Friday's player news

For more information, click on Rotoworld widget to the left

• Rockies SP Jeff Francis was placed on the 15-day DL with arm soreness. Won't be able to return until April 16.
• Top prospects C Buster Posey of the Giants and SP Aroldis Chapman of the Reds were optioned to Triple-A
• Marlins 2B Dan Uggla left Friday's game after being hit on hand with pitch. No word on severity, but it did cause him to leave the game. Of course, it was a preseason game.
• The Marlins will decide sometime Saturday whether to place OF Cody Ross on the DL. Source of the info was the Palm Beach Post, if you want to believe that rag.
• Garrett Mock beat Scott Olsen for the No. 5 spot on the Nationals rotation. Of course, we're talking about the Nationals so we're not even sure why we're putting this info in here.
  

Wednesday's news

Here's news you need to know from Wednesday. For more details, click on the widget to the left.

• Arizona SP Brandon Webb (shoulder) was sent for an MRI Wednesday. Results won't be known until Thursday. But it doesn't look good for a guy who was hoping to return by late April. Not likely now.
• Mets OF Carlos Beltran officially was sent to the disabled list. He's hoping to return by early May.
• Mets 1B Daniel Murphy will miss 2-6 weeks with a sprained knee. Mike Jacobs will take over. Not that you were going to draft either one of these guys.
• Rockies RP Huston Street was shut down again in his pursuit to return from shoulder soreness. He's hoping to be back by May, but right now that's just not certain. Franklin Morales likely will serve as closer for now.
• Dodgers C Russell Martin started an A-Game for the Dodgers, a good sign that he'll be in the opening day starting lineup.
• Mets SS Jose Reyes was placed on the disabled list, meaning he'll miss at least the first four games of the season. Reyes tried to do all he could to show he's ready for the opener, but the Mets are taking a more cautious approach. Should be ready to go by Week 2.
• The Brewers have not discounted the possibility of starting OF Jim Edmonds over OF Corey Hart in the season opener. Hart has struggled this spring. Could be sign of a platoon.

Tuesday's player news

More news to report from spring training camps. For more info, click on the rotoworld box to the left.

• Lance Berkman (knee) was placed on the 15-day DL, retroactive to March 26. That means he's eligible to come off on April 10. However, we would not expect him back until sometime in the second week of the season, at the earliest.
• SP Aaron Harang of the Reds got smacked around in his final spring start. Slated as the Reds' opening day starter, he has a 9.88 ERA in 13 2/3 spring innings. The high ERA and low IPs in the spring is not a good mix.
• Brewers SP Jeff Suppan will open the season on the DL. Not that you should have been considering drafting him.
• Marlins OF Cody Ross has been battling several nagging injuries this spring. The Marlins are wondering if he'll be ready for opening day.
• Jamie Moyer was named the Phillies' No. 5 starter. If you want to draft a pitcher older than you, this may be your only chance.
• The Marlins acquired SP Nate Robertson in a trade with the Tigers. The Marlins plan on plugging him into their starting rotation. He will be added to the FBLG draft stats soon.
• David Freese was named the Cardinals starting 3B. He's excited, but you shouldn't be.
• Cardinals C Yadier Molina (oblique) participated in team drills. He won't play in another spring game, but the Cards are hoping he's ready for the opener.
  

Monday's news

• The Brewers named Yovani Gallardo their opening day starter. He'll be followed by Randy Wolf and Doug Davis
• Roy Oswalt received a shot in his sore back and is slated to make his opening-day start for the Astros.
• Jaime Garcia was named the Cardinals' No. 5 pitcher. He's had a good K-rate in spring and the minors. Worth keeping an eye on.
• OF Brandon Moss was designated for assignment by the Pirates. If he's not picked up by an NL team in the next day or two, he will be removed from the FBLG draft stat sheets.
• The Cardinals' named Chris Carpenter as their opening day starter. He'll be followed by Adam Wainwright, Kyle Lohse, Brad Penny and Garcia.
• The Nationals have set on the No. 1-4 starting pitchers. They are, in order, John Lannan, Jason Marquis, Craig Stammen, Livan Hernandez.

Player news

• Ian Desmond has been named the starting SS for the Nationals. Cristian Guzman drops to a utility IF role.
• Jason Heyward will be the starting RF for the Braves. Melky Cabrera and Matt Diaz will split time in LF. But remember, two years ago, the Braves gave a starting OF job to another rookie -- Jordan Shafer -- and he was back in the minors by May 1.
• The Pirates plan on batting 2B Akinori Iwamura at leadoff, followed by OF Andrew McCutchen. SS Ronny Cedeno will hit 9th, behind the pitcher.
• Gaby Sanchez has won the starting 1B job for the Marlins. He's not much of a fantasy option there, given the depth of that position. However it is notworthy that Jorge Cantu will now open the season at 3B, giving added depth to that position. Adjust your position rankings accordingly.
• Angel Pagan appears set to win the starting CF job for the Mets, until Carlos Beltran returns.

Injured player update

Lance Berkman, 1b, Hou: Berkman still has not been cleared to run on his surgically repaired knee, yet he remains hopeful that he can start the season on time. If the Astros decide to send him to the DL, he could be activated on April 10, which would cause him only to miss four games. A decision on this likely will be made by draft day.

Ted Lilly, sp, Chi: Lilly is making progress. Now, the Cubs are looking at a mid-to-late April return.

Jose Reyes, ss, NY: Reyes' 2-8 week period of rest to get his thyroid levels normal ended up being 2 1/2 week. Reyes is now back and trying to get into playing shape. The Mets have not counted him out for opening day, but it remains very possible. He should be ready to go by Week 2, if he does open the season on the DL.

Russell Martin, c, LA: Martin is progressing very well. He's expected to start the season on time.

Brandon Webb, sp, Arz: Webb will open the season on the DL. Arizona is aiming at a late April return.

Chien-Ming Wang, sp, Was: It's looking more like late April for his return.

Huston Street, rp, Col: Street will open the season on the DL. His timetable has him returning by late April

Draft Day considerations

There are several injured players who are potentially worth drafting next Saturday.

So there are a couple of things you should consider before possibly selecting one of them.

1. You can draft players who will open the season on the DL. You can select that player with one of your 16 picks, then immediately send that player to your fantasy DL. Then you could use one of your April moves to replace that player on your roster. Remember you have four monthly moves in April, as per league rules. You could draft two or three DL players if you want. But once the draft is over, any player on the DL cannot be acquired as a free agent.

2. You can draft players who will open the season in the minors. But remember, you have no place to put these players. They have to sit on your bench, and would be eligible to be stolen after spending four weeks on your bench. Again, any player who is not drafted, and who opens the season in the minors, will not be eligible to be acquired as a free agent.

3. After the conclusion of the draft on Saturday and before the start of games on Monday, you may drop players and acquired replacements with being charged an April move. However, you can't use one of these "free" moves to select a player who will open the season on the DL or in the minors. You must use one of your 16 draft picks to do that.

Things to think about.