Major League Baseball

Morneau awaiting clearance to play

Published Mar. 2, 2011 12:00 a.m. ET

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Minnesota Twins first baseman Justin Morneau made a previously scheduled trip to Pittsburgh Tuesday to see a doctor as he continues his recovery from a concussion suffered last July, MLB.com reported Wednesday.

The 2006 AL MVP is still awaiting clearance to return to game action, nearly eight months after he slid into second base and his head struck the knee of Toronto second baseman John McDonald.

The 29-year-old Morneau said Wednesday that he continues to make progress, but gave no timetable for his return.

"Everything's still going good," Morneau told reporters in the clubhouse in Fort Myers, Fla., before the Twins left to play the Pirates in Bradenton.

"We're going to continue what we're doing, and when you see me in the lineup, that's when I'm cleared for games. There's no timetable, there's nothing. Test results, everything's still improving. It's not all the way there yet, but it's a lot closer than it was."

Morneau has been taking batting practice, hitting against live pitching and taking ground balls at first base. But he said doctors will not let him play in a game until they feel that he is 100 percent recovered from the concussion.

He said that the doctors have stressed to him the dangers of coming back too quickly from a concussion and suffering a second one.

It remains unclear whether Morneau will be in the lineup when the Twins open their season April 1 at Toronto, the same place where Morneau was injured.

"People say, 'Oh, it's baseball, how much danger is there?' Well, who would have thought I'd be out this long from breaking up a double play?"

The four-time All-Star was well on his way to a stellar 2010 season before the concussion, with a .345 batting average, 18 home runs and 56 RBIs in 81 games.

Read more here.

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