As recently as last fall Koskie was simply trying to get his life back together after a severe case of post-concussion syndrome. Now he's back playing a game he loves, trying to restart a career interrupted by an innocent-looking fall to the ground July 5, 2006, while playing for the Milwaukee Brewers.

He'll suit up for Canada at the tournament and then try to win a job with the Chicago Cubs, with whom he signed a minor-league deal over the weekend, things the 35-year-old used to think would never again be possible.

"I had those moments, but once I started getting a lot better I really wanted to get back to it," Koskie said. "Whatever happens after the WBC, I'm able to put closure, going down to the Cubs, I'll be able to put closure on that part of my life, or move forward (with Baseball).

"That's what my biggest goal was, get down here, be able to have it more in my control hopefully, instead of going out like I did a couple of years ago and dealing with that the last 2 1-2 years."

Control is something Koskie's had very little of in his life since that fateful fall.

Doctors initially told him he'd be out a week, that the symptoms he was feeling would soon fade away. They didn't.

He'd walk around and feel as if he was seeing everything in delay, like his brain was processing life in slow motion replay as it played out in full speed in front of him.

X-rays were taken, visits to specialists were arranged, but he never improved. He'd visit doctors with dog-eared textbooks on their desks who'd suggest he had anxiety or social issues. He'd get frustrated that no one believed him.

"I played for nine years at the big-league level, if I had a social anxiety disorder I think I'd have trouble playing in front of 40,000 people," Koskie said. "If I wrote a book I'd call it, If I Only Had A Cast. People think you're fine."

An odyssey that took him through the offices of the finest concussion specialists on the continent followed, one that led him to Dr. Robert Cantu in Boston. A couple of referrals later he met up last fall with John Groves, a physical therapist based in the Minneapolis area who noticed Koskie was having issues in the back of his neck.

He prescribed a series of exercises to loosen the area and the improvements began soon after. Feeling good by Christmas, Koskie began light exercise in the new year, moved on to weights, then to ping pong with former Twins teammate Carlos Silva, then to throwing and hitting at the University of Minnesota.

By February he was asking the Twins to let him train at their spring facility in Fort Myers, Fla., and calling Baseball Canada's Greg Hamilton, asking for a spot on the national team.

"I'd say I'm about 99.99 per cent sure it's behind me," Koskie said. "There's that whole game aspect of it, where the game speeds up a little bit, but I've been going full bore at it for three weeks and everything has been going great."

Notes: Manager Ernie Whitt said Koskie will DH today when Canada plays the Toronto Blue Jays in an exhibition game. . . . Scott Richmond will start for Canada, with Chris Begg, Jesse Crain, Steve Green, Phillippe Aumont and Dave Davidson scheduled to follow. . . . Whitt said his starting lineup right now would have Jason Bay in centre field, Matt Stairs in right, Nick Weglarz in left, Russ Martin behind the plate, Justin Morneau at first, Pete Orr at second, Chris Barnwell at short, Mark Teahen at third and Joey Votto at DH. Weglarz is a question mark after rolling an ankle, although he's expected to be fine. . . . Teahen may also be moved to second if Koskie shows he's healthy enough to play third. . . . Whitt revealed the top six hitters of a batting order he was toying with: Barnwell; Martin; Votto; Morneau; Bay; Stairs.