Early March injury update

A few injuries/suspensions to be aware of as we move closer to draft day:

• Arizona outfielder Cody Ross has a calf strain and is expected to begin full weight-bearing activities March 18 or 19.  He might not be ready by opening day.

• Arizona pitcher Daniel Hudson is recovering from Tommy John surgery and won't be back until the all-star break.

• Atlanta catcher Brian McCann is recovering from shoulder surgery and will miss at least the first two weeks of the season.

• Atlanta pitcher Brandon Beachy is recovering from Tommy John surgery and hopes to return by late June.

• Chicago pitcher Matt Garza has a lat strain and is likely to miss the first two weeks of the season.

• Chicago pitcher Scott Baker is recovering from Tommy John surgery and might not be ready to start the season.

• Cincinnati outfielder Shin-Soo Choo is still having quad soreness, but he is expected to be ready for opening day.

• Colorado first baseman Todd Helton is having knee soreness. 

• Los Angeles outfielder Carl Crawford had forearm tightness in his recovery from Tommy John surgery and is expected to start the season on the disabled list.

• Los Angeles third baseman Luis Cruz could face a suspension for inciting a brawl in the World Baseball Classic.

• Miami catcher Jeff Mathis has a broken collarbone and will start the season on the disabled list.

• Miami first baseman Logan Morrison is recovering from a torn patella tendon and is likely to be out until mid-April.

• Milwaukee third baseman Aramis Ramirez has a sprained knee but is expected to be ready for opening day.

• Milwaukee first baseman Corey Hart has been cleared to ramp up his rehab after knee surgery and is hoping to be ready in May.

• Milwaukee first baseman Mat Gamel is out for the season with a torn ACL.

• New York pitcher Johan Santana is expected to start the season on the disabled list as he recovers from shoulder surgery.

• New York pitcher Frank Francisco has shoulder inflammation and might start the season on the disabled list.

• Philadelphia catcher Carlos Ruiz will serve a 25-game drug suspension to open the season.

• Philadelphia outfielder Delmon Young is recovering from an ankle problem and is expected to return by May.

• San Diego catcher Yasmani Grandal didn't swing a bat during the offseason because of tendon inflammation in his finger and will serve a 50-game drug suspension to open the season.

• San Diego outfielder Carlos Quentin is recovering from knee surgery but is expected to be ready for opening day. 

• San Diego pitcher Cory Luebke is recovering from Tommy John surgery and is expected to be ready by midseason.

• San Diego pitcher Andrew Cashner is recovering from a lacerated thumb tendon and might be ready to start the season but could miss one or two starts.

• St. Louis pitcher Chris Carpenter has irritation in his cervical spine and shoulder and could miss the entire season.

• St. Louis shortstop Rafael Furcal had Tommy John surgery and is expected to miss the entire season.

• Washington pitcher Jordan Zimmermann is experiencing "dead arm" symptoms.

2013 pre-draft information

We've shared a number of documents with all of you over the last week or so, and I wanted to make sure everyone has access. You should have:

• A list of email addresses for all FBLG owners
• A copy of the FBLG rulebook
• A spreadsheet with recent stats for most draft-eligible players (2013 FBLG stats)

Please let the Commissioners know if you don't have access to any of these docs.

As the season gets closer, we'll share a list of projected starters for each team and the FBLG draft document. Since we've heard no objections, we are still looking at a draft at 5 p.m. Saturday, March 30.

Also, if you'd like an email notification when new posts are added here, fill out the Follow by Email form just to the left of this post.

2013 draft order and other notes

Rich mentioned this in a recent email, but it's worth posting here as well.  (Mostly, I'm just adding this so I can figure out how to use this fancy blogging technology.)

• Brian Sandford and Matt Monaghan are replacing Pete and Ken, so please give them a warm welcome and treat them well.  At least until the season starts.

• The draft is scheduled for 5 p.m. Saturday, March 30. We'll use the Google Doc format that we've used in past seasons.

• A 2012 statistics document is forthcoming.  Stay tuned.

• Let Rich and/or me know when you come up with a team name.  If you haven't chosen one after a few weeks of the season pass, we'll give your team an outdated or irrelevant name, like The Elster Unionists or Loggins & Mussina.

Draft order

1. Bill

2. Tim

3. Brian S. 

4. Jon

5. Matt

6. Scott

7. Henry

8. Rich/BD

9. Reid

10. Rick