Billy Wagner is officially done for the season and likely lost for a year or more. His elbow is much worse off than we’ve been led to believe. It was revealed that he has a torn flexor pronator, and a torn medial collateral ligament. He is scheduled for surgery next week, the Tommy John variety, which will require a year of recovery and rehabilitation. The flexor pronator is the muscle that turns the hand so that the palm faces down, so it only bothered Wagner on pitches where he turned his wrist. Luis Ayala has probably fallen into the closers role for the foreseeable future. The Mets also got bad news about John Maine, who was told not to throw a baseball for another week. He has just restarted the strengthening exercises that he was doing before being put on the DL. If he returns it will be as a reliever. Maine will need off-season surgery either way. Fernando Tatis is mired in an awful slump. Over his last 30 games he is only batting .225. He still has four home runs and 16 RBI, but he has come back to Earth after a smokin’ hot month of July and early August. He could have another hot streak in him over the last few weeks. Rookie call up Brandon Knight ended up working a scoreless inning of relief instead of starting for Pedro Martinez on Sunday. Knight will likely end up in the rotation at some point, probably in place of Martinez who has labored in his last three outings.

Houston Astros

Ty Wigginton has a pretty serious groin strain that will sideline him for up to 10 days. It doesn’t look good for Wigginton’s return to action before the season ends. The Astros called up career minor leaguer Mark Saccomanno to play third while Wigginton is out. In his first plate appearance in the majors, Saccomanno launched a pinch-hit home run to help the team beat the Pirates Monday. Saccomanno had a decent year in the Pacific Coast League, batting .297 with 27 homers and 84 RBI in 528 at bats. He’s a bit old for a prospect at age 28, and doesn’t project as more than a utility type player, but he could provide a little pop down the stretch if you need it. He will certainly get the playing time, as Wigginton will be out for a while. Brandon Backe is scheduled to throw bullpen session Wednesday, and make his next scheduled start if all goes well. Geoff Geary, recovering from a groin injury that has sidelined him since August 26, is set to return to action. He should be activated Tuesday.

St. Louis Cardinals

Manager Tony LaRussa is talking about using Chris Carpenter in the closers role during the final weeks of the season. Carpenter has had some problems getting loose and probably will not work in a starting role the rest of the way. LaRussa wants to give him some work and thought perhaps once a series Carpenter could be called upon to close out a game. If Carpenter is on your waiver wire you can plug him into a starting pitcher slot and reap the benefits of this little experiment. Of course, there is always the risk that Carpenter gets bombed if he has problems getting loose, but if you’re desperate for saves down the stretch it’s worth the risk. Chris Perez will still close out the games that Carpenter doesn’t get called for, so don’t cut him loose just yet. Albert Pujols is reportedly leaning towards having his elbow repaired as soon as the Cardinals are eliminated from contention for a wild card slot. Pujols could suddenly decide to shut it down if the Cardinals are eliminated, so keep an eye on the Cardinals record and act accordingly if you own Pujols in your league.

Florida Marlins

 Marlins starter Anibel Sanchez got lit up for the fourth consecutive start Monday against the Phillies, coughing up five runs over an inning and two thirds. Sanchez is suffering a fate often seen in pitchers returning from shoulder surgery, his command is eluding him as he tries to make the necessary adjustments of pitching in the majors. Over his last 16 innings, Sanchez has given up 19 runs for a 10.69 ERA. He has also walked nine batters which is unusual for Sanchez, who typically has good control of his stuff. He is someone you probably should not use again this season, but should keep an eye on for next season. Kevin Gregg did well taking grounders Sunday, and is now considered available to pitch out of the bullpen. He will not close out games however. That will continue to fall to Matt Lindstrom for the time being, though Gregg is expected to close again before the season ends.

LA Dodgers

Jason Schmidt (remember him?) will have arthroscopic surgery to remove scar tissue and address arthritic changes in his shoulder. Schmidt has thrown all of 25 innings since the end of the 2006 season due to various injuries. He is expected back next spring, fully healthy and ready to rejoin the starting rotation for the Dodgers. Don’t bet on it. Brad Penny will pitch out of the bullpen when he returns, which could come as soon as this weekend. Penny threw a simulated game that went well. With the Dodgers starters rarely working deep in games lately, Penny could rack up a few innings of work every few days. He won’t have much if any fantasy value out of the bullpen.

San Francisco Giants

Emmanuel Burriss has been diagnosed with a strained oblique injury that will likely end his season. Some folks are questioning Bruce Bochy’s use of Tim Lincecum, and rightly so since the Giants are merely playing out the string. Monday night, Lincecun was left in there for 127 pitches, and two starts ago it was 132 pitches. In fact, in his 14 starts since June 28^th, Lincecum has thrown less than 110 pitches just three times, meaning Bochy has been doing this to the team’s ace for more than half the season. Lincecum is just 24 years old and could be vulnerable to negative consequences of over use. File this information away for 2009 when assessing Lincecum’s fantasy value.  If you're looking for a hitter with a little pop in his bat, give Nate Schierholtz a try. The Giants brought the outfielder up from Triple A where he compiled a .320 average with 18 home runs in just 350 at bats. He is auditioning for a 2009 starting job and will play every day through the end of the season.

Cincinnati Reds

Chris Dickerson missed a couple of games with a sore ankle, but he’s expected back in the lineup Tuesday. In the mean time, it was discovered that Dickerson has flat feet, so a special set of orthotic inserts were custom made for him. He’s already been a fairly fleet base stealer. Perhaps the orthotics will help him further. The Reds have called up a number of other players too in addition to activating Jerry Hairston Jr. from the DL. Second baseman Danny Richar, shortstop Paul Janish, first baseman Adam Rosales, and relievers Jon Adkins and Daniel Herrera were all added to the roster for the final few weeks of the season. Manager Dusty Baker notoriously favors veterans over youngsters, so don’t expect to see too much of these players down the stretch. As such, they can be ignored fantasy-wise.