Baseball: Batting first. Playing center.

Grady Sizemore has finally reached the end of his long road back.

The Cleveland Indians activated the three-time All-Star from the disabled list on Sunday, ending Sizemore’s 11-month comeback from microfracture surgery on his left knee. He hadn’t played since May, when he hurt the knee diving back into first base.

“It’s been a long time,” Sizemore said, sitting in the dugout before the series finale against Baltimore. “It’s finally here.”

Sizemore homered in his second at-bat, driving a 2-0 pitch into the lower seats in right to give Cleveland a 2-0 lead. It was his first homer since Aug. 27, 2009.

Sizemore endured grueling months of rehab and therapy, working his knee back into shape. He spent long hours alone on the training fields in Arizona, first jogging and finally running. He overcame the mental strain of being away from the game he loves, his profession.

“I definitely looked forward to this more than anything else,” Sizemore said. “I’ve waited for so long, and now getting a chance to be back is exciting.”

Associated Press

Calmer Goucher focused on win

Running: After Kara Goucher last ran the Boston Marathon, she was so fresh – and frustrated – at the finish that she begged her coach to let her run another 26.2 miles a week later in London.

Goucher insists she has calmed down, helped in part by the perspective she gained after giving birth, in the two years since she finished third in 2009 and missed the olive wreath by nine seconds. But when she lines up in Hopkinton for the 115th Boston Marathon today, her goal remains the same.

“I have run that race again about 1,000 times in my head,” she said this week after arriving in Boston. “I just want to win this thing.”

Associated Press