Escobar Finished?

Well, Seattle needed help to win the division and got it when the Angels' dueling aces John Lackey and Kelvim Escobar were said to miss the first month or so. Now, according to the LA Times, Escobar could be done for the year and could even call it a career. His shoulder injury, now diagnosed as a tear, could require surgery. The decision on whether or not to have surgery will not be made for a couple more weeks, but either way Seattle benefits.

Please, no cheering in the comment section. I do not like to see anyone get hurt, especially this seriously, even if it benefits the Mariners. Escobar sounded awfully discouraged in his quotes:

"I'm concerned, I don't know what's going to happen, I don't even know if I'll be able to pitch again."

"I'm still young. I'll be 32 in two weeks, but retirement is getting into my head, because it's hard to rehab. I want to be out there playing, and I've done everything I can do to be healthy."

"This could be the end of my career. They're not sure if I'd be able to come back after surgery."

I believe that Escobar will attempt to rehab, and is just considering retirement after learning that his 2008 season is all but lost. It's gotta be depressing, and I don't blame him for having doubts. The article mentions Mark Mulder and Bartolo Colon as two other pitchers attempting to rehab from the same injury, and we all know how that's going.

This certainly helps the Mariners as their rotation is now clearly better than the rival Angels'. I wish the best of luck to Escobar, but Seattle better capitalize on this opportunity.