Surprise, Ariz. ? Besides having to worry about Mike Sweeney’s back problems, which have kept him out of more than 100 games the past two seasons, the Kansas City Royals have another bad back to be concerned about this season.

Left-hander Jimmy Gobble missed his final start last season when a physical revealed a back problem. Gobble was sent to a Los Angeles to see a spinal specialist, where it was discovered he had a pinched sciatic nerve.

“It wasn’t the back (hurting) so much, but it was shooting pain through my left leg,” Gobble said. “It started in the middle of May. It bothered me when I’d throw bullpens mostly between starts. For a while, it was pretty painful.

“I didn’t go in the trainer’s room and tell them about it. I tried to keep it hush-hush.”

Gobble finally confessed the leg pain to Dr. Steve Joyce, the team’s physician, who ordered an MRI of Gobble’s back.