PEORIA, Ariz. (AP) – Sean Burroughs’ rookie season didn’t exactly go the way he dreamed it would.
A stomach virus ruined his first opening day with the San Diego Padres, and he slept through the game on a table in the trainer’s room.
Most of the rest of the year was a downer, too, and the high expectations for the already-famous rookie never materialized. Burroughs slumped. He was hurt. He was benched. He went on the disabled list. He was sent back to the minors.
Burroughs did come back up to the bigs in September and played well. He had surgery on his right shoulder in early October, which contributed to some soreness this spring, but otherwise the 22-year-old third baseman is hoping for a second-season surge.
His rookie year “was a little wakeup call,” said Burroughs, the son of 1974 AL MVP Jeff Burroughs.
“It was something new for me. I’ve always played basically whole seasons without anything bothering me, going out there every day healthy and playing every game possible,” he said.
Burroughs was a Little League World Series hero in the early 1990s, a first-round draft pick in 1998 and helped the United States win the baseball gold medal at the Sydney Olympics in 2000.
He was so highly regarded that the Padres moved two All-Stars, Phil Nevin and Ryan Klesko, to new positions last spring to make room for him in the lineup.
Less than two months into the season, the grand experiment was a bust.
Burroughs was benched on May 27 as his average dipped to .221. Four days later he was diagnosed as having a slight tear in his right rotator cuff. He originally hurt the shoulder the previous September while with Triple-A Portland. When he came off the disabled list on July 15, he was sent to Triple-A Portland.
Burroughs was frustrated by the way the season played out, but said he still picked up quite a bit by just watching and talking to teammates.
“It was a good learning experience,” he said. “It was something I think I needed. I learned more last year than I did probably my whole baseball career.”
Although Burroughs played several games at second base after his September callup, the Padres once again moved Nevin to make room for Burroughs at third.
That move proved costly as Nevin is expected to miss the whole season after dislocating his left shoulder diving for a ball in left field on March 7. He had surgery four days later.
Burroughs has been slowed by soreness in his right shoulder, which the team said developed from overthrowing early in spring training. Before the soreness set in, he committed five errors in spring games.
“I don’t have any concerns about him being a productive player,” general manager Kevin Towers said. “He’s going to make his errors. Young players are going to struggle.”
After a quick rise through the minors, Burroughs hit .271 with just one homer and 11 RBIs in 50 games last year.
When he returned in September, he hit .377 in 61 at-bats.
Burroughs expects to be ready by opening day. His biggest concern this year is staying healthy.
“I kind of look at it as being my first true year,” he said. “I hope I can get in 150 or so games. Last year was more like a little cup of coffee, like a September callup. I’m going to erase all the negatives and just think of the positives.”
AP-ES-03-24-03 1751EST
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