NewsDeJesus returns after bout with flu
Royals OF lost seven pounds during week-long absence
By Dick Kaegel / MLB.com
10/02/09 7:32 PM EST
MINNEAPOLIS -- Left fielder David DeJesus, still weak and seven pounds lighter, was back with the Royals on Friday after a week-long absence due to a virus."It was a battle -- high fever, and I didn't really eat anything from Thursday night through Sunday night," DeJesus said.
DeJesus, who flew in from Kansas City on Friday, had missed six games because of the illness. He was not in the starting lineup for the series opener against the Twins.
Did the doctors identify the illness?
"They said some virus, just one of those viruses that rip through you," DeJesus said.
And, yes, he did wonder if he had swine flu.
"It could've been. I have no clue," he said. "I don't know the legal terms with everything, but it was definitely a virus. It was serious. I've been sick before, but I've never been sick like that."
Except for a couple of players who had fleeting flu-like symptoms -- outfielder Mark Teahen and catcher Miguel Olivo -- no one else missed playing time because of illness during the period DeJesus was absent.
DeJesus said he felt chills while going to the Sept. 24 game against the Red Sox at Kansas City. He skipped batting practice but started the game and went 0-for-3.
"As the game went on, everything started aching. My ankles and my back started aching and I started feeling dizzy," he said. "I came out of the game in the seventh and went to the doc and had a 100-degree fever."
By the time he got in bed, his temperature was up to 104.
"From there it was just battling," he said.
He had no appetite, had trouble keeping food down and lost seven pounds.
"Now, I don't even feel like the same person. It's kind of weird how weight can just fly off so fast. It's not the best diet," DeJesus quipped.
While in KC, he rode an exercise bicycle on Wednesday and took 30 practice swings at Kauffman Stadium on Thursday. He's not certain how much he might play in the final series at Minnesota, if at all, but he won't rush it.
"It's good to be back, and we'll see how it goes," DeJesus said. "It's been a week, but it seems like way longer than a week."
Dick Kaegel is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
