LaRoche to miss eight to 10 weeks

He has a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right thumb and will need surgery, which Ned said will take place in the next couple of days, probably in Los Angeles. No word yet on how this will affect the roster makeup, other than it pretty much guarantees Nomar will begin the season as the everyday 3B. As for a backup, could be any number of guys: Tony Abreu or Ramon Martinez, both of whom have extensive experience at the position, or Delwyn Young or Chin-lung Hu, neither of whom has ever played there but have good enough hands that they likely could adjust quickly. At any rate, this is devastating news for LaRoche, a really good guy who has had his share of bad breaks and injury issues during his career.