Astros Berkman on DL

Houston Astros first baseman Lance Berkman suffered swelling in his left knee when testing it today after having it surgically repaired on March 13.

He is being placed on the 15-day DL as of March 26 and will be eligible to play April 10.

The Astros will badly miss Berkman’s bat and will struggle in their opening series against San Francisco without him. They follow that up with a series against Philadelphia and Houston could very realistically start 0-6.

Uncertainty in Mets Rotation

The New York Mets shuffled their rotation around in response to poor play by their number two and three pitchers.

Mike Pelfrey and Oliver Perez move down to get the easy starts against the Washington Nationals while John Maine and Jon Niese move up.

Pelfrey has a 7.97 ERA after spring action and Perez has an 8.66 ERA.

The struggles of the Mets pitching staff and their injury troubles has caused the Mets season wins odds to plummet. They were projected to win 82.5 games at the start of Spring Training, but now the under pays just -180 reflecting the lack of confidence in the Mets ability to overcome these early-season problems.

Pre-Season Betting Update: Astros and Mets by MLB Baseball Previews

Hello Kitty bandage saves Yankees season.

New York Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira had treatment for a bruised right elbow suffered on Tuesday and expects to be ready to play on Thursday.

The Yankees trainer reportedly kissed the boo-boo and told Teixeira to go out and play, but he couldn’t get Teixeira to stop crying and demanding a band-aid for the bruise.

Finally the situation was resolved when the trainer produced a nice Hello Kitty bandage and applied it gently to the bruise.

New York Yankees odds tumbled on the news, but they have since recovered with the positive prognosis.

Note: I have tremendous respect for Teixeira. The above is more about sports reporting than Teixeira.

Teixeira overcomes boo-boo, ready to play Thursday by MLB Baseball Previews

Aroldis Chapman back for the Reds

Aroldis Chapman is back after missing a week of spring training with a back spasm.

The Cuban defector can throw upwards of 100 mph, but took it easy against minor-league hitters. He threw one inning and maxed out at 97 mph.

Chapman has a lot of adjustments to make after his defection, but he looks like he will be a quality pitcher in Major League Baseball.

The Reds might opt to start him out of the bull-pen as he adjusts to life in America and recovers from back spasms, but he is the best of the candidates vying for the final spot in the rotation. Don’t be surprised to see him making an impact before the season’s end on a deep Reds pitching staff.

Either way, with Chapman, Mike Leake and Travis Wood all looking like they will develop in to quality starters expect to see at least one of them excel a little early and improve the Reds staff for this season.

The Reds season wins over/under is 79.5 and there is plenty of reason to believe that their young pitchers will improve the team as the season progresses.

Milton Bradley’s poor play nets cleanup role

Milton Bradley will be the cleanup hitter for the Seattle Mariners.

In spite of his declining play, Bradley will be hitting in a clean-up role ahead of defensive specialist Casey Kotchman.

Bradley gets the job by default. If he can get back to some approximation of his old form, then the Mariners will be a force in the AL West. But he has been slowly losing his power and with Kotchman, who has just 12 home runs, ahead of him, the Mariners will likely strand a lot of base runners.

With such a glaring weakness on the Mariners, their odds to win the World Series aren’t very good. They currently pay +2800.

Pre-Season Betting Update: Reds and Mariners by MLB Baseball Previews

Braves go with Heyward

Rookie Jason Heyward has slugged his way onto the Braves and will be Atlanta’s starting right-fielder.

Heyward looks like he can handle big-league pitching and he should be a major boost to the offense. Consider taking the over on the Braves season wins totals.

Cliff Lee shut down by Mariners

Pitching ace Cliff Lee of the Seattle Mariners is being shut down for five days to allow an abdomen strain to heal.

Lee will likely begin the season on the DL. Lee will probably need some to ramp it up for a few days before he’s able to throw in games because he hasn’t had much work in Spring Training.

A prolonged absence will hurt the Seattle Mariners odds because they lack the offense to make up for less than stellar pitching.

Astro’s Oswalt strains hamstring

The Houston Astros’ Roy Oswalt is being examined by team doctors after leaving today’s game against the Pirates with a left hamstring strain.

GM Ed Wade, downplayed the injury saying, “I just want to get him checked.”

Oswalt previously felt a pinch in that leg so there is a slight chance that the strain is symptomatic of something bigger that could hurt the Houston Astros chances of hitting the season wins total.

Pre-Season Betting Update: Heyward boosts Braves, injured pitching aces by MLB Baseball Previews

Reyes back at camp

New York Mets shortstop Jose Reyes is training once more after missing 19 days to treat a hyperactive thyroid.

The Mets were expecting him to miss up to eight weeks so Reyes’ return is a pleasant bonus at this point.

While the early return is a good sign, the Mets have Reyes on a strict diet to manage the condition and it remains to be seen if the diet change will be enough for Reyes to play with his usual frequency.

The over/under on Mets regular season wins is 82.5, but they’ve suffered so many injuries that most people are betting under so the payout is really low at -180.

The good news from Reyes might make a small bet on the over worthwhile, but the Mets have a lot of obstacles to overcome.

Pedroia’s wrist X-rays negative

Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia injured his left wrist trying to stop a smash hit in the first inning of yesterday’s night game against the Twins but X-rays have confirmed that it is nothing worse than a sprain.

Pedroia was not scheduled to play in today’s game against the Pirates and the injury is not likely to impact the Red Sox odds. The over/under for Red Sox regular season wins is 94.5.

Lee not quite healthy for the Mariners

The Seattle Mariners ace pitcher Cliff Lee’s abdominal strain is still bothering him and there’s no time-line for his recovery.

The season starts April 5. Lee will need some time to build up his arm, so he likely won’t be ready to begin the season.

The Mariners will need a healthy Lee if they’re to take the next step and challenge for a playoff spot. Resting him is the right choice, but missing him for any great length of time will badly hurt this team’s MLB odds.

Pre-Season Betting Update: Mets’ Reyes, BoSox’s Pedroia, Mariners’ Lee by MLB Baseball Previews

Jon Rauch is the most likely candidate to take over the closer role. Rauch has 26 career saves. But the Twins haven’t committed themselves to Rauch.

Sportsbooks have taken down their Twins season wins totals in the wake of the injury.

Nathan Has Surgery, Twins Odds Suffer by MLB Baseball Previews

Webb is aiming for a late April return, but that date is far from solid. Part of the problem was that Webb pushed his shoulder too hard, too early, so a brief period of rest was all he needed to get back on track.

The Diamondbacks will be in a tight battle to win the NL West and missing their pitching ace for even a short while will hurt their MLB odds.

Phillies Lidge getting close

Philadelphia Phillies closer Brad Lidge saw his first inning of spring action today and says he feels outstanding after offseason knee and elbow surgery.

Lidge still isn’t ready for regular action as he needs to build the strength in his arm or risk further injury.

The Phillies should dominate the NL East and can afford to let Lidge take all of the time he needs to fully prepare if it means that he will be healthy for a World Series run. The Phillies are currently the favorites to win the National League Pennant at +275.

Pre-Season Betting Updates: D-Backs and Phillies Pitchers on the Mend by MLB Baseball Previews

More confusing spring break and spring training...

Cubs left-hander Ted Lilly is expected to get at least one Cactus League start and three more minor-league pre-season starts before joining the team.

Manager Lou Piniella said, “We’re not going to push him to the point where he’s going to have a setback. His shoulder feels really, really well.”

Losing Lilly for a few games isn’t going to hurt the Cubs, but a long-term setback for the pitcher would be a big blow to the Cubs odds.

White Sox Jared Mitchell Done for Season

Jared Mitchell, outfield prospect for the Chicago White Sox, went under the knife today to repair a tendon tear in his left ankle.

He will miss the full season rehabbing and recovering from the surgery, but the procedure went well and he’s expected to make a full recovery.

While a solid prospect for the ChiSox, Mitchell wasn’t expected to have much impact on the team who are currently +1200 in MLB odds to win the American League.

Dodgers Reliever Wade out for 3 Months

The LA Dodgers Cory Wade will have arthroscopic surgery on his right shoulder tomorrow that will keep him out of the line-up for at least three months.

Wade’s play fell off last season after a strong rookie campaign and he eventually ended up in Triple-A partly due to recurring right-shoulder problems. He was hoping to compete for a bullpen spot, but the surgery should help him and the Dodgers in the long run without having any great effect on their short-term odds.

Pre-Season Betting Update: Cubs’ Lilly, ChiSox’s Mitchell, Dodgers’ Wade by MLB Baseball Previews

Spring Training or Spring Break? I can't keep them straight.

Joe Nathan will be playing catch on Saturday to test the torn ligament in his right elbow. If he feels tight or pain during the session, then he will likely undergo surgery and his season will likely be over before it starts.

Nathan’s questionable status and impact on the team has resulted in sportsbooks taking down odds for the Twins including World Series and total wins odds.

Boston Red Sox Matsuzaka Playing Cautious

Boston Red Sox fans have no reason to panic yet as Daisuke Matsuzaka is being very cautious with tightness in his neck.

The pitcher cut short a batting practice session Saturday and he’s not sure when he will get a session in. He has already thrown from the mound and he’s resting as a precaution.

Dice-K missed three weeks last season due to a back injury and it is possible that the two conditions are related.

With plenty of time left before the season begins, Matsuzaka’s caution is unlikely to have any effect on Boston’s odds.

Hanley Ramirez Groin Tightness Minor

No need to jump off of the Florida Marlins band-wagon. Hanley Ramirez was scratched from the Marlins’ Monday game, but he expects to be in on Tuesday.

Preseason Betting Updates: Twins’ Nathan, Bo-Sox Dice-K, Marlins Ramirez by MLB Baseball Previews

Escobar arrived at camp with shoulder weakness and is being limited to throw on flat ground. He will likely start the season on the DL.

Calero had his best season ever with the Florida Marlins last year, so it is odd that it has taken this long for him to be signed.

Calero will compete with Ryota Igarashi and Bobby Parnell for the set-up man spot until Escobar is able to return.

Baseball Legends Visit the Giants

Orlando Cepeda, Willie Mays, Willie McCovey and Gaylord Perry visited the Giants training camp in what has become an annual tradition.

The Legends engaged in some light-hearted verbal jousting as they met with players and media.

Rockies Sign Helton

The Rockies and Todd Helton agreed to a 2-year $9.9 million extension which should see him through the 2013 season. He’ll be making considerably less than the $23 million club option he had for 2012, but this contract pretty much guarantees that he will retire with the Rockies.

Kiko Calero Gets Chance With Mets by MLB Baseball Previews