Baseball is (almost) back!!! That also means that injuries are back. We are going to look at who is coming back from injury before/during the shutdown as well as those who have been injured since most camps have ramped up.
We all know that we are going to be an odd injury situation this year with coronavirus, I will do the best I can to keep everyone informed. Due to the nature of the disease, it is going to be a tough task to accurately assess the outlook for each player who contracts COVID.
We are going to start with welcoming those who were injured between Spring Training and now. So with that being said, welcome back!!
Justin Verlander – Right Groin Surgery
About 4 months ago, Justin Verlander underwent surgery on his right groin. He is penciled in as the Opening Day starter for the Astros. He should be good to go and without any lingering issues, so draft/start him as you normally would.
Aaron Judge – Rib Stress Fracture
Aaron Judge was expected to start the season on the IL due to a first rib stress fracture. Judge was probably the player that benefitted the most from the extra time off. He looks ready to go, and I wouldn’t expect him to skip a beat.
Willie Calhoun – Jaw Surgery
Willie Calhoun broke his jaw during Spring Training and required surgery. He was expected to be ready for the delayed Opening Day. Last week, Calhoun strained a hip flexor and was expected to miss the start of the season. On Sunday, 7/19, Calhoun played in the Ranger’s intrasquad game. This new development makes it seem that Calhoun could be ready for Opening Day, or only miss the beginning of the season. While every game is ultra important in a 60 game season, I wouldn’t be scared off if you are targeting Calhoun. So welcome back, kind of. We will see.
Return Date: July 27th
New Injuries Prior to Opening Day
Jacob deGrom – Back soreness
Jacob deGrom strained his back during an intrasquad game this past week. An MRI and a clean bill of health puts deGrom on the path to be the Opening Day start for the Mets.
Return Date: Opening Day (First round of starts at the latest).
Xander Bogaerts – Hamstring
Xander Bogaerts tweaked his hamstring during the Red Sox intrasquad game on Sunday. As of 7/20, Bogaerts claims he is feeling fine. I would expect him to be ready for Opening Day or shortly thereafter. I wouldn’t be too concerned about this injury moving forward.
Return Date: Opening Day-July 27th
Byron Buxton – Foot
Same song different year for Byron Buxton, the often-injured player looks like he is on his way to missing the start of the season. As of Sunday, reports are showing that Buxton was running in the outfield but I wouldn’t get too excited about this news. While he might be ready for Opening Day, I would put it at 60/40 he misses the start of the season.
Return Date: Early August
Anthony Rizzo – Back Tightness
Anthony Rizzo tweaked his back once again. He should be good to go for Opening Day, but this is something that has bothered Rizzo for years. I wouldn’t be surprised if this is something that comes up again during the season. So I’m going to be a little more cautious with Rizzo moving forward, I’d put him at 90-90% of his expected stat line.
Return Date: Opening Day
Anthony Rendon – Oblique
Anthony Rendon injured his oblique on 7/17. The Angels are reporting that Rendon is feeling fine, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he misses the first week or two of the season. With a 60 game season, Rendon is at risk of missing 20% of the season before we even get started.
Return Date: Early August
Covid-19 List
I think the best way to handle the players who are confirmed to have Covid-19 is to have a list. As the player returns we will remove them from the list. This disease is unpredictable and is hard to accurately gauge, but if one of my players comes down with the disease I’m expecting 7-10 days missed. Just keep in mind that it could easily be shorter and longer than 7-10 days.
Charlie Blackmon: Reported 6/23 – Returned
Delino DeShields: Reported 7/3 – Out
Tommy Pham: Reported 7/3 – Returned
Salvador Perez: Reported 7/4 – Returned
Freddie Freeman: Reported 7/4 – Returned
Will Smith: Reported 7/4 – Should be ready for Opening Day
DJ LeMahieu: Reported 7/4 – Returned
Joey Gallo: Reported 7/6 – Returned
Scott Kingery: Reported 7/7 – Returned
Aroldis Chapman: Reported 7/11 – Out
Kenley Jansen: Reported 7/12 – Returned
Tyler Glasnow: Reported 7/14 – Returned
Yoan Moncada: Reported 7/16 – Returned
Austin Meadows: Reported 7/16 – Out
Yasiel Puig: Reported 7/17 – Out
AJ Pollock: Reported 7/18 – Returned
As always, if there is someone else you have a question about, leave me a comment or send me a tweet! I will get to them as I’m able to.
Featured Image by Justin Paradis (@freshmeatcomm on Twitter)