What promised to be one of the most closely contested battles of spring training ended during the first inning of Baltimore's first spring training game. 2B-R Jerry Hairston suffered a displaced fracture of his right ring finger during a head first slide into third base yesterday. He apparently won't need surgery to set the fracture, however the 27-year-old is expected to need four to six weeks to recover.

Hairston was set to compete in spring training with MI-S Brian Roberts for the Orioles' second base job. Baltimore briefly halted Hairston's training while doctors conducted an EKG as a follow up to some irregularities found during his physical, but Hairston was cleared for play in time to participate in Thursday's game in which he injured his finger. Hairston believes he may have been over tired when the original test was taken, skewing the results. The Orioles are understandably cautious in light of the death of RHP Steve Bechler in which Baltimore partially was blamed for inadequate attention to warning signs in Bechler's physical prior to his spring training overheating.

Roberts has been suffering from back spasms, but the Orioles do not seem to believe that the problem will extend beyond the next few days. Given Hairston's injury took place early in spring training, he'll require some conditioning before he's ready to join the major league team after his finger has healed. Lacking the forum of spring training in which to examine the two, I believe Baltimore should set a relaxed pace for Hairston's rehab while letting Roberts solidify his trade value over the first month of season.

By the time Hairston's ready to come off the DL, the Yankees should be salivating for a more productive force at second base. If the Orioles are reticent about dealing with a division rival, St. Louis, Colorado, and L.A. should be among the other teams interested in a second baseman as well as any team that might have lost a second baseman to injury. I initially felt Baltimore should seek to deal Hairston rather than Roberts, since Roberts is slightly younger and possesses a somewhat better contract situation. However, Hairston's no longer in a position to build up his value for an early trade.