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For team doctors, a tight spot

By The Boston Globe  
   March 28, 2011

Sports agent John Boggs had heard about disputes between the Boston Red Sox medical staff and players including Jacoby Ellsbury, Curt Schilling, and Jason Bay. Boggs needed to know whose side the Sox doctors were on—the owners who pay them or the players whose careers could hinge on their care. In an age when baseball stars command a king's ransom and team doctors serve both the players and club owners, their triangular relationship has turned the company physician's office into an arena ripe for high-stakes conflicts. Concerns about the competing loyalties of team doctors have spurred an increasing number of major league players to try to protect their livelihoods by seeking second opinions from independent physicians not employed by their clubs, according to sports medicine specialists."It's a business, baby," said Craig D. Morgan, MD, a consultant for the Kansas City Royals who has provided second opinions for many major leaguers.

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