Friday Fantasy News

- Here's an unsettling bit of news courtesy of Eric Karabell at ESPN. Albert Pujols made some comments this week that might make me worried if I was a Pujols owner.

"Pujols said he decided against offseason surgery on his right elbow, a trouble spot for several years, because he would have had to miss a significant portion if not all the 2008 season. Pujols still is unable to straighten his arm, but team doctors concluded that because he plays first base, an operation can be postponed.
He said his elbow bothered him the second half of last season, and said if that happens again he wouldn't try to soldier through it.
'If the same problem is happening this year, I don't think I'm going to play the whole year the same way," Pujols said. "I sacrificed my body.'"

So Pujols can't straighten his arm completely, and if he feels like it's going to be a problem throughout the year, like it was last year, he'll have surgery that could keep him out for "a significant portion if not all the 2008 season." That's the kind of news that makes your sphincter tighten if you were counting on Pujols to carry your team.

Karabell goes on to make the point that we don't know anything until we here more or until we see Pujols miss time during spring training. We have to assume though that Pujols' numbers in 2008 will be closer to his totals in 2007 than in 2006.

So for Pujols owners in 2008 (that's you Brubaker), don't lose hope yet and give in to that below value deal that someone in your league is going to lowball you with. Wait until we hear something else, and then trade Pujols for something close to value if you can.

- On the brighter side, the Denver Post reports that Rockies manager Clint Hurdle wants to manufacture more runs by giving Troy Tulowitzki and Matt Holliday the green light more often. So for Tulowitzki and Holliday owners (like you Micah), you might expect a few more stolen base opportunities for those two this year.