Good Morning! Today’s fantasy baseball injury report may be the longest of the season thus far. Eighteen players were not in the lineup yesterday after playing on Saturday, dealing with bumps, bruises, illnesses and etc. I go over who their replacements could be within the depth chart and give you a vibe on their fantasy potential.
Batters: Royce Lewis, Tim Anderson, Kyle Tucker, Wil Myers, Robbie Grossman, Harrison Bader, Ben Gamel, Brad Miller, Leury Garcia, Kyle Lewis, Danny Jansen
Pitchers: Zack Greinke, Sonny Gray, Kyle Freeland, Elvin Rodriguez, Drew Smith, Cody Poteet, Jimmy Herget
Batters
Chicago White Sox: Tim Anderson (SS)/Leury Garcia (RF/2B/3B/SS/CF/LF) - During the inter-city game against the Cubs, Anderson was injured on defense as he suffered a groin injury. He was unable to get off the field under his own power and this is going to be a massive blow to fantasy teams (and my dynasty team). To make matters worse, Leury Garcia was nursing an injury to begin with and tried to force the issue to replace Anderson. He would pinch hit and then have to exit, unable to play the field after becoming injured going around the bases. Danny Mendick is the third option at SS on the team and the only one left at the MLB level to cover the slot. He has hit .259 this season through 27 at bats and is a .240 hitter in 132 games over his career.
Detroit Tigers: Robbie Grossman (RF/LF) - Although he was taking the day off on defense, Grossman came away from the game against the Guardians with an injury. Apparently, he has a neck issue after taking one at bat as the DH. This situation could keep Eric Haase in the lineup as the team returns to Tucker Barnhart behind the plate. Haase has struggled this season to match his totals from last year, going only .176 at the plate with two home runs.
Houston Astros: Kyle Tucker (LF) - It was revealed mid-morning yesterday that Tucker was dealing with a foot injury after Saturday night against the Mariners. This foot issue resulted in his absence from the lineup last night. Jose Siri is the next best option to slot into the lineup without Tucker and Jake Meyers out of the order. Chas McCormick is already covering for Meyers. Siri has stolen five bases this season after 91 at bats, hitting .220.
Minnesota Twins: Royce Lewis (SS) - The young star was just recalled from the minors when he suffered an injury on defense yesterday against the Royals. He would collide with the wall, making an incredible play on the ball. They didn’t want to play Kyle Garlick in the outfield and maybe that was their mistake. I had touched on Garlick the last couple days as a utility option for them. He’s hit .279 through 43 at bats with four home runs.
Pittsburgh Pirates: Ben Gamel (LF/CF/RF) - During the contest against the Padres on Saturday night, Gamel suffered a hamstring injury. Further testing yesterday revealed it was much worse than anticipated and he was promptly placed on the IL. Options are limited for the squad when it comes to depth, the top options in the corner outfield slots are Jack Suwinski and Cal Mitchell. Mitchell has done much better than Suwinski thus far, hitting .238 but only taking 21 trips to the plate. The 23-year-old had been hitting over .300 in AAA this season.
San Diego Padres: Wil Myers (RF/LF) - It was revealed yesterday that Myers has been dealing with a knee injury and may miss today’s contest as a result, after missing yesterday’s tilt to begin with. Jose Azocar is the last remaining RF at the MLB level, both Brent Rooker and CJ Abrams down in the minors. Azocar has hit .235 this season through 51 at bats this season. He stole 17 bases in 49 games last season in AAA.
Seattle Mariners: Kyle Lewis (CF) - The reason is not known for his absence from the lineup yesterday. It could be personal, an injury, or illness related. Given his history, it’s hard to rule out something a bit injury related but that wouldn’t be fair to him. Without Lewis, Taylor Trammell becomes the top utility outfielder on the team. Trammell has seen only 13 at bats this season but the 24-year-old does have a .166 average through 57 games in his career.
St. Louis Cardinals: Harrison Bader (CF) - Add “stuffy” to the list of reasons for a player not being in the lineup. The weather changed the Bader missed the game as a result. Lars Nootbaar is literally the only traditional CF option on the MLB roster without Bader nor Dylan Carlson available. Nootbaar has smashed the ball at a blister .115 rate after 26 at bats. The 24-year-old has hit .215 after 70 games in his MLB career.
Texas Rangers: Brad Miller (1B/2B/3B/LF/RF) - The utility man was great at the plate yesterday against the Athletics, going 2/2 with a home run. However, his day would end early after suffering a hip issue midway through the contest. Charlie Culberson is behind him as a utility option, sitting on a .234 average after just 47 at bats. The veteran has hit .246 through nearly 550 games over his career.
Toronto Blue Jays: Danny Jansen (C) - Out of the three injured parties going into yesterday’s game against the Angels, Jansen was the only one who actually never took the field. Vlad and Teoscar ended up getting at least an at bat in, thus excluding themselves from this list. Jansen is dealing with a hip issue, and it’s not considered to be serious. Alejandro Kirk is more than happy to see more at bats, the young catcher has done well this season. Kirk has hit .289 and drawn 17 walks through 121 at bats this season.
Pitchers
Colorado Rockies: Kyle Freeland (SP) - The starting hurler struggled yesterday in his start against the Nationals, giving up five runs in 5.2 innings pitched. He would be unable to complete six full innings due to an ankle injury. A former starter in the bullpen for the club at the MLB level is Ty Blach and he may see a look in the rotation if Freeland misses time. Blach has had issues as a reliever this season, posting a 5.26 ERA after 25.2 innings.
Detroit Tigers: Elvin Rodriguez (SP) - In his third start of the season, Elvin was dominant through four innings against the Guardians. Rodriguez had not given up a single run in the outing before exiting with a lower body issue. Given the lack of healthy starters on the club, they could have to dig deep and recall Joey Wentz. The 24-year-old has posted a K/9 higher than 11 through 7 starts in AAA this season and has allowed a 4.73 ERA.
Kansas City Royals: Zack Greinke (SP) - The veteran pitcher may have reached that point in his career where his best years are officially behind him. Greinke has posted an ERA above five this season and yesterday had to exit his start due to a forearm issue. He had gone four innings against the Twins and gave up 5 runs prior to being pulled. The squad has a few options in AAA to choose from as a recall to fill out the rotation if necessary. Carlos Hernandez is the only one out of the three pitchers in AAA who have been with the big club this season not to give up an ERA above ten with the Royals in 2022. He also has an ERA below six in AAA, another good sign. The bar is set at the floor right now.
Los Angeles Angels: Jimmy Herget (RP) - The long reliever is not currently able to pitch due to a fingernail problem and hasn’t seen the mound in three days. This injury has allowed Jaime Barria to get more opportunities as a middle relief option for the club. Barria has given up only four runs in 23.1 innings pitched this season, posting a K/9 of 7.71 along the way.
Miami Marlins: Cody Poteet (SP/RP) - A surprise placement on the IL for Poteet yesterday has left the Marlins scrambling to fill out the rotation. Cody is dealing with an elbow injury, which is very worrisome, and hasn’t pitched since 5/25. With the injury to Max Meyer in AAA, this leaves Edward Cabrera as the only healthy starter in the organizational depth chart that isn’t in the MLB at the moment. The highly touted prospect made seven starts last season with Miami and struggled with an ERA of 5.81 and K/9 of 9.75. However, through five starts in AAA this season he’s posted an ERA below five (bar is set low) and a K/9 above 12.
Minnesota Twins: Sonny Gray (SP) - After accomplishing his third consecutive quality start, Sonny was pulled from the mound against the Twins yesterday after six innings due to a pectoral injury. He had given up only two hits in the contest. Looking through the depth chart and at all the injuries, the Twins may have to resort to recalling an old face to the rotation. Chi Chi Gonzalez is sitting in the minors right now and has been solid in five starts for the AAA affiliate. The veteran pitcher went 3-7 last season with the Rockies in 18 starts, posting an ERA of 6.46 and K/9 below five.
New York Mets: Drew Smith (RP) - Whilst attempting to make a play on a comebacker yesterday against the Phillies, Smith would dislocate a finger. He tried to catch the ball barehanded. Needless to say, he exited the game. Colin Holderman is an interesting face in the pen for the Mets at the moment. He hasn’t given up a run through eight innings of work in relief this season and struck out 9.