Hall of the New York Yankees yesterday because they thought he was a drug lord, the outfielder said.Hall, 31, went home to visit his family in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on his day off Thursday. When he arrived at Boston's Logan International Airport about 3:15 p.m., he was stopped by DEA agents.Hall said when he got of the plane, he "didn't have any luggage and was rushing" to get to his hotel before the game. Hall said the agents searched a carry-on bag and found his New York Yankees' identification.

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Joe Montana's rehabilitation from elbow surgery has been interrupted for more than a week because of arthroscopic surgery on his left knee.Montana said yesterday that he had the surgery Saturday to clean out cartilage from his knee in an effort to be completely healthy by the opening of San Francisco 49ers training camp in July."I should have had it a year and a half ago," Montana said. "I kept postponing it. But it kept acting up and I didn't want another problem going into camp."

JUPITER, Fla. - The Orioles reported to spring training with a surplus of second basemen. The challenge is getting through the last two weeks before they run out. A magnetic resonance imaging test on Mark McLemore's right knee yesterday confirmed a cartilage tear. He will need arthroscopic surgery and is expected to miss six to eight weeks. McLemore suffered the injury while rounding first base in Friday's game against the Los Angeles Dodgers in Fort Lauderdale. Team physician Dr. Charles Silberstein examined McLemore, and after a radiologist checked the results of yesterday's MRI, the Orioles' roster underwent another change.

Center Mike Flynn will undergo arthroscopic knee surgery and miss the next two to four weeks. Casey Rabach replaced Flynn in practice yesterday and will start tonight's intrasquad scrimmage at Bair Stadium. Flynn could have played through the injury but decided to have the surgery since the timetable will allow him to be ready for the season opener at Pittsburgh on Sept. 7. "It's more precautionary," Ravens coach Brian Billick said. "We thought we'd be more aggressive in our approach to it. The key is to have him back for this season."

Outfielder Darnell McDonald, his injured right shoulder still not responding to extended rest, will undergo arthroscopic surgery this week and further delay his return to Triple-A Ottawa's lineup. As if the former No. 1 draft pick needed another disappointment. Just when he seemed on the brink of joining the Orioles, his season could be ending much too soon, or at least put on hold for much longer than first anticipated. A magnetic resonance imaging test didn't reveal any structural damage, but the Orioles have arranged for an exploratory procedure after more conservative treatments failed to reduce the inflammation.

The Orioles yesterday confirmed that first baseman/designated hitter David Segui and catcher Fernando Lunar underwent arthroscopic surgery this week to repair conditions that severely limited them during the final month of the season. The club also announced that manager Mike Hargrove will retain his entire coaching staff, a move that had been anticipated but is unprecedented under the stewardship of majority owner Peter Angelos. Segui, whose season was abbreviated to 82 games by a series of injuries that began in spring training, underwent surgery for the removal of bone chips from his left knee and is expected to wear a support cast for three to four weeks, according to the club.

Baseball Blue Jays: Traded OF Chad Mottola to Marlins for player to be named or cash. Marlins: Agreed to two-year contract with 1B Kevin Millar and one-year contract with P Jesus Sanchez. Reds: Agreed to minor-league contract with P Frankie Rodriguez, who had been with Mariners. Tigers: Agreed to minor-league contract with C Scott Servais, who had been with Rockies. Yankees: Re-signed P Ramiro Mendoza to one-year contract. Basketball NBA: Fined Grizzlies F Shareef Abdur-Rahim $10,000 for publicly criticizing game officials after loss to Lakers on Monday night.

Ravens right defensive end Michael McCrary, who recently played in his first Pro Bowl, had surgery yesterday to repair a right knee injury he suffered in that same game on Feb. 7.McCrary will begin to rehabilitate the knee within the next two weeks and is expected to miss much or all of the preseason. The Ravens plan to limit his activity in training camp, in the interest of having him ready for the regular-season opener on Sept. 12."We're probably going to plan on him missing the majority of the preseason and make sure he heals properly.

ANAHEIM, Calif. -- An MRI exam on California Angels pitcher Mark Langston's right knee yesterday showed a slight cartilage tear, but doctors won't determine until today whether the left-hander will need arthroscopic surgery.Surgery probably would result in at least a three-week stint on the disabled list for Langston, who will be examined by team physician Lewis Yocum. The other treatment option: Rest and hope the knee heals.Manager Marcel Lachemann said there's an "outside chance" Langston, scratched from Sunday's game against Minnesota, will make his next scheduled start Friday against Cleveland.

Dr. S. Ward Casscells, 80, who helped revolutionize sports medicine as a pioneer in arthroscopic surgery, died Thursday of leukemia at the home of a son in Houston. In addition to his research in arthroscopic surgery, which led to his publication in 1971 of the first paper on the topic, he trained many of the first generation of orthopedists to use the minimally invasive surgical technique. He also helped establish its use at Johns Hopkins, Yale, Massachusetts General, and Brigham and Women's hospitals.

Star-crossed reliever Shawn Boskie is scheduled to undergo arthroscopic surgery today on his right elbow. The procedure, which at the very least will remove bone spurs from the area, will be performed by Dr. Lewis Yocum in Los Angeles and ensures that Boskie's season has ended.Boskie went on the disabled list on Aug. 16 because of elbow tendinitis. He pitched five times in relief after being activated Sept. 1 and surrendered 12 earned runs in 4 1/3 innings. After Boskie's last appearance against the Cleveland Indians Sept.

As the Ravens' coaching staff began poring over the film yesterday from Saturday night's 24-13 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles at Veterans Stadium, coach Ted Marchibroda and owner Art Modell began looking toward the future and both were optimistic.Despite being winless in three preseason games, the Ravens are beginning to shape into the team the coaching staff had planned to put on the field before training camp began in mid-July.Injuries had forced the Ravens to put several rookies into the starting lineup, but the team is beginning to heal with the opener just two weeks away and the Buffalo Bills on the schedule Friday night in the last preseason game.