Normally after an MRI, when a team learns that one of their players has an inflamed joint in their back and might not be ready to play by Opening Day, they're upset. In the case of Joe Mauer, the Twins are actually quite relieved. Mauer, who led all American League hitters with a .328 batting average in 2008, had surgery in December to remove a kidney obstruction, and when he was unable to run without pain, the team feared the worst. "Yeah. We were thinking it could be something huge, the way it has been going," manager Ron Gardenhire told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. He added that team doctors were going to step up the medication Mauer has been taking in an effort to get him on the field as quickly as possible: "I don't know what he's been taking, but they are going to go with something more aggressive."
Because Mauer has been able to do all the things a catcher needs to do -- catch and throw, as well as swing a bat -- the team is optimistic that it won't be too long before he can run as well and possibly even see some action before the end of spring training. Mauer had only one steal in 2008, so it's not like speed was something you were drafting with him anyway, so as long as he can get rid of this inflammation, he shouldn't have to miss much time. Which is a good thing, because neither the Twins, nor fantasy players for that matter, will want to be relying on the likes of 38-year-old Mike Redmond for any length of time. That said, it's hard to justify keeping a catcher with a bad back inside your top-60 rankings, so Mauer has been bumped down to No. 83 in our overall rankings, and to fourth among catchers" behind Brian McCann, Russell Martin and, now, Geovany Soto.
• Josh Willingham joined the Nationals in a trade from the Marlins in November, but now there may not be any place to put him. The team is pretty much ready to go in the outfield with Adam Dunn, Lastings Milledge and Elijah Dukes. Dunn could move to first base, but for now, the plan is for Nick Johnson to start there, at least until his brittle body breaks down again. Willingham can also catch, but the team has Jesus Flores penciled in behind the plate. "Somebody is going to be sitting on the bench. It's going to happen unless [the Nationals] make a move. I never sat on the bench ever [for a full season]," Willingham said on the Nationals' official Web site. He's saying the right things in public, for now, at least. But he did meet with manager Manny Acta about his situation, and declined to say what the result of their talk might have been.
Acta was a little bit more forthcoming. "He is as good as advertised as a person," Acta said. "As a player, he takes his job so seriously. He doesn't need to show what he can do. I've seen him 18 times [a year] for the last four or five years. He is a high-character guy. People were not lying when they were telling me that." Still, that could all be positive spin, just in case some trade offers come Washington's way. In the end, these things have a way of working themselves out, and we wouldn't be surprised to see Nick Johnson as the eventual odd-man-out, either through a trade or another injury, but until this situation does get settled, don't be willing to go overboard for Willingham.
• Braden Looper threw a bullpen session Wednesday, his first work since straining a ribcage muscle earlier this spring. Manager Ken Macha was happy with what he saw, as this likely puts Looper on course to be ready by Opening Day, as opposed to being placed on the disabled list. "I felt really good," Looper told the Brewers' team Web site. "I was a little fatigued at the end, but that's going to happen when I've only played catch for a few days. I feel healthy, and everything was down [in the strike zone]. That's a good sign, being able to pull the ball down."
• They can put whatever positive spin they want on things, but the Astros are hurting at catcher. First, Toby Hall's contract was voided by the team after he opted to undergo shoulder surgery in February. Then, former first-round pick Max Sapp, who had been a long shot to make the team, had a seizure at his home earlier this week. In the offseason, Sapp nearly died as a result of viral meningitis, but the Houston Chronicle reports that this latest incident probably was just a reaction to his medication. "I feel fine," Sapp said. "This is just for 24 hours." Sapp hopes to be released from the hospital today. Other than Sapp, there are three catchers in camp, playing for two spots, and frankly, none of them has been the least bit impressive. The trio of Humberto Quintero, J.R. Towles and Rule 5 pick Lou Palmisano are a combined 4-for-39 this spring. It makes you wonder, with Ivan Rodriguez playing so well in the World Baseball Classic, homering twice for Puerto Rico in their game against Panama, why the Astros haven't even sniffed his way. Rumor has it that Pudge might be looking to sign with the Marlins, but still, either he or fellow free agent Paul Lo Duca would have to be better options than what the Astros have in-house, wouldn't they?
• Chipper Jones says he will stay with Team USA, and hopes to play in the second round of the WBC. Jones missed Wednesday's game against Venezuela after suffering a mild strain of an oblique muscle over the weekend, but took batting practice and fielded some grounders before the game, declaring himself fit enough to play going forward. Ironically, it is precisely because Jones has been hurt so many times over the years that he's not worried about yet another injury. "If I hadn't had a couple dozen of these during the course of my career, I'd probably be a lot more cautious," Jones said on the Braves' official Web site. "But I know that it was a mild strain." Braves fans can start breathing again, at least for now.
• Jim Thome is not making it easy for fantasy owners to draft him this season. The White Sox slugger, who pretty much is restricted to DH duty because of his perennial bad back, was unable to even do that in Wednesday's game against the Brewers. Ozzie Guillen was forced to insert Ben Broussard in his lineup after Thome's back tightness flared up again. Thome has only had 14 at-bats so far this spring, and won't be making the trip to Surprise, Ariz., for the team's game against the Royals on Thursday. Still, Ozzie is apparently not the least bit concerned, telling reporters that " spring training is hard for everyone. You get up and spend a lot of hours here swinging the bat and running around. It's different. Everybody at some point is going to be sore in spring training." That may be true, but if the season hasn't even started yet and Thome is too sore to play, how will his back hold up over a 162-game schedule?