Week 1B is finally in the books and I don’t know about you, but I am ready to face a new team in my H2H matchups. The first prolonged period seems to always emphasize any glaring issues my teams have that I was hoping weren’t as bad as I thought. (Yes, I see you, 1.49 WHIP and 5.97 ERA. I’ll get to it in a minute.)
With this next round of injuries, chances are good your teams have been impacted by at least one of them, especially in leagues with five outfielders. It was a rough week for those fellas.
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Fantasy Baseball Injury Roundup: Week 1B
Calling All Outfielders
If you have any experience manning the outfield in the major or minor leagues, please stand by your phones.
Jimenez went down with a hamstring strain and was placed on the IL on April 9. He has done some throwing and running since then, so it sounds like he could return on time when the 10 days are up. He is currently Schrodinger’s Trade Candidate in that he is both a good buy low and a good sell low, depending on how you view his injury-prone nature.
Harris landed on the IL with a low back strain, but all updates indicate that he will be back when the 10 days are up. Sam Hilliard, Kevin Pillar, and Eli White are all available on waivers, but it’s perfectly fine to leave them there.
Kepler was placed on the 10-day IL with right knee tendinitis. Matt Wallner replaced him on the roster, but he is the second version of Joey Gallo on a team that already has Joey Gallo and is a speculative add at best.
Duvall injured his wrist trying to make a sliding catch in Sunday’s game against the Tigers. He is undergoing X-rays to determine the severity of the injury. Raimel Tapia replaced him in the game but does not offer much in the way of fantasy value.
The Phenom
Cruz left Sunday’s game after an ugly home-plate collision that resulted in a fractured left ankle. The 24-year-old phenom will miss a good chunk of the 2023 season, and depending on your league determines what you should do with him. He’s an obvious hold in dynasty leagues, but he may be droppable in redraft leagues if you are short on IL space with players scheduled to come back sooner.
The Rest of the Hitters
- Travis d’Arnaud (C – ATL): Placed on the 7-day IL concussion protocol. It’s good Atlanta has Sean Murphy.
- Joey Wendle (2B, 3B, SS – MIA): Dealing with an intercostal strain. Jon Berti and Garrett Hampson will see increased playing time.
- Josh Donaldson (3B – NYY): Right hamstring strain. DJ LeMahieu will see the majority of playing time at third.
- Darick Hall (1B – PHI): Will require surgery for his thumb. Timetable unknown.
- Luis Garcia (2B, SS – WAS): Considered day-to-day with a hamstring injury.
- Kyle Lewis (OF – ARI): Placed on 10-day IL with an undisclosed illness.
- Austin Meadows (OF – DET): Placed on IL for anxiety with no timetable for return. Akil Baddoo called up.
- Jose Siri (OF – TB): Right hamstring strain. Timetable unknown.
- Omar Narvaez (C – NYM): Left calf strain, possibly out until June. Francisco Alvarez called up.
The Pitchers
- Kyle Bradish (SP – BAL): Threw a side session and is expected to miss minimum time.
- Andres Munoz (RP – SEA): On 15-day IL with right deltoid strain. Timetable unknown.
- Johnny Cueto (SP – MIA): On 15-day IL with right biceps tendinitis. Braxton Garrett called up.
- Jonathan Loaisiga (RP – NYY): MRI revealed no structural damage. Possible return in mid-May.
- Packy Naughton (SP, RP – STL): MRI revealed no structural damage. Timetable unknown.
- Zach Davies (SP – ARI): On 15-day IL with a left oblique strain. Timetable unknown.
Injury Updates
Here are the latest updates on the already-injured players.
Lars Nootbaar is still set to swing for the first time tomorrow in Colorado. Sounds like his being activated for that series is not very likely based on wanting to see how he responds to that sort of activity, plus he hasn’t caught with it yet.
— Jeff Jones (@jmjones) April 9, 2023
Tyler Glasnow was throwing again today. Said he's been long tossing for a while, out past 120 feet. He expects to throw a bullpen next week. #RaysUp
— Kristie Ackert (@ByKristieAckert) April 9, 2023
Bob Melvin said Joe Musgrove tweaked his shoulder trying to make a play in his rehab start and could have his next rehab start pushed back a day or two.
That would, in turn, push back his expected return to the Padres rotation from April 16 to a day or two after that.— Kevin Acee (@sdutKevinAcee) April 9, 2023
Seiya Suzuki (OF – CHC)
Kyle Hendricks (SP – CHC)
Brandon Hughes (RP – CHC)
Cubs updates:
• Suzuki will DH today for Iowa
• Hughes will pitch again for Iowa early next week
• Hendricks will throw a bullpen Monday, after throwing live BP this past Friday— Jordan Bastian (@MLBastian) April 9, 2023
Drew Rucinski is set to make a rehab outing with Triple-A Las Vegas on Wednesday, also 3 innings/45 pitches.
— Martín Gallegos (@MartinJGallegos) April 8, 2023
James Paxton starting for Worcester on Sunday. He’s likely got a few more after that. Wyatt Mills is not progressing as hoped. Not in a throwing program.
— Pete Abraham (@PeteAbe) April 8, 2023
Garrett Whitlock (SP, RP – BOS)
Garrett Whitlock is in the clubhouse and said he’s pitching Tuesday at Tampa.
— Julian McWilliams (@byJulianMack) April 8, 2023
We’ll see you next Monday. May you all keep your IL spots open and, as always, good luck!
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Kelly Kirby is a featured writer and the lead copyeditor at FantasyPros. You can check out her archive here and follow her on Twitter at @thewonkypenguin.
