Boggs Out Rest Of The Season

Wade Boggs, the newest member of the 3,000-hit club, will miss the remainder of the season after an MRI on Friday revealed torn cartilage in his right knee.

"It wasn't the news I was hoping for, but at least we found out what the problem was. Now we just have to get it fixed," said the 41-year-old third baseman, scheduled for surgery next Tuesday.

The five-time AL batting champion was injured Aug. 2 sliding into a base at Seattle. Five days later, he became the first player to homer for his 3,000th career hit.

The discomfort in the knee, however, got progressively worse over the next month and Boggs had started just five of 19 games before deciding to have an MRI.

Surgery will be performed by Dr. Koco Eaton, and the expected recovery time is 4-to-6 weeks.

"The procedure is so simple. You zip in, they change the oil and you zip out," Boggs said, adding that he expects to play again next season. "The rehab is doing stuff I normally do during the course of the offseason."

Boggs finished the year with 3,010 hits, 20th on the career list. He batted .301, the 15th season he's hit at least .300, and had two homers and 29 RBIs in 90 games.

The Devil Rays hold an option on his contract for next season, and Boggs said he didn't see any reason why his injury would affect talks.

"I think I proved I could still play at 41. That's all an athlete can ask for," Boggs said.

"I talked to my dad. I got the same line I get all the time: `Son, things happen for a reason.' He said don't worry about it, so I'm not."

More from CBS News