Maine on the mend

While most teams get set to play their first exhibition games today, the Mets got good news from a scrimmage on Tuesday: John Maine is pitching pain-free.

"My arm feels great. My body feels great," said Maine, who went 10-8 with a 4.18 ERA last season. "I just feel like it's been such a long time. The mechanics are a little off and I was rusty a little bit, but other than that, and more importantly, my arm feels good."

Fantasy Impact: A healthy Maine can be the difference for New York this year. Without him down the stretch the Mets struggled and so did some fantasy teams. When healthy, Maine is a solid second or third option in a fantasy rotation, capable of producing wins and strikeouts.

Boof goes poof

Scratch Boof Bonser's name from the starting lineup, and perhaps even from the Twins' setup role this season. He's undergoing shoulder surgery and could be out months.

The decision to have surgery comes after Bonser had two MRI exams and a cortisone shot since the end of last season. The exams showed no structural damage, and the cortisone shot, given a few days before Bonser reported to camp, yielded minimal results.

The surgery will be performed by Tampa Bay Rays team physician Dr. Koco Eaton in St. Petersburg.

"They're going to go in and clean up," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "They know that there's a little small spur that's part of the problem. ... There's no timetable right now because first you have to see exactly what happens in the surgery and what else they find. They'll check everything out as they go through it, in a scope fashion."

Bonser's already damaged fantasy value just hit the floor. What happened to this high-end prospect?

San Jose A's?

The San Jose Mercury News believes the "San Jose Athletics" has a nice ring to it. Now that the A's Fremont move has fallen through, the team will restart it process to find a place for a new stadium.

Does MLB want to have two strong and healthy franchises in the Bay Area — or will it continue forcing one team to play in an outdated, mutated multi-purpose stadium in the wrong area code?

I realize that's not how the fundamental question about the A's future is usually framed. Instead, it goes this way: Will the Giants allow the A's to build a ballpark in Santa Clara County, where the Giants own territorial rights?

Wrong. As I have noted, those "territorial rights" do

not "belong" to the Giants. Those "rights" are the property of Major League Baseball, which permits the Giants to claim them. But the "rights" can be overturned with one swift vote by MLB owners.

I think the "territorial rights" argument will be a tough sell: see Orioles/Peter Angelos vs. proposed Washington Nationals. It's a complicated process, however, moving the A's. This will probably play out a while.