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Freddy Galvis to miss World Baseball Classic with groin injury

    by Bob Brookover, INQUIRER COLUMNIST
    Published 

CLEARWATER, Fla. — Freddy Galvis is out of the World Baseball Classic before it even begins. The Phillies shortstop said Wednesday that he told Venezuelan manager Omar Vizquel that he will be unable to represent his country in the international baseball tournament that is set to begin next month because of a groin injury.

"It was a tough decision," he said.

Galvis, 27, said he suffered the injury while running during the semifinal round of the Caribbean World Series last week against Puerto Rico and he does not want to aggravate the injury by playing in the WBC.

"Everybody wants to play for his country," Galvis said. "But sometimes, the situation you have to understand. It's going to be a long season, six months … and I don't want to break my body before the season starts."

By pulling out of the WBC, Galvis will be able to prepare slowly for the 2017 big-league season at the Phillies' training facility in Clearwater. He is likely to be limited in his activities when the first full-squad workout takes place Friday.

He said improving his on-base percentage is on "the top of my list." Galvis, in his second season as the Phillies' shortstop, played Gold Glove-caliber defense and also slugged a career-high 20 home runs last year. But his .274 on-base percentage was the lowest among qualifying hitters in the big leagues.

"You have to really want to (improve)," Galvis said. "I really want to. I think I need to work on that, and I think it's going to help the team."

When Galvis was asked if he might be able to improve on that part of his game by working in the controlled environment of spring training rather than the highly competitive WBC, it was obvious he wished he was playing with some of his star countrymen.

"I think I can get the same preparation from the WBC, especially if you play with guys like Miguel Cabrera and Jose Altuve," he said. "I think it would have been a good situation if I played over there, but I think if I stay here, too, I think I'm going to have a chance to get more work and do what I have to do."