PHILADELPHIA, Pennsylvania (AFP) — Reigning World Series champion Philadelphia might lose second baseman Chase Utley for the start of the 2009 Major League Baseball season due to hip surgery he will have next week.
The team announced Thursday that Utley will have the operation on a right hip that has nagged him.
Recovery time will allow for baseball activities after three or four months, the club said, but a total recovery time could be more like four to six months.
In a worst-case scenario, Utley could miss the first two months of next year's title-defending campaign.
Utley, 29, hit .292 with 33 home runs and 104 runs batted in for the Phillies in 159 regular season games this year.
Also, Phillies third baseman Pedro Feliz underwent low back surgery on Thursday and will undergo a rehabilitation program of two to three months.
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