Atomic RoadRunners | Andrew Flynn’s High-Energy Fantasy Baseball

Gregor Blanco has been playing with a bone spur in his right ankle. “I’ve had it the last two months, but it’s getting worse,” Blanco said Monday. Blanco is trying to play through the injury after finally getting his chance this season, but it’s possible the Braves could start to limit him. (Rotoworld)

According to MLB.com, Brandon Moss’ ankle injury “will not keep him out for an extensive period of time.” Moss twisted his ankle Sunday and sat out Monday afternoon’s game. MLB.com reports that he’s unlikely to rejoin then lineup before this weekend, but should be able to avoid a stint on the disabled list. “I rolled it pretty good, but luckily nothing pretty serious happened,” Moss said. “They said that everything is pretty positive on it because it didn’t swell and it didn’t bruise.” Jason Michaels will pick up playing time in his absence. (Rotoworld)

Brandon Moss left Sunday’s game in the seventh inning with an ankle injury. Moss twisted his ankle on the way to first base on a ground out and had to be helped off the field. Steve Pearce replaced him. Jason Michaels will start in left field for Moss on Monday. The former Red Sox property has shown some signs of offense at times but was slumping like the entire Pirates team — batting .193 since coming over at the trade deadline. (Rotoworld)

The Mets were so encouraged by the bullpen sessions Maine (strained right rotator cuff) threw Sunday and Monday that he is slated to throw a simulated game Friday at Shea, the NY Daily News reports. This would keep Maine on schedule to pitch Wednesday at Washington and seemingly lessen the need to add another starting pitcher, such as the rehabbing Freddy Garcia. (Rotowire)

Mets placed RHP John Maine on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to July 29, with a strained right rotator cuff. This is the right move for the Mets. Giving Maine a full two weeks off to deal with his minor shoulder issue makes a lot more sense than trying to rush him back. The team could call up Claudio Vargas to start Friday. (Rotoworld)

Ryan Spilborghs (oblique strain) played catch this week. It was the first time he’s played catch since going on the disabled list back on July 9, and he reported just normal soreness. He’s a couple weeks from returning. It still looks like late August is a reasonable estimate for his return. Spilborghs’ playing time could be slim down the stretch. The Rockies didn’t trade starting center fielder Willy Taveras and they may give Double-A prospect Dexter Fowler an extended look in September. Spilborghs will turn 29 on Sept. 5 and there’s an increasing chance that he will be a career backup. (Rotoworld, Rotowire)

Chipper Jones (hamstring) expects to return from the disabled list on Friday. He’s been out since July 23, but took batting practice and fielded grounders before Saturday’s game. Friday is the first day he’s eligible to come off the disabled list. “I feel great,” Jones said. “Everything feels good. I’ll be ready by Friday.” Upon his return, Jones will be competing for his first career batting title, after flirting with .400 for a decent share of the first half of the season. (Rotoworld, Rotowire)

John Maine, who has been diagnosed with a mild strain of the rotator cuff in his right shoulder, no longer is officially listed as Sunday’s starter in Houston. The expectation is Oliver Perez instead will pitch on standard rest that day against the Astros, the NY Daily News reports. Maine may not miss a full turn, and could re-enter the rotation as soon as Tuesday at Shea. However with off-days Thursday and Monday, the Mets would be better served allowing Maine to build strength in the surrounding area and not have him start until August 9. Both Pedro Martinez and Billy Wagner have spoken about how painful the injury is and the need for building strength in the shoulder and rest, so hopefully the team errs on the side of caution and doesn’t let Maine talk them into letting him start Tuesday. (Rotowire)

The Mets are calling John Maine day-to-day after an MRI revealed a mild rotator cuff strain. If only it was guaranteed to be the only problem, it’d be great news for the Mets. The team still hasn’t ruled out having him pitch Sunday against the Astros, but it is more likely that he will be skipped one turn. (Rotoworld)

Baseball Prospectus’ Will Carroll had a contrary view in today’s Under the Knife:

Yesterday, someone in the chat fed me a quote from the Mets new pitching coach saying that he’d told the media that Maine’s soreness in the back of his shoulder was a “good sign” and not in a “trouble spot.” It’s a good thing that he’s not a doctor, because the images showed a strained rotator cuff, something most pitchers would call a real trouble spot. Maine’s pain and inflammation is definitely a worry, especially the way that it appeared to increase in severity during his start, sapping velocity and causing a noticeable reaction on Maine’s face. With the return of Pedro Martinez, Jerry Manuel can juggle his rotation to give Maine a little bit of extra rest, but getting him back out there even after the extra time off is going to be risky. The Mets think Maine can come back without heading to the DL, but I’m not as confident.

Braves placed third baseman Chipper Jones on the 15-day disabled list a strained left hamstring. Tim Hudson is joining him. By placing both on the disabled list, the Braves could be waving the white flag on their season, making a Mark Teixeira trade more likely. Omar Infante and Martin Prado will fill in at third base for the next couple of weeks. The move for Jones will likely be retroactive to July 24, so he could return in early August if things go according to plan. He has played in 89 of 103 games this season, but hasn’t played in more than 137 games since the start of the 2004. (Rotoworld, CBS Sports)

Chipper Jones thinks he might need to go on the disabled list because of his strained left hamstring. Jones hasn’t played since Wednesday. “It still bothers me just walking around,” he said. “Doing anything baseball-related is a few days away, at the very least. Braves manager Bobby Cox and general manager Frank Wren said that they would wait until Monday before determining what to do with Jones, who suffered the injury while running down the first-base line. This would be a real devastating blow to Fantasy owners if Jones does end up on the DL. He has played in 89 of 103 games this season, but hasn’t played in more than 137 games since the start of the 2004. He has managed to avoid a DL stint thus far and been very productive for Fantasy owners. Prepare for the worst and consider reserving Jones for Fantasy Week 18 The Braves could make a move on Monday. If they place him on the DL, it’s likely that they’d call up Brent Lillibridge. (Rotoworld, CBS Sports)

Chipper Jones doesn’t believe he’ll need to go on the DL after suffering a strained left hamstring in Wednesday’s game. Jones left Wednesday’s game in the fourth inning with a strained left hamstring. Jones was injured running to first base. However, it does look like he’ll miss some time. “It’s sore right now,” he said. “Hopefully it feels a lot better and I’ll be able to get in there in a couple of days. As of right now it doesn’t look good.” Omar Infante and Martin Prado will fill in if Chipper can’t play this weekend against the Phillies. Jones will be re-evaluated after having a chance to rest during the Braves’ scheduled off-day on Thursday. Jones has avoided the DL thus far this season, despite suffering strains to his right quadriceps and right groin, but he may not be so lucky this time. “It’s sore right now,” Jones said. “I don’t know what the timetable is going to be. Hamstrings are a little more delicate than [quadriceps muscles] or groins. They really affect you when you do any kind of running.” (Rotoworld, Rotowire)

Ryan Spilborghs (left oblique) remains a long way from returning, according to the Denver Post. He is halfway into a projected month-long absence. Spilborghs is limited to running in the treatment pool and will probably be out longer than the initial one-month projection. (Rotowire)

Reds RP Jared Burton missed all three games at Milwaukee because of a strained lateral muscle. The team hopes he can avoid a trip to the DL because of the All-Star break, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer. “We’ll have him throw Thursday,” manager Dusty Baker said. “If he’s not (better), we’ll disable him and get help from Louisville.” Burton is a solid middle reliever for deeper leagues that use true middle men. He could develop into a closer someday, but Francisco Cordero has a long-term deal he signed this winter, so don’t expect it at this point. (CBS Sports)

Ryan Spilborghs (left oblique), who officially went on the 15-Day DL Wednesday, is likely to miss a month, according to the Denver Post. He was on a hot streak and was playing frequently, but his season is now taking an unfortunate detour. Scott Podsednik takes over as Colorado’s fourth outfielder. (Rotowire)

BP’s Will Carroll has more:

Spilborghs has gone from taking the center field job outright to hitting the DL overnight, leaving the Rockies struggling to fill the position while Willy Taveras deals with a quad injury. Spilborghs’ oblique injury is just one of those things that happens, though this is the first oblique strain I can remember occurring on the basepaths. Watching the video, it does look like Spilborgh described it, that he “got shot” somewhere between first and second, which makes me think that this was the point in time where the muscle finally tore, rather than the cause itself. He’ll miss roughly a month, though with oblique strains it’s hard to tell exactly, and they do tend to recur if players aren’t careful. The timing is bad for Spilborghs, who may have lost his chance to lock down the job.