Howdy, Razzfolks!
Had ourselves another doozy of a week. Plenty to cover this time around and some big names are involved. What else can be said that hasn’t been said already? Even that’s been said already. Let’s just get this over with.
Infielders
Adalberto Mondesi: At least we can start off with some good news. Mondesi was activated this week and homered in his first game back. It’s more than a little surprising that he has a hit in all but two games he’s played this year, not gonna lie.
Alex Bregman: IL (quad) – The severity of the quad injury isn’t known, but it’s enough to land Bregman on the Irritating List for now.
Anthony Rendon: DTD (triceps) – Rendon didn’t play Thursday and was questionable for Friday. At the time of writing, it’s still unclear whether he can play. Sounds like a trip to IL likely won’t be necessary, though.
Cody Bellinger: IL (hammy) – Dave Roberts is “optimistic” Bellinger can return when eligible. Keyword being “optimistic” rather than something like “confident,” and we’re talking about the 2021 fantasy baseball season, so that means he definitely won’t.
Corey Seager: IL (hand) – Should start hitting this weekend and then rehab sometime later in the week. I swear to all things holy if there’s a setback between now and then…
J.D. Davis: IL (hand) – Not much to hang your hat on, but JDD is swinging again and hopes to rehab within the next couple weeks. Put me in camp I’ll Believe It When I See It.
Jeff McNeil: IL (hammy) – McNeil began rehab back on Sunday and should join the team tomorrow or Monday. TGFBI team is *Jack Nicholson slow head nod GIFing* so hard right now.
Luke Voit: IL (oblique) – Voit has begun rehab and hopes to be back with Yanks on Tuesday. It’s anyone’s guess whether we get continued 2021 Voit or super sexy 2020 Voit.
Max Muncy: IL (oblique) – Reportedly, Muncy is pain-free and should be back when eligible, barring setbacks of course. Below, you see my take a month and a half ago on Muncy. Now I’m just Bottom Drake x2 on him. Not a speck of blue on the Statcast profile and his rolling xwOBA for the past 250 PA looks like a stock chart I’d feel good about having some money in.
— JKJ (@jkj0787) May 6, 2021
Mike Moustakas: IL (heel) – Ugh. He was pulled from rehab after feeling more pain. Now he’s in a walking boot and shut down for about a week before re-revaluation.
Nick Madrigal: IL (hammy) – Just in case you thought Madrigal might come back at some point, he underwent surgery is definitely out ROS. There’s no reason to believe he won’t be ready for 2022, but that doesn’t mean jack diddly to anyone who owned him in redrafts.
Outfielders
Andrew Benintendi: IL (ribs) – Bounce back daddy, affectionately known as Benny Baseball to us Hog fans, is on the shelf for roughly 3-5 weeks after fracturing his rib. Not too many guys out there have 8 HR and 7 SB; a guy who was largely undrafted is (at the time of writing) sitting at #78 on our Player Rater.
Byron Buxton: IL (hammy) – Welpppp we have some setbacks, cuz of course we do. He “felt something” in his rehab games and just doesn’t feel ready to go 100% anymore. Maybe if this were playoff baseball he’d be out there, but the Twins want him able to run at 100% sprint speed before they put him back in action. Gotta think it’s sooner rather than later, right?! I miss him. We all miss him. Sorting by $/G on Player Rater, dude’s #4 ($77.7), but really he’s #1 cuz the other three guys there haven’t played any more than 10 games apiece.
Eloy Jimenez: IL (pectoral) – Some light can now be seen at the end of this very dark tunnel. Jimenez was cleared to start some baseball activities. Obvs we’re talking some pretty serious/lengthy rehab here, but it’s very feasible once the calendar hits August that Eloy could be ready to rock. Sometime in August, that is.
George Springer: IL (quad) – Springer played a rehab game Wednesday and felt great after. He even played five innings in the field. There’s an outside chance he rejoins the Blue Jays this weekend.
Starters
Brady Singer: DTD (shoulder) – Singer left Wednesday’s start allegedly with shoulder tightness, but Mike Matheny said they pulled him just because his pitch count was reached. Take that for what it’s worth, but at least it sounds like we’re not talking about anything very serious here. *Ominous music* for nowww.
Chris Sale: IL (TJS recovery) – Sale faced live batters on Friday and was said to have some nasty stuff working. A rehab stint could be very near!
Jacob deGrom: DTD (shoulder) – Oh boy. The GOAT was pulled after 3 utterly elite IP Wednesday. The Mets ran an MRI and two whole actual doctors looked at it and found no issue. Coming from the Mets and just taking a peek at their injury list transactions throughout this year, I don’t know if I put a single speck of trust into it, but hey I’m no doctor! You be the judge on how reassuring this tweet is, but deGrom did throw a pen session yesterday.
The Jacob deGrom update, in sum: After an MRI and opinions from multiple doctors, deGrom is fine, according to the Mets. The parties involved say his 3-4 recent injuries are unrelated. They don't really know why this keeps happening. Next start TBD. No IL for now.
— Tim Healey (@timbhealey) June 17, 2021
Luis Severino: IL (TJS/groin) – Mannn this one was so 2021. Severino was on the verge of returning to the Yankees within a matter of like two or three weeks and he goes and injures his groin in a rehab start. It looked very painful; he had to be helped off the field by two others. Turns out it’s a Grade 2 groin strain that will push his return back to late July at the earliest probably.
Matthew Boyd: IL (triceps) – A triceps injury will sideline Boyd, who’s been enjoying a helluva bounce-back season, at least until June 25.
Max Scherzer: IL (groin) – Scherzer’s IL stay does at least sound like it’ll be a short one. He’s eligible June 22 and for now, he’s scheduled to be back in the rotation this coming week.
Michael Pineda: IL (forearm) – Pineda hit the IL this past week but could start throwing bullpen sessions soon. His 3.70 ERA and 1.14 WHIP have been plenty serviceable in fantasy, but his last three starts have been ugly and maybe injury was to blame.
Mike Soroka: IL (Achilles) – Soroka’s exploratory procedure was successful and apparently the actual tendon is fully healed. The next step is to focus on rebuilding leg/calf strength once the walking boot is removed. He’s doing some throwing exercises in the meantime. I’m not too optimistic he’ll return in time to be a fantasy asset, but you never know.
Shane Bieber: IL (shoulder strain) – Sounds like a two-week minimum absence for Bieber, who’s been shut down and will be re-evaluated when that time period is up. Biebs hasn’t been the elite ace you hoped for, sitting at #21 on the Player Rater among SP thus far.
Stephen Strasburg: IL (neck) – Strasburg will see a specialist to determine the next steps in how to handle the nerve irritation he’s still feeling. For now, at like the leastest of leasts, he was seen playing catch in the outfield before Wednesday’s game. First time he’s done anything since hitting the IL.
Steven Matz: IL (COVID) – Matz tested positive for COVID but has no symptoms. As long as that holds up, he should be back before too long.
Tyler Glasnow: IL (elbow) – The beautiful, talented, beautiful, potty-mouthed, and very beautiful Tyler Glasnow is all but done for the season after partially tearing his UCL. You’ve heard of Elf on the Shelf, now get ready for…Ace on the Shelf! Did I do that right? But in all seriousness, the number of injured aces seems like it’s at an all-time high, and this thirst trap of a specimen landing among them just feels like too much. Maybe we should pause baseball until everyone gets healthy again, rules get sorted out, baseballs get sorted out, foreign substance drama gets sorted out, and Manfred gets run the hell out. I can’t help but think Glasnow has Tommy John in his future, but I’m praying I’m wrong. Below is Glasnow’s explanation on why Manfart is to blame for his injury, and he ain’t wrong.
Here is Tyler Glasnow explaining his frustration.
“I am telling you i believe that’s why I got hurt. I’m frustrated they don’t understand. Pitchers need to be able to have some control & grip on the ball. Don’t want this to happen to a anyone else, a fastball to slip away.” pic.twitter.com/W4zRbpmqDX
— Tricia Whitaker (@TriciaWhitaker) June 15, 2021
Zac Gallen: Well, at least we got one ace back, but it was an ugly outing. I was super wrong about Gallen cuz I thought he was definitely done for the year, but here he is. Maybe Glasnow will be the same. Gallen only lasted 2.2 innings and was smacked for 4 H and 4 ER. He only walked one batter and struck out three, so that’s something.
Relievers
Daniel Hudson: IL (elbow) – Hudson is dealing with inflammation. Doesn’t sound any worse than that. After having two Tommy Johns, Hudson said this isn’t a similar feeling.
Ian Kennedy: Kennedy was activated on Wednesday. Thank goodness cuz that Rangers pen is a mess without him. Expect full closing duties moving forward.
Find me on Twitter: @jkj0787. DMs are always open for questions, comments, concerns, complaints, and the like! Odds are good I’m drinking black coffee, dark beer, or some form of bourbon at any given time.
