'Might be over before it starts'

The title of this post is not good news for Ryan Feierabend ('04).

It was the day the Mariners took the field for their first baseball game of the year. But for 23-year-old left-handed pitcher Ryan Feierabend, his 2009 season might have ended before the game even began.

The Mariners revealed on Wednesday that Feierabend, expected to compete for a bullpen spot this spring, will likely undergo surgery on his left elbow next week in Los Angeles. Feierabend is to meet there next week with Dr. Lewis Yocum, who will determine the extent of the damage and decide whether surgery is the best course.

If that happens, Feierabend would undergo surgery March 4.

"It's a ligament injury," Mariners manager Don Wakamatsu said before his team took the field for a 4-3, 10-inning loss to the San Diego Padres in the annual charity game between the squads. "We don't know the extent of it, but it doesn't look good."

Here's hoping for the best for the former Midwest League All-Star.