J.J. Hardy will likely begin the season on the disabled list because of a strained left shoulder.

Buck Showalter said Monday that the Baltimore Orioles were optimistic that Hardy wouldn't miss much time and that "nothing would reach into May."

"What they expected to find, they found. Just a matter of how long (he'll be out)," Showalter said. "... It's pretty good news, all things considered."

Hardy was hurt Friday when he collided with second baseman Jonathan Schoop while diving for a ground ball.

The Baltimore Orioles have begun negotiations with Chris Tillman about a possible contract extension.

The two sides have a goal of completing a deal by the start of the season.

According to a source, no dollar figures have been discussed.

Tillman will make $4.3 million in his first year of arbitration eligibility this season if no deal is reached.

The average Major League Baseball team is worth $1.2 billion, according to Forbes.

The valuation represents a 48 percent increase from last year.

The reason for the growth is the national television deal, which the magazine notes will deliver an average of $52 million per team per year through the 2021 season.

The New York Yankees are worth $3.2 billion, tops on the list and just the second United States sports franchise to eclipse the $3 billion mark. The Dallas Cowboys were estimated to be worth $3.2 billion by Forbes last August.

Orioles catcher Matt Wieters, who underwent Tommy John surgery last June, is "unlikely" to begin the season with the team, manager Buck Showalter said.

Wieters played catcher for the first time on Tuesday and reported no ill effects after the game. However on Wednesday, the Orioles shut him down from catching for at least a week.

Showalter said that if Wieters is unable to catch the team's opening game on April 6 at Tampa Bay, he would not be on the roster as a DH.

Matt Wieters has elbow tendinitis after his return from Tommy John surgery and won't play until at least Sunday.

Wieters caught six innings Tuesday for the Baltimore Orioles in his first game behind the plate since elbow surgery June 17. He is 0-for-23 at the plate in spring training.

"The big day for us was coming into today," Buck Showalter said. "He has some tendinitis working there. We're probably not going to DH him for a couple of days to let it all quiet down. Next time we'd consider something with him is Sunday as a DH. He could be cleared sooner."

J.J. Hardy signed a three-year extension with the Baltimore Orioles in October, removing him from speculation this spring.

"It's definitely nice knowing where you're going to be," Hardy said. "I know last year I wondered the whole time if I was going to be here or going to be somewhere else next year. It's just one less thing to think about. I think being able to just kind of focus on baseball and not really worry about any of that other stuff helps."

Hardy has a number of Baltimore teammates who are without a long-term deal.

"I feel like they're a little bit younger than I am," Hardy said. "You're talking about Matt [Wieters] and Chris [Davis], they both have Boras as an agent and he kind of does a lot more decision-making. For me, I told my agent (Mike Seal), 'I like it here. I want to stay here.' So it was more about him trying to work it out so I could stay.

"I think their situations may be just a little bit different when it comes to that, but either way I think they're in a good position for themselves and their families. For me, I signed here because we were good and I like what we have here, so I hope they stay."

The Baltimore Orioles are keeping tabs on Ryan Howard this spring, according to sources.

Howard was 2-for-3 in a spring game between the Orioles and Philadelphia Phillies on Monday.