The Disabled List Informer

Kelvim Escobar is reportedly feeling very good and is looking impressive this spring. He is supposed to return to the Angels rotation sometime in May, but it is anyone’s guess as to how effective he will as he comes back from labrum surgery. We’ll get our first glimpse of Escobar against MLB hitters this spring when he faces the Padres on Friday, where he will attempt about 50 pitches. For fantasy purposes, he should be a better bet for success in 2010 as long as he doesn’t get re-injured this year. AL-only managers can draft him now, but don’t expect more than 6-8 wins. Mixed league owners with lack of pitching depth will want to target him as a free agent addition once he returns.

Ervin Santana is still in the long toss portion of his throwing program, having yet to throw a bullpen session. The Angels can ill afford to lose their best young pitcher, so they would be best advised to bring him along slowly. Look for Santana to throw a bullpen this week, and if all goes well, he could be back throwing from a mound sometime next week. A timetable for his return is going to be mainly based on how his elbow feels, but a return by late-April or early May is feasible. He remains risky for fantasy purposes, so those of you drafting this week can drop him down your draft sheets 10 spots or so. Elbow ligament tears (even if partial) have a way of becoming nagging issues that can be sensitive for weeks on end if not allowed ample time to heal.

John Lackey received some good news when Dr. Yocum examined him and looked at the MRI films - no ligament or structural damage. The official diagnosis was "elbow strain", which means that it was a muscle or tendon strain. It is not related to the injury he had last season that ended up being a Triceps tendonitis. Expect Lackey to resume light throwing later this week, but he is certain to start the year on the DL and will miss the opening week.

Joey Devine ’s attempt at wrestling the closer’s gig away from Brad Ziegler isn’t going to happen - at least any time soon. He is on his way to see Dr. Andrews next week about the elbow pain that he has been dogged by since late last year. It is possible that we’re dealing with a torn elbow ligament here, or perhaps a similar situation as teammate Justin Duchscherer.

Justin Duchscherer had exploratory arthroscopic surgery on Tuesday, and "nothing major" was found. A bone spur was removed from the elbow, and some minor debridement. If this was the only thing causing his elbow discomfort, it would be a blessing, since he should be able to return to the rotation in about 6 weeks. This would put his return sometime in early-to-mid May. 

Jason Schmidt has been able to touch 90 mph with his fastball, which is encouraging news - especially since he was comfortable in doing so. He is positioning himself to be considered for the #5 spot in the Dodgers rotation after he comes off the DL and makes some rehab starts.