Baseball is, first and foremost, a team game. An individual who thinks they are above the team is wrong. Playing with and managing pain is part of a plan to help the team. Delaying treatment to play in an exhibition is not helping your team, many examples just this season of players skipping All-Star selections to rest nagging injuries. Getting hurt in said exhibition game (or "skills" contest) also does not help your team, though I read somewhere Rodriguez made more in the HR derby than he will in salary. But I guess todays game is all about tape measure HR's and players collecting massive salaries (more than generations will ever spend).
I like Buxton and respect what he has gone through, but I think the decision to delay treatment until after the ASG was the wrong one.