OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Oakland Athletics outfielder Brent Rooker underwent surgery on his right forearm after being bothered by an elbow issue that limited him to playing primarily designated hitter this season.
Rooker's arthoscopic procedure was performed Tuesday by Dr. Michael Freehill to repair an extensor tendon that was partially torn, according to general manager David Forst.
“Easy cleanup and should be 100% by spring training,” Forst said.
The 29-year-old Rooker had a career-high 39 home runs and 112 RBIs while batting .365 over 145 games — 131 of those as DH. Manager Mark Kotsay hopes once healthy Rooker might be a regular outfield option again.
He was in the training room almost daily to feel well enough to play.
“Rook, he surpassed expectations in 2023 and sort of announced his presence as a legitimate middle-of-the-order bat and then took it a step further this year where he should have been a back-to-back All-Star," Forst said in video call Friday. “He was the guy we wanted up in every situation. He was the guy Mark counted on. He was not 100% healthy all year. I don’t know how many people even really noticed, but he didn’t play the outfield after the second half of the season.”
Forst added: “I’m not a doctor, I just play one on TV. But it strikes me as very impressive that he was able to battle through what he did and put up the offensive season that he had.”
Building a stronger offensive team will be a top priority as the club relocates to Sacramento for what's expected to be the next three years before the hope of playing in a new ballpark in Las Vegas for the 2028 campaign.
After consecutive 100-loss seasons, the A's finished 69-93 in Kotsay's third season and the final year at the Oakland Coliseum.
“Our biggest thing as we talk about lengthening the lineup, if we can do that with utilizing the DH position to add another bat and Rook can go out and play the outfield, that’s going to make us better,” Kotsay said. "We’re always looking to maximize our roster, and with Rook being able to play the outfield, it’s definitely going to help us do that.”
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Oakland Athletics' Brent Rooker advances to third base on a single by JJ Bleday during the first inning of a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Oakland Athletics designated hitter Brent Rooker walks to the dugout after striking out against the Seattle Mariners during the first inning of a baseball game, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Oakland Athletics' Brent Rooker (25) is greeted by Max Schuemann (12) after both scored on Rooker's two-run home run on a pitch from Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Emerson Hancock during the fifth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
Oakland Athletics' Brent Rooker hits a two-run home run on a pitch from Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Emerson Hancock during the fifth inning in a baseball game, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Seattle. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)
MANILA, Philippines (AP) — The fifth major storm in three weeks slammed into the northeastern Philippines on Thursday, prompting more largescale evacuations and a United Nations call for emergency funds to help the government address the plight of hard-hit rural villagers.
Typhoon Usagi had sustained winds of up to 175 kilometers (109 miles) per hour and gusts of up to 240 kph (149 mph) when it slammed into the coastal town of Baggao in Cagayan province at the northern tip of Luzon, the country’s most populous agricultural region. Locally named Ofel, the typhoon was barreling northwestward and was forecast to blow away overnight toward southern Taiwan.
Another storm was brewing in the Pacific and may hit the northern Philippines this weekend, according to forecasters.
The country's weather agency warned of life-threatening tidal surges of more than 3 meters (nearly 10 feet) in coastal areas of Cagayan and seven other nearby provinces and clusters of islands, and urged all ships to remain in port or immediately take shelter.
Typhoon Toraji blew away from the northern Philippines just two days ago after unleashing floods, knocking down power lines and forcing more than 82,500 people to evacuate their homes.
The government has struggled to deal with the impact of the last four major storms, which left at least 160 people dead, displaced millions and devastated farmland and infrastructure, mostly in the northern Luzon region.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s administration has spent more than 1 billion pesos ($17 million) for food and other aid for hundreds of thousands of storm victims, Welfare Assistant Secretary Irene Dumlao said.
Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro, who oversees disaster-response efforts, sought the help of neighboring countries, including Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei, in providing additional aircraft to transport food, water and other aid to villages isolated by the storms. The United States, Manila’s longtime treaty ally, deployed cargo aircraft with food and other assistance.
The U.N. Humanitarian Country Team in the Philippines said it was raising $32.9 million to help the government provide assistance to about 210,000 people in critical need of aid and protection, especially women, children and people with disabilities, in the next three months.
“The Philippines is facing an exceptionally challenging tropical cyclone season, with successive cyclones reaching unprecedented locations and scales,” the U.N. team said in its emergency plan. “Local authorities, who are often impacted themselves, are overwhelmed as they simultaneously respond to the crisis and coordinate rescue efforts for affected families.”
The Philippines is battered by about 20 typhoons and tropical storms each year. It is often hit by earthquakes and has more than a dozen active volcanoes, making it one of the world’s most disaster-prone countries.
In 2013, Typhoon Haiyan, one of the strongest recorded tropical cyclones, left more than 7,300 people dead or missing, flattened entire villages and caused ships to run aground and smash into houses in the central Philippines.
Residents reinforce the roof of their house in Santa Ana, Cagayan Province, northern Philippines as they anticipate Typhoon Usagi to hit their area Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Noel Celis)
A resident reinforces the roof of their house in Santa Ana, Cagayan Province, northern Philippines as they anticipate Typhoon Usagi to hit their area Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Noel Celis)
Residents receive relief goods at a school used as an evacuation center in Santa Ana, Cagayan province, northern Philippines as Typhoon Usagi approaches Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Noel Celis)
Residents arrive at a school used as a temporary evacuation center as they evacuate their homes at Santa Ana, Cagayan province, northern Philippines as Typhoon Usagi approaches Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Noel Celis)
Residents of Santa Ana, Cagayan province, northern Philippines arrive at a school used a temporary evacuation center as Typhoon Usagi approaches Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Noel Celis)
A man carries belongings as they evacuate to safer grounds in Santa Ana, Cagayan province, northern Philippines as Typhoon Usagi approaches Thursday Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Noel Celis)
Residents use jackets to protect them from rain as they evacuate their homes in Santa Ana, Cagayan province, northern Philippines as Typhoon Usagi approaches Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Noel Celis)
A resident reinforces his roof in Santa Ana, Cagayan Province, northern Philippines as they anticipate Typhoon Usagi to hit their area Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Noel Celis)
A resident reinforces his roof in Santa Ana, Cagayan Province, northern Philippines as they anticipate Typhoon Usagi to hit their area Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Noel Celis)
