With rumors swirling that Felix Hernandez's record contract extension may be on hold due to an elbow issue, let's take a look at the rest of the injury news around baseball:
Nine months removed from surgery to repair a labrum tear in his shoulder, New York Yankees' right-hander Michael Pineda is set to make his first on a mound this week, reports Andy McCullough of the Newark Star-Ledger. Pitching coach Larry Rothschild says that Pineda still has a long way to go in his recovery, but that his lack of setbacks is a positive sign. The right-hander isn't expected back until midseason at the earliest.
The Detroit Tigers will have some good news as camp opens this week. Designated hitter Victor Martinez is "ready to go" and feeling "100 percent" after missing all of 2012 with a knee injury, reports Tom Gage of the Detroit News. Per Gage, Tigers' hitting coach Lloyd McClendon says that Martinez "looks unbelievable" and should be good to go when camp starts this week.
The Minnesota Twins will be without their long reliever for the first month of camp. Right-hander Anthony Swarzak fractured two ribs in his left side a few weeks ago at TwinsFest, reports Rhett Bollinger at MLB.com, but the club hopes to have him back before the season begins.
Top Yankees' pitching prospect Manuel Banuelos has progressed to playing catch in his recovery from Tommy John surgery, reports Daniel Barbarisi of the Wall Street Journal. The young left-hander still has a long way to go -- he is unlikely to return at any point this season -- but he's right on track in his recovery.
New York Mets' reliever Daniel Herrera is eyeing a May return from Tommy John, reports Adam Rubin of ESPN. The left-hander, who is not at big-league camp with the Mets, is expected to step on the mound for the first time in the coming weeks.
:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/7963963/20120320_ajw_sv7_307.0.jpg)