Spring Training is right around the corner for Major League Baseball teams. All the young Marlins are set to embark on a new season. One key Marlin might not show up to Spring Training on time, and may need to answer to…himself! Instead of preparing for spring training, Gonzalez has spent the past three weeks of his off-season in a Cobb County, Ga., courtroom as a juror in a civil trial over a $126 million Medicare fraud case involving the financial company PricewaterhouseCoopers. When the trial started Jan. 8, Judge Tom Pope told potential jurors that it could last up to six weeks. Gonzalez, a former Atlanta Braves third-base coach hired by the Marlins in October, told the judge he needed to be in Florida for spring training by mid-February.

“The plaintiffs are almost done with their witnesses,” Gonzalez said Wednesday. “Now the defendants get to call their witnesses,”

If the pace slows or if the jury takes long to deliberate, there’s a chance the Marlins will open spring training Feb. 17 without Gonzalez.

“I hope that doesn’t happen,” Gonzalez said. “You never know.”

Anibal Sanchez Health Update - Right-hander Anibal Sanchez had a precautionary MRI on his right shoulder Monday after feeling discomfort while throwing in his native Venezuela. The MRI showed no structural damage, but Sanchez was diagnosed with inflammation and tendinitis. He will not throw for two weeks and will undergo another MRI on Feb. 5. Sanchez is expected to be eased into his spring training routine after pitchers and catchers report Feb. 17.

Source: Palm Beach Post