Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Hamilton still hurting

Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton is pushing his return from a shoulder ailment back to next week.
"I figure if a guy's going to have some down time, have it early," Washington said. "It's no concern."

Hamilton said he wants to make sure he gets healthy so the pain doesn't linger.

"I need to patient with it so I know when I go back out it's not going to hurt and I'm not going to have a setback," Hamilton said. "I don't want to make it mad again."
Fantasy Impact: He missed nearly half of last season with nagging injuries, so this news has to cause some concern. Hamilton had slipped to the middle rounds after an all-star performance in 2008 and then a subpar 2009. We expect him to produce like a No. 2 outfielder with the potential for major upside. If this spring injury continues to linger, call him no better than a No. 3 option due to injury concern.

Blue Jays closer up for grabs

The Blue Jays have three pitchers vying for the closer job: Jason Frasor, Scott Downs and Kevin Gregg. At this point The Globe and Mail suggests Gregg is the front runner in spring training.
"He has the stature," Blue Jays pitching coach Bruce Walton said. "He's big, he don't look real nice, and I don't think he is nice when he gets out on the mound. He has that appearance that he's going out there and he doesn't even want to see you foul a ball off. That's pretty special."

If anyone has the inside track, it is probably Gregg, won signed a one-year, $2.45-million (U.S.) contract in the off-season.

After totalling 61 saves in two seasons with the Florida Marlins, Gregg was traded to the Chicago Cubs, but 2009 was a struggle as he went 5-6 with 23 saves and a 4.72 ERA. He also surrendered 13 home runs, tying him for the major-league lead among relief pitchers, and eventually lost his closer's job last August.
Fantasy Impact: Stature didn't help Gregg hold down the Cubs closer job. Both Chicago and Florida were willing to give him up in back-to-back offseasons, which doesn't say much for the veteran. We don't believe Gregg is a favorite in the race for Jays closer. We're leaning toward Frasor earning the job at this time. This is likely the best battle in terms of closers this spring, but the winner might not get a ton of save chances for a potentially last-place Tortonto team.