Anibal Sanchez goes on the 15-day DL

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The Detroit Tigers’ Anibal Sanchez is a very underrated starter as he has to pitch third behind the reigning Cy YoungAward winner Max Scherzer and the team’s ace Justin Verlander. Sanchez, however, is very good. In 2013 he led the American League in ERA just beating out the Oakland Athletics’ Bartolo Colon (2.65) with an ERA of 2.57. He also finished fourth in the Cy Young Award voting last season.

So the Tigers losing their third starter, a would-be ace on any other team, might be an issue. Luckily for them Sanchez’s stint on the disabled list is only going to be 15 days due to a lacerated middle finger.

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Who Will Fill In For Kershaw? Dodgers Pitching Woes Continue

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It’s not the end of the world, yet. Los Angeles Dodgers’ ace Clayton Kershaw is suffering from back inflammation and, as was reported on OPSN yesterday by Andrew Vigliotti,  has been scratched from the Dodgers’ Sunday U.S. opener against the San Diego Padres. An MRI showed no structural damage in Kershaw’s back which is excellent news. It was also reported by Fansided.com‘s Stacie Wheeler that Kershaw reported no discomfort after playing catch on Tuesday. 

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Machado Cleared for ALL Baseball Activities!

Karl Merton Ferron/Baltimore Sun/MCT 

It’s official. Everyone, even non-Orioles fans, has been waiting to know “when do we get to see Manny Machado play again after that horrific knee accident?” Well the news from the Baltimore Orioles camp Thursday was that all restrictions have been lifted by Dr. Neal ElAttrache, who performed Machado’s reconstructive knee surgery. Machado was able to go to his re-scheduled appointment, which was supposed to be last week, Thursday morning.

The 21-year old third baseman is a defensive ace and he made the All-Star team in his first full season in the majors. Did I mention he can hit too? Machado played in 156 games before twisting his knee in a game against Tampa Bay. It was a shame that he couldn’t finish the season on a happier note but that happy note came finally Thursday.

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A's Will Have to Start Season Without Griffin, Parker!!

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Sorry don't have time to fill in the details at this moment, I may or may not come back to it but you can read my report on this bad news using the link below .... Baseball Gods Be With Us!! (Here's hoping Jesse Chavez and Tommy Milone can get their shit together!) 

Read the Story HERE!!! on MLBAM Affiliated MLB Pro-Blog Outside Pitch Sports 

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And for other MLB News, Updates and Everything A's follow me on Twitter @OakAsSocksGrl

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Padres' Cameron Maybin Will Not Require Surgery

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Earlier this week it was reported that San Diego Padres’ outfielder, Cameron Maybin, had ruptured his left bicep tendon. After an MRI on Monday, the prognosis was that surgery would be the the only way for the 26-year old outfielder to heal. This would have kept Maybin out of baseball for at least three months if not more. That is pretty devastating news for a player who was only be able play in 14 games for the Padres last season due to injuries. Even Padres’ general manager Josh Byrnes told MLB.com,

“I thought he was done for the season.”

Read the Rest of the Story on Sports Unbiased - Your Alternative Source for Sports

Teixeira Having to Take it Slow This Spring

The New York Yankees are making Mark Texeira take it easy this spring training and it is not going over well with the first baseman. Teixeira has been dealing with the injury to his wrist for over a year now. The Yankees are making Teixeira take it slow this spring because the injury kept him out most of last season.

Texiera was not happy after being shut down by the team’s pitching coach, Larry Rothchild, after only a 21 pitch batting practice session according to the New York Daily News. Teixeira was quite irritated by his session being cut short but the incident has not caused a rift between the team and their first baseman.

For the rest of this story go to Sports Unbiased - Your Alternative Source For Sports

HOF Koufax Hit with Line Drive by Ethier at Dodgers Training Camp!

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What if you were Andre Ethier right now? How would you feel? Relieved? Embarrassed (even though it was a fluke accident)? Scared? Would you be sending flowers? I know I would after hitting a line drive that could have killed a legendary Hall of Famer!

Yes, at the Los Angeles Dodgers spring training camp in Glendale, AZ a line drive ball, out of the hand of prospect Ross Stripling and off the bat of Andre Ethier, hit HOF pitcher Sandy Koufax in the head. These types of injuries are not to be taken lightly. A line drive ball does have the capacity to kill someone if hit in the right place in the head at a high speed. In 2012 Arizona Diamondbacks pitcher Brandon McCarthy, then with the Oakland Athletics, was hit in the head with a line drive during a game. He was out for the rest of the season and has since been experiencing seizures. Line drives do hit people and hurt them but it is an out of the ordinary occurrence.

That is why this must have been so insane for poor Mr. Ethier. What if you were the guy who killed the great Sandy Koufax? The Dodgers would have you traded where? Siberia? Just to have hurt someone is bad enough but a 78-year old legend? My own mind is blown at the thought. 

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Anyway, the good news is that Mr. Koufax is alright. Koufax miraculously remained on his feet despite suffering a gash to his forehead. He was, however, immediately carted off by the team's trainers in a golf cart and was treated by medical staff. Reigning Cy Young Award winner, Clayton Kershaw, was sitting 20 feet away when Koufax was hit. He told reporters later, 

 "It didn't look good. I'm glad he walked off."

Such a scary moment for everyone involved but Koufax seemed to take it like the champ he is. He was later reported to be seen walking around the Dodgers clubhouse talking to some of the players. If there are any lasting side effects, as there have been with McCarthy, they remain to be seen. 

Koufax is a regular at the Dodgers spring training camp and works as a special assistant to team president Mark Walter. For the past two seasons he has also worked informally as a coach for the younger pitchers. 

Ethier later told the press that, of course, he was worried,

"Wouldn't you be? Not just because of who he is, but anybody who gets hit. It's scary. I've seen it happen."

Of course no player or fan ever wants to see a person hit by a line drive but in this case it did matter a little more because of who he hit. Dodgers pitching coach, Rick Honeycutt, seemed still shaken hours later saying,

"Everybody was like, 'Oh my gosh, You don't want anybody hit, but Sandy? I mean, you don't want that to happen to anybody, but especially him, he's out here to support and help us and be around. I just got a sick feeling from the sound of it."

Well, thankfully, the entire baseball world can breathe a sigh of relief that the Hall of Famer is safe and sound. I'm sure Andre Ethier is doing the exact same thing!

For More News From Around The League Visit MLB Nation!

Mulder Injures Ankle, Comeback Sidelined

Mark Mulder, who is trying to make a comeback to Major League Baseball after a six year hiatus, was injured early Saturday while warming up for his first bullpen session of the spring. MLB.com's Alden Gonzalez reported earlier this morning that the Angel's pitcher injured his ankle. He was taken in for x-rays but the severity of the injury is still unknown. This is a major and unfortunate setback for Mulder.

The former star pitcher for the Oakland Athletics and St. Louis Cardinals has not thrown a pitch in the majors since 2008 and officially announced his retirement in 2010. Mulder was sidelined by shoulder injuries after being traded from the Athletics to the Cardinals. He has since been working for ESPN as an analyst.

During the playoffs last year Mulder figured out a way to throw the ball without it affecting his shoulder by watching Dodger's pitcher Paco Rodriguez's delivery. He was able to replicate Rodriguez's delivery without any shoulder pain or strain.

He held a tryout session in November, according to the Los Angeles Times, and the scouts were impressed with what they saw. It was rumored that his fastball was hitting the 90 mph mark. The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim soon signed Mulder to a minor league contract with an invite to big league spring training. There were, and still are, hopes that he would be able to stay healthy with his new delivery and possibly make the Angels' starting rotation. Mulder, if he returns, will be battling for the fifth spot in the Angels rotation with Joe Blanton and Tyler Skaggs.

Mulder, unfortunately, just seems to have a streak of bad luck. After finding a way to throw with his often injured shoulder, the southpaw wasn't even able to make it to his first bullpen session. Hopefully for the comeback candidate the x-rays will comeback negative and he will be able to pitch again during the spring.

For More News From Around the League Check Out MLB Nation!!

Machado to be Cleared for Baseball Related Activities

21-year old Baltimore Orioles third baseman, Manny Machado, may finally be cleared to return to baseball related activities as soon as this weekend.

Machado suffered a season-ending injury to his left knee last September while running out a ground ball in the seventh inning of a game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. As Machado’s foot hit the bag his leg appeared to go limp and he fell to the ground clutching his knee. He had to be carted off the field on a stretcher. Machado under went surgery for a torn medial patellofemoral ligament in October and his recovery time was slated at approximately six months.

The surgery went well and numerous reports have put Machado in the lineup on opening day which is great news for the Orioles. Their young star batted .283 in 2013, his first full season in the majors, with leading the American League with 51 doubles and making his first All-Star Game appearance. He even won the AL Gold Glove for his outstanding defense at third base.

The latest news on Machado’s comeback time table is that he may be ready to start baseball related activities within the week as he is making excellent progress in his recovery. After he, hopefully, receives good news at his doctor’s appointment this week he could be ready to resume baseball activities earlier than expected. He has been rehabbing in Miami using light weights, running and pool work.

Orioles manager, Buck Showalter, told Brittany Ghiroli of MLB.com back in November,

“I think he’s got a real chance to make the start of the season. [He] needs to play in [spring] games by March 15 to make the season.”

It appears that being ready to play by March 15th is certainly a good possibility for the Orioles’ star third baseman. 

For more of the latest news around the league check out MLB Nation

Zambrano Brawls, Sandoval Injured During Venezuelan League Championship Game

It's news to most, not all but most, baseball fans that there is plenty going on in the game during Major League Baseball's off-season. Besides just contract negotiations and player trades, there are leagues being played in other countries such as Venezuela, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. Those leagues also just happen to be filled with future, current and former Major League Baseball players who are practicing for the upcoming season, preparing for their future careers or finishing up what's left of theirs.

Saturday's game three of the Venezuelan League Championship Series between the Navegantes de Magallanes and Caribes de Anzoategui was full of excitement. It started with a bench clearing brawl led by free-agent MLB pitcher Carlos Zambrano, formerly of the Chicago Cubs and Miami Marlins, and ended with an injury to current MLB player, Pablo Sandoval of the San Francisco Giants. 

Zambrano, only 32, should be trying to resurrect his dying career but this incident was not conducive to such a plan. Already known for his fiery temper, Zambrano was not even on the field when the brawl began. As soon as it did however, he was suddenly found in the middle of the fray swinging furiously at any player around. Despite having tried to get his anger issues under control over his 11-year MLB career, it appears little or no progress has been made by the right-handed pitcher.

Fortunately, no injuries were reported from during the brawl. However, it appears that the Giants' third baseman was injured during the game. According to Andrew Baggarly of the San Francisco Chronicle, Sandoval tweaked something while attempting to run out a grounder during the eighth inning. The extent of the injury is unknown. While the third baseman did spend time on the disabled list last season with a strained tendon in his left foot, there is no indication that this injury is at all related to that one.

Yet two incidents in one game, in one of many winter leagues, does show that there is plenty of baseball excitement all year round.

For More MLB News you can visit MLB Nation

& now a quick note from Oakland A's Sock's Girl to any of you gnats "fans":

** Any of you gnats "fans" probably won't be reading this because you don't care about baseball at all unless the gnats are winning, let alone even actively playing during the MLB regular season - Sandoval is that guy you call "Panda" who btw is NOT your mascot though thanks to Bat Kid you probably now know that your actual mascot is a ______. (either you know or you don't but I won't help you out! ha!) Anyways, I just think it's funny because last week was all about his weight loss and consequently his GINORMOUSLY disproportionate head and then this week he may be injured ... that's funny to me. Can't imagine why .....lmao! (to those of you Giants fans actually reading this I am not talking to or about you!! Because you're well - reading this - I just had to get in my little dig because it's my blog and because I can!) **

Holland Has Accident at Home; Out Until Mid Season

On Tuesday, 27 year old Texas Rangers’ pitcher Derek Holland fell on the stairs at his home severely injuring his left knee.  Unfortunately the result of the injury required arthroscopic surgery that was performed on Friday by the team physician Dr. Keith Meister. During the surgery Dr. Meister repaired the torn cartilage behind Holland’s knee but lucky for both Holland and the Rangers there was no ligament damage.

Via AP: “I am devastated by this injury. It was a freak accident at home that resulted in a hard fall on my knee,” Holland said in a statement released by the team. “As upsetting as this is, my goal is to begin rehab and get back on the mound as quickly as possible.”

Getting back to the mound quickly might be a little tougher than the Rangers’ star expects. According to Texas General Manager Jon Daniels, Holland will only be allowed limited activity for the next six weeks. The team is planning for the lefty to be able to return by mid-season but are optimistic that he may be available earlier than that.

“I feel I could be back sooner, but I don’t know, I’ve never had an injury like this,” Holland said. “That seems like a long time, but I’ve never had this before, so I don’t know what to expect.”

It appears both he and the Rangers will  just have to wait and see. Holland, who has been with the Rangers for the last five seasons, pitched a career high 213 innings in 2013 finishing the season at 10-9 with a 3.42 ERA. He is under contract with Texas until 2016 with club options for 2017 and 2018.

Holland is a staple to the Texas starting rotation along with Japanese ace Yu Darvish. This injury is certainly a set back for the Rangers. Even without Holland Texas still has four solid pitchers in their rotation. As it appears now their opening day starting rotation will be Darvish, Matt Harrison, Martin Perez and Alexi Ogondo.

When asked about replacing Holland in the rotation Daniels said that the Rangers will definitely be looking to add to their pitching before the start of the 2014 season. He did specifically clarify that he didn’t necessarily mean finding a replacement for Holland but just adding in the “depth category.” Mostly likely this will entail having a long reliever from the bullpen step up to the starting rotation.

“This is an opportunity for a number of our guys,” Daniels said. “We’re going to go out and hopefully fortify that group and give ourselves some additional options and expect Derek will be back midyear.”

The Rangers were once rumored to be interested in, newly posted, Japanese free-agent Masahiro Tanaka and they certainly have the money to spend. But Daniels seemed to hint that would not be their course of action saying that it didn’t seem like a “big ticket item,” which would be a player like Tanaka, would be the answer to the temporary loss of Holland.

For more injury related news go to MLB Nation - delivering the latest news, insights, and analysis from around the league.

My A's fan perspective: well, it's definitely NOT a bad thing for us A's fans but it is usually Texas' job to choke down the stretch! Let's just hope they just choke all season! LOL! JK! (kinda, I just don't wanna bring us bad baseball voodoo karma, ya know?) We are gonna do it this year A's fans! Our team is hella complete and it just seems right and this year people know the name Josh Donaldson in the baseball world and Sonny Gray ... Our rotation is gonna be kick ass and I need to see a Gold Glove Award in BringerOfRain's hand at the end of 2014! Anyways, I'm rambling! I hope you read and shared my article! :-)

Verlander Out Six Weeks After Core Surgery

Detroit Tiger’s star right-hander Justin Verlander injured a core muscle while working out in early December.  The injury required surgery which was successfully performed Thursday in Philadelphia by Dr. Bill Meyers. Dr. Meyers also performed a similar surgery on Verlander’s teammate Miguel Cabrera back in October of last year.

According to the Tigers Verlander is going to need six weeks of rehabilitation. He will miss most, but according to the Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski not all, of Spring Training and is expected to be ready for the start of the 2014 season. In a statement recently released by the Tigers Dombrowski said,

“We fully anticipate Justin to participate in spring training and be in a position to compete at the beginning of the 2014 season.”

With pitchers and catchers scheduled to report to Spring Training in close to a month this seems like a very optimistic outlook but Verlander is known for his diligent off-season conditioning program.  And Tigers manager Brad Ausmus believes this will help him in his recovery. He told the Free Press last week that he was not very concerned,

“Despite the fact this is a little bit of a setback physically, his previous workouts will probably allow him to catch up to speed much quicker.”

Verlander has been a workhorse for the Tigers since his major league debut in 2005 and has been their Opening Day starter for the past six years. Even if Verlander isn’t ready by Opening Day the Tigers still have a very good rotation behind him. Even after trading Doug Fister to the Washington Nationals this winter the Tigers still have 2013 AL Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer, 2013 AL ERA leader Anibal Sanchez and young Rick Porcello, who while only turning 25 this year, already has 149 big league starts and a propensity for eliciting ground balls from batters.

Even Verlander himself believes he will be ready to start the season tweeting Thursday,

“Thanks for the support regarding my surgery today. It went well and now my only focus is to get ready for 2014! #determined” 

To learn more check out MLB Nation - delivering the latest news, insights, and analysis from around the league.