Less than two weeks ago, Brewers right fielder Corey Hart underwent arthroscopic surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee. Now, Hart tells MLB.com's Adam McCalvy, he's "way ahead of schedule" in his rehab. In fact, Hart, presumably with physician approval, recently took the treadmill before he even had his stitches removed. On Friday, those stiches were removed, and then Hart took some swings off the tee and threw in the outfield.

Still, Hart hasn't seen any game action this spring training, so, even with his speedy convalescence, he'll be pressed to ready by opening day. As well, memories of the lingering oblique strain that he suffered last year in camp (and eventually caused him to miss the first 22 games of the regular season) may prompt the Brewers to take a more conservative approach.

Hart has slugged better than .500 in back-to-back seasons, and he turned in a 31-homer campaign in 2010 (good for 8th-best in the NL). Needless to say, Hart's power bat will be essential to the team's hopes in 2012, especially with Prince Fielder now a Tiger. The good news is that regardless of whether Hart is in the opening-day lineup, an extended absence seems highly unlikely.