Gwynn Surgery Finds Problem

Padre right fielder Tony Gwynn on Monday underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee, in which doctors discovered torn meniscus cartliage.

Dr. Jan Fronek, who performed the surgery, said there was less damage than anticipated. Gwynn is scheduled to begin rehabilitation today, and is expected to be fully recovered by spring training.

It was almost the identical injury of a year ago, Fronek said. Gwynn underewent arthrosopic surgery on the same knee and missed all but four innings of the Padres’ final 25 games this season.

The Padres, who are expected to lay off about 15 front-office employees, made a surprising move Monday when they did not renew the contract of broadcaster Rick Monday. He will not be replaced on the broadcast team.

In other news, it turns out that Padre third baseman Gary Sheffield, 23, is the youngest player to win the National League batting title since the Dodgers’ Tommy Davis in 1962.