Street gets good news on bad shoulder

Rockies closer Huston Street got a second opinion on his ailing throwing shoulder from Dr. James Andrews, and the news is good. He's expected to return on schedule in May.

According to Rockies general manager Dan O'Dowd, Street received positive news from Andrews.

"Everything looked great. I was told they didn't see any issues at all, so we are going to keep doing the same thing with him," O'Dowd said after the Rockies' 5-3 opening-day win over Milwaukee. "He wanted a second opinion, and everything came back really good."

Street, 26, received a three-year, $22.5 million contract this winter, the largest deal the Rockies have awarded a reliever. He admitted that a change in his winter routine could have caused the shoulder stiffness that first developed in February. Looking to increase his velocity, Street threw off a mound multiple times before spring training, something he had never done before.

Fantasy Impact: This is good news for the Rockies and fantasy owners alike, but it still means Street will miss more than one-sixth of the 2010 season. He slips to a low-end No. 2 closer until he can prove he's back and consistent as Rockies closer. For now, Franklin Morales owns the de facto closer job in Colorado. He's no more than a high-end No. 3 closer due to his erratic performance the first time out.

Soria throws

Royals closer Joakim Soria threw a light session on Sunday as he tries to get back from recent shoulder woes. There's no definite schedule for his return, although Soria is not on the DL.

Fantasy Impact: He should be benched until Kansas City gives him the go-head. Shoulder troubles are not that uncommon in April, but this is a touch worrisome for a young pitcher who's logged a lot of innings in his relief role the past two seasons.

KC closer by committee

With Joakim Soria nursing a sore shoulder, Kansas City will turn to a closer-by-committee approach until their All-Star reliever can return in three to five days. Soria had an MRI that came back negative.

Webb disabled

Brandon Webb might have no structural damage in his right shoulder, but he's on the disabled list, anyway. The Diamondbacks' stopper will be out at least another ten days.

Webb will miss start

AZcentral.com is reporting that Brandon Webb's shoulder is fine, and he should make his next scheduled start on Saturday. MLB.com says otherwise. Actually, Diamondbacks manager Bob Melvin himself says Webb is a no-go for the weekend.

"We're going to skip Brandon Webb's next start," Melvin said. "He came in with a little soreness today, and I decided I'm going to take care of this early on. I'm not going to let him go out there and do a bullpen today, as long as there's some stiffness."

Whom to believe? The MLB.com article is more recent, and Melvin sounds definitive. No Webb this weekend.

Fantasy Impact: One missed start is no big deal. More than one is big, and each subsequent missed start is even bigger. Webb went high on most draft boards for his consistency in winning games and striking people out. He can't do either of those on the bench. Place him on the pine and hope for the best.

Cubs lose Soto for a few days

The Cubs may be without starting catcher Geovany Soto for a few days. He felt pain in his throwing shoulder while gunning down Kaz Matsui on a steal attempt in the third inning of the Astros 3-2 win over the Cubs Tuesday night.

"I kind of over-exposed my shoulder a little bit," Soto said. "There was a little discomfort in my shoulder. I felt some weakness in it, and I felt I didn't have a shot if somebody else [tried to steal]. I need to keep up my exercises, and we'll see how it is in a couple days."

Soto said he had the same problem in Spring Training and doesn't expect to miss much time.

"You never know," he said when asked how long he'd be sidelined. "I just have to stay on top of my exercises, and I'll be all right in a couple days. As long as I stay in good shape and do my exercises, it won't happen again all year."

Fantasy Impact: Koyie Hill is Soto's backup this year. He beat out Paul Bako for maybe one start each week to spell Soto. That means he's a true backup catcher unexpected to pay dividends in fantasy baseball. Hill did hit 17 homers at Triple-A Iowa last year, which is very impressive considering the accident that nearly ended his baseball career.

Scherzer starts season on DL

Max Scherzer's stint on the disabled list to start the season doesn't sound like a major concern.

"Basically he needs to strengthen his shoulder," D-backs director of player development A.J. Hinch said. "We're going to give him a break. It's kind of a good time to give him a break and a blow and the ability to do that."

But this isn't the first time his shoulder has slowed his progress. In 2008, Scherzer missed time in the summer, hitting the DL with shoulder fatigue.

In 2007, Scherzer's shoulder, which first caused some concern at Missouri, led, in part, to decreased draft value.

Scherzer fell to the Diamondbacks at No. 11 because he battled shoulder tendinitis in his final season at Missouri ... and because of the specter of a prolonged negotiation with agent Scott Boras

.Fantasy Impact: That's at least three shoulder reports in four seasons. Scherzer was good enough to be one of the top 3 picks the year he was drafted, so if he gets into form he's deadly. But that's what they say about Rich Harden, another shoulder struggler who continues to miss chunks of time with his bad wing. Scherzer is starting to sound like an injury-prone ace. Get him in later rounds, but don't over pay, and don't expect anything more than a No. 3 or 4 fantasy starter. He'll likely throw less than 150 innings in the D'backs No.5 slot in the rotation.

Glaus out at least two months

Troy Glaus will miss at least two months of the season following a setback in his rehabilitation after shoulder surgery.

Glaus originally was expected to miss just a few weeks of the season. But the Cardinals said yesterday he will be reevaluated around June 1.

"It's just not responding as quickly as we'd hoped," Glaus said in Jupiter, Fla. "It obviously didn't go as smoothly or uneventfully as we had hoped."

David Freese is the top candidate to start at third with Glaus out.

General manager John Mozeliak told the Associated Press that Glaus might have pushed too hard in his rehab schedule. He said Glaus's progress will be assessed in a few weeks.

"Sometimes being overly optimistic can hurt you," Mozeliak said.

Fantasy owners must take this news with caution. If an April return was overly optimistic, could a five-week delay be "overly optimistic" as well? Leave Glaus on the waiver wire for now, or stash him if you have the DL space. He's not going to contribue productively until the second half of the season.

Fantasy Impact: David Freese is considered a middle-range prospect by CBSsports.com. He did hit 26 homers in Triple-A last season, but the 25-year-old was never on the radar as a major contributor at the big-league level. The Cardinals have had success with journeyman types like Ryan Ludwick and Skip Schumaker. Those two players were drafted, however, and Freese was not. Only take a flier on Freese if you're desperate.