Under the Knife

There's seldom good news when a player is ruled out for the rest of the season.

Bryce Harper is making progress. Nationals fans should be paying attention to Josh Hamilton, who's had a relatively simple return from his similar thumb surgery. Hamilton has made it through this process normally and not much is ever normal for Hamilton.

You know those mutual fund ads that end with something like "past performance does not guarantee future results?" The Tampa Bay Rays medical staff, historically one of the top staffs in terms of results, is having a tough year.

The New York Yankees aren't sitting back and waiting for the results of Mark Teixeira's latest tests on his surgically repaired wrist. According to Jon Heyman of CBS, the Yankees have approached Kendrys Morales, who could sign as soon as Thursday evening.

The Washington Nationals have lost Gio Gonzalez for the next few weeks.

Rehab timelines aren't very flexible. Physical therapists work through a protocol and when an athlete can do all the necessary tasks, they move on to the next one. If they can't, they repeat. Where things get a bit more flexible is once an athlete is past the rehab timeline and into the return timeline.

The news came from Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports. Joey Votto, the Cincinnati Reds star first baseman, stayed in Cincinnati for an MRI and a consultation with team physician Dr.