Cameron applies for exemption so he can use stimulants

BREWERS: Milwaukee outfielder Mike Cameron is to see a neurologist today for a determination on whether he has post-concussion syndrome.

Suspended for the first 25 games of the 2008 season after twice testing positive for a banned stimulant, Cameron also is applying for an exemption that would allow him to use banned stimulants.

If the exemption is granted, Cameron would be permitted to use some amphetamines that are currently banned by the Major League Baseball drug policy.

Brewers assistant general manager Gord Ash said he was aware that Cameron was applying for an exemption but didn’t know that he was going to see a neurologist.

“I knew he was [applying for] the therapeutic use exemption, but I didn’t know he was using his possible post-concussion syndrome as a reason to get it,” Ash said, according to MLB.com.

Cameron broke both cheekbones and his nose in the 2005 collision with Carlos Beltran and underwent surgery. He also suffered a mild concussion.

Cameron told USA Today he suspects he still is bothered by the collision.

“I’m fine physically,” Cameron was quoted as saying. “But mentally, I’m not so sure. It’s just little things. Lapses here and there. I may be fine, but (the test) can’t hurt. I just want to find out for sure, and whether I need anything to help me.”

RED SOX: Boston placed Curt Schilling on the 60-day disabled list Thursday as he continues to rehabilitate his right shoulder. They also released Doug Mirabelli, who had been the personal catcher for knuckleballer Tim Wakefield. The skill Kevin Cash showed in catching Wakefield’s knuckleball last year makes him the likely replacement for the 37-year-old Mirabelli. Cash is 30.

YANKEES: Former New York manager Stump Merrill was back at the ballpark one day after being hit just above the lip by a thrown ball during batting practice before a game against Tampa Bay. Merrill, a special assistant to the general manager, was released from a hospital late Wednesday after undergoing a CT scan, which was negative. He had a root canal Thursday. Merrill said his biggest concern after getting hit was the fact he is on a blood thinner. “I knew immediately when I got hit, what it was,” Merrill said. “I was worried because I am on a blood thinner, that scared me some. Other than that I was fine.”

SUTCLIFFE: Former Cy Young Award winner Rick Sutcliffe has colon cancer and will undergo chemotherapy and surgery. Sutcliffe, a baseball analyst for ESPN, was diagnosed with a treatable form of cancer after taking a routine test during a physical, the network said. He said he hopes to return to the network later this year. “I deeply appreciate the support of the ESPN family and my family and friends around the country,” Sutcliffe said in a statement released by the network. Sutcliffe went 171-139 in parts of 18 seasons, retiring in 1994 after pitching for the Dodgers, Indians, Cubs, Orioles and Cardinals. He won the National League Rookie of the Year award in 1979 for Los Angeles and the Cy Young Award in 1984, for the Cubs. He joined ESPN in 1999 and has been an analyst during game telecasts since 2002.

CARDINALS: St. Louis reached a preliminary agreement with pitcher Kyle Lohse on a $4.25 million, one-year contract. Juan Gonzalez has a minor abdominal strain, slowing his attempt to return to the major leagues. The 38-year-old Gonzalez, a two-time AL MVP who missed the last two years and had only one at-bat in 2005, said he was day to day.

ROYALS: Second baseman Mark Grudzielanek, who has been out with a bad back, returned to Kansas City to have it examined. The 37-year-old Grudzielanek had two surgeries on his left knee last year and has played in only three spring training games. He has not played since Monday because of tightness in his lower back.

PADRES: Starting pitcher Greg Maddux took a line drive off his thigh and had to leave the game against the Cubs. The Padres listed him as “day-to-day.”

CUBS: Center fielder Felix Pie won’t play until Sunday. Pie underwent an outpatient surgical procedure Monday to correct what the Cubs described as “testicular torsion.”

MARLINS: Florida left-hander Scott Olsen had another pain-free bullpen session, giving the team hope he’ll be able to start the season in the rotation. Olsen has not pitched since March 2 because of tendinitis in his throwing shoulder.

RAYS: Brian Anderson’s bid to resume his major league career is over. A MRI performed revealed the Tampa Bay Rays left-hander suffered a career-ending elbow injury during the sixth inning of Wednesday’s spring training game against the Yankees. The 35-year-old pitcher, who missed the past two seasons following Tommy John surgery, tore the ulnar collateral ligament in his left elbow for the third time in his career. He also tore the flexor mass muscle, which is on the inside of the elbow, for the second time.

Associated Press