Isringhausen rehabbing

Jason Isringhausen is on a rehab stint, and the first outing went well. Isringhausen will contribute to a crowded Rays bullpen upon his arrival in Tampa. Troy Percival, the current closer, is under pressure from setup men Grant Balfour and Dan Wheeler. All four pitchers can end up earning saves.

Fantasy Impact: When he gets back to the majors, Isringhausen will be a setup man at best. He certainly maintains upside as a possible closer down the road but is best left on the waiver wire for now.

A-Rod getting closer

A-Rod says he feels good as he continues to progress with fielding drills in his rehab work. He still hasn't run the bases yet.

Mauer return set for May 1

The Twins put Joe Mauer on a rehab schedule for playing games, but it sounds like it will be at least a couple of weeks in the minors barring setbacks before the team's backstop can return to the majors.

The Twins want Mauer to get about 50 at-bats and 10 games, with at least half of those as the catcher.

Manager Ron Gardenhire said Sunday the final part of the plan is to put Mauer behind the plate for consecutive games to test his strength and stamina before activating him from the disabled list.

If Mauer stays on schedule, he's on track to rejoin the Twins for their May 1 game at home against the Kansas City Royals.

Fantasy Impact: Another two weeks shouldn't kill fantasy owners. Mauer is no messiah in fantasy baseball, however, as his batting average is his greatest plus. Mauer is more of a good complementary type who won't hurt you than he is a fantasy star.

Hoffman throws off mound; closer by committee in Milwaukee?

Trevor Hoffman threw off a mound on Wednesday, experiencing no issues with the oblique injury that sidelined him late in spring training.

"It's good to be back on the slope," Hoffman said. "I didn't throw as many strikes as I would have liked, but I think the key was to come out of it pain-free."

Hoffman will throw off a mound again Saturday in New York. The next step after that is to be determined, according to manager Ken Macha, but Hoffman indicated that he could join the Triple-A Nashville Sounds in Memphis as early as Tuesday to begin a Minor League rehabilitation assignment.

That means Hoffman is at least 10 days away from returning to the big leagues.

Fantasy Impact: The Brewers don't have a great option at closer after Hoffman. They need him back. Manager Ken Macha suggested that a few Brewers relievers might get chances to close games alongside de facto closer Carlos Villanueva, who has struggled in the role. Macha mentioned Todd Coffey, Seth McClung and Mark DiFelice as pitchers throwing better than Villanueva right now.