Wells Scheduled for Surgery

David Wells spent the last two weeks resting and doing exercises to strengthen his aching back, hoping the combination would keep him out of surgery.

But when he couldn’t even finish a physical therapy session Friday, Wells knew he no longer had a choice. The Chicago White Sox announced Saturday that the left-hander will have surgery Wednesday, probably ending his season.

“When I acquired him, I told all of you there was a risk, there was a gamble,” White Sox General Manager Ken Williams said. “At the time, we weighed the risks and the gambles and where we were and felt this was something that would put us over the edge. Not too many people at that point disagreed.

“Unfortunately, sometimes things don’t work out. This is kind of a Murphy’s Law situation.”

Wells was unavailable for comment.

Trainer Herm Schneider said he couldn’t make a prognosis on Wells’ return until after the surgery, which will be done by team physician James Boscardin. But the recuperation time for back surgery is months, not weeks, and since it’s already mid-July, the odds are Wells won’t return this season.

That means his time in a White Sox uniform is probably over too. The White Sox have a $10-million option for next season, but the 38-year-old left-hander has been a disappointment this season, going 5-7 with a 4.47 earned-run average.

The White Sox will pay a $1-million buyout if they don’t exercise the option.

Mike Easler, replaced as the St. Louis Cardinals’ batting coach, turned down a job as the organization’s roving minor league instructor.

Easler also stepped back from inflammatory comments made Thursday that he was being made the “fall guy” for the team’s problems. In an impromptu news conference before Saturday’s game against the Detroit Tigers at St. Louis, he said he asked for his release because of physical problems.

“The Cardinals organization has been good to me,” he said. “I had 2 1/2 of the greatest years in my life. They’re not using me as a scapegoat or anything like that.”

The Cardinals, National League Central champions last season, are 44-45, fifth in the league with a .266 average and 10th in runs.

The Fred McGriff Watch continues with the Tampa Bay Devil Ray first baseman still debating whether to agree to a deal that would send him to the Cubs.

Andy MacPhail, the Cubs’ president and general manager, said he doesn’t expect to hear anything before Monday.

The Cubs have agreed to a trade that would send two prospects to Tampa Bay in exchange for McGriff. But McGriff has a no-trade clause and must approve the deal.

The Minnesota Twins put all-star shortstop Cristian Guzman on the 15-day disabled list because of an inflamed right shoulder.

“He has a sore shoulder . . . no damage, just sore,” Manager Tom Kelly said before Saturday’s game against the Milwaukee Brewers.

Guzman is hitting .308 with a major league-leading 13 triples.

The Colorado Rockies put closer Jose Jimenez on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to July 8, because of a sore right shoulder.

The right-hander is 4-1 with a 4.14 ERA and 12 saves in 37 games.

Bret Saberhagen of the Boston Red Sox will make a rehabilitation start today for the team’s double-A affiliate in Trenton, N.J.

Saberhagen, 37, has not pitched in the major leagues since he went 10-6 with a 2.95 ERA for the Red Sox in 1999. The two-time Cy Young Award winner had surgery to repair the rotator cuff in his right shoulder last season and experienced shoulder discomfort at the end of spring training.

Jose Rijo gave up two runs over four innings for the Cincinnati Reds’ triple-A club.

The 36-year-old Rijo, who hasn’t pitched in the majors since 1995, hopes to start for the Reds on Thursday against the Atlanta Braves. But Red General Manager Jim Bowden said Friday that Rijo needs at least two more starts in the minors to prove he’s ready to go against major leaguers.