wo-time All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Steve Garvey said he will undergo replacement surgery on his left hip.
Garvey, a first baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres during his 19-year career, told Bloomberg News that the surgery will take place in two weeks at UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles.
Garvey, 50, said arthritis developed in his hip because of the wear and tear of his playing days and has become a serious problem only this year. He retired in 1987 after playing his final five years in San Diego.
''It's just cartilage rubbing on cartilage,'' Garvey said. ''But the doctors tell me that in six months it'll be as good as new.''
Garvey played in 10 All-Star Games and won the MVP in 1974 and 1978. Garvey also was named NL MVP in 1974 with the Dodgers and was later MVP of the 1984 NL Championship Series when the Padres came from behind to beat the Chicago Cubs in five games.
Garvey, still a consultant to the Dodgers, took part Sunday in a celebrity hitting contest during All-Star weekend festivities at Fenway.
Garvey's three-man team, which included former Red Sox slugger Jim Rice, won the competition.
