Markakis had surgery on Thursday, hopes to be ready for Opening Day

So Dan Connolly of The Baltimore Sun dropped this bit of news a few minutes ago:

#Orioles RF Nick Markakis underwent significant abdomen surgery on Thursday in Philly to repair a torn rectus abdominus muscle
— Dan Connolly (@danconnollysun) January 6, 2012

Connolly also said that "Markakis is hopeful he will be able to be ready by Opening Day but will have a significantly lighter load in [spring training]." The injury/surgery news is surprising, but maybe not overly so. Markakis, who sustained the abdomen injury in September, had still not completely recovered in November and has not been able to work out.

Hopefully Markakis is ready for the start of the season. Still, it's something to file away as April approaches.