The Associated Press

CHICAGO - Turns out, Sammy Sosa's injury is nothing to sneeze at.

The Chicago Cubs' star has a sprained ligament in his lower back and is probably headed to the disabled list.

Sosa missed Sunday's game in San Diego after two violent sneezes brought on back spasms. He was examined by Dr. Michael Schaefer, the Cubs' orthopedic specialist, before Tuesday's game against the Giants, and tests revealed the sprained ligament.

"He's going to receive an epidural tonight to calm down some of the inflammation and lower back pain," general manager Jim Hendry said. "It's pretty certain he'll be missing a couple of weeks. So it looks like it's a (disabled list) situation." There were no problems with any discs, Hendry added.

While Sosa missed the game, another slugger returned. Barry Bonds was back in the lineup after missing last weekend's series against Pittsburgh because of back spasms. Giants manager Felipe Alou made up four lineup cards, with Bonds playing in one of them, and waited to see how the left fielder felt during batting practice.

SHORT HOPS: Angels slugger Troy Glaus has been placed on the 60-day disabled list while preparing for shoulder surgery Friday that could sideline him for the rest of the season.

The Angels made the move Tuesday retroactive to May 11 and replaced him on the roster with infielder Adam Riggs, who had been playing with Triple-A Salt Lake.

• Padres left-hander David Wells was placed on the 15-day disabled list Tuesday, two days after cutting his right wrist and left palm in what was described by the team as an accident at home.

• Florida Marlins right-hander A.J. Burnett pitched 4 1/3 innings of shutout ball Tuesday in his first rehabilitation start since reconstructive elbow surgery last year.

• Texas Rangers pitcher Colby Lewis is expected to miss the rest of the season after having rotator cuff surgery on his right shoulder.

• Montreal outfielder Carl Everett returned to the Expos' lineup Tuesday night after missing 30 games because of an injured right shoulder.

• Left-hander Donovan Osborne was designated for assignment by the New York Yankees on Tuesday when the team activated reliever Felix Heredia.