Stars on the Shelf: TheFantasyFix.com’s Week 13 DL Report
photo by: njnetfan
Here is TheFantasyFix.com’s week thirteen update on all notable injured players, right here in one spot. Here you will find an update on a player’s progress as well as my spin on their expected return dates and fantasy impact upon return. The players are listed by expected return date.
There is really no big “addition” this week but big news in that Mark Teixeira and Corey Hart are out for the season. Also, ARod making statements that he may not play again.
NEW ON THE SHELF: Melky Cabrera, Dan Haren, Michael Morse
BACK IN ACTION: Chase Utley, Aaron Hill, Pablo Sandoval, Matt Kemp, Jose Reyes, Chris Perez, Bryce Harper (Monday), Rafael Betancourt, Asdrubal Cabrera, JJ Putz
OUT FOR SEASON: Mark Teixeira, Corey Hart
| PLAYER | EXPECTED RETURN DATE | LATEST UPDATE |
|---|---|---|
| David Price | 7/2/2013 | Price was excellent in his 5 inning rehab start. He is ready to go, and if the Rays agree, he will be activated by around Tuesday. I think he is going to come back strong in the second half, so my advice is to buy him low before he makes his return start. The moment after he has his first lights out start his value will be restored. |
| Everth Cabrera | 7/2/2013 | Cabrera isn’t going all full speed right now, but he has been taking ground balls, hitting, and running. He could still return early next week but that is TBD. |
| Jedd Gyorko | 7/5/2013 | Gyorko felt his groin tweak in a rehab game the other day and he will not return as planned this weekend. I am pushing him back one week, but it could be sooner. |
| Brett Lawrie | 7/5/2013 | Lawrie is on a rehab assignment already and I assume after a dozen or so at-bats he could be activated to rejoin the Blue Jays. What’s tricky here is that since he has been gone the Jays have been on fire. I am not a Lawrie fan, from a baseball perspective and a fantasy perspective. If he was dropped in your league he is worth a flyer I guess, especially if you are hurting at 3B, but this guy is definitely on my 2013 TEAM BUST. |
| Michael Morse | 7/7/2013 | Morse is out with a strained quad muscle that he was playing through for a while. His numbers took a dive after an early season surge, so the injury could be the reason. Due to back dating the DL stint, he could come off the DL on the 7th of July. |
| Anibal Sanchez | 7/7/2013 | Sanchez will go on a one and done rehab game assignment around Tuesday of next week. If that goes well he can rejoin the Tigers which could set him up to pitch as early as Sunday the 7th. Sanchez has been a pleasant surprise this year. It’s as though he manned up in the playoffs last year and never looked back (aside from this DL stint of course). |
| Michael Pineda | 7/10/2013 | Pineda has been stellar in his rehab outings, while hitting up to 95 on the radar gun. He is approaching full outing workloads as his next rehab start should afford him to throw around 90-100 pitches. The Yankees are mum on when he could join them but it appears to just be a matter of seeing him throw consecutive full starts before they make a move. The rotation could use him if he remains this effective. Phil Hughes should keep an eye on his rear view mirror. I think we could see Pineda make a start before the All Star break for the Yankees. |
| Melky Cabrera | 7/12/2013 | Melky is on the shelf with knee tendonitis. He has been a huge diasppointment this year with an OPS in the 600s. I called him a post-roid bust out of the gate and so far that is accurate. This sounds like a rest type of situation so I think he’ll be back after the initial 15 days expire. |
| Dan Haren | 7/17/2013 | Haren has only mild inflammation in his pitching shoulder and is actually resuming throwing. He is probably a couple of weeks away from returning, so they will likely wait until after the All Star break to give him that extra rest. |
| Clay Buchholz | 7/17/2013 | Buchholz is falling out of graces with owners as he hits the DL, a sudden reminder of the Buchholz we have come to know over the past several seasons. Buchholz had an MRI on his shoulder which showed some inflammation. He is shut down for a week from throwing and if all goes well once he resumes, he could be back around the All Star break. Another attempt to get to 200 innings for Buchholz is flushed down the toilet. |
| Ryan Braun | 7/17/2013 | the famous phrase “no timetable for his return” has been applied to Braun by writers everywhere. I am just taking a shot in the dark and saying post-All Star Game for his return. Right now he can’t grip or swing a bat due to a nerve issue in his hand. That obviously isn’t good news, but that’s also the kind of thing that can go away in a day all of a sudden. Nerve’s are funny that way. So I am shooting for the All Star break. Let’s see if I hit this one. |
| AJ Burnett | 7/17/2013 | Burnett threw a bullpen earlier in the week and has another one set for this weekend. If that goes well he will go on a rehab assignment. he will likely need a couple of rehab starts so that puts us as ten days after this weekend for the second rehab start. I am still guessing the Pirates will give him the All Star break to make sure he’s good to go, but he could sneak a start in before the break if he has no setbacks. |
| Carl Crawford | 7/17/2013 | Crawford is running again, and could go on a rehab assignment soon. The Dodgers have the luxury to not rush him back thanks to MVPuig (hated typing that). It will be interesting to see what role Crawford plays when he returns, unless of course the Dodgers find a trade partner for Andre Ethier. The Dodgers think he could be back before the break, but Crawford hasn’t earned that optimism from me with his track record. All Star break. |
| Brandon Beachy | 7/19/2013 | Beachy is back to just playing catch although he may be throwing a bullpen this weekend. If that goes well he could start approaching rehab games again. he would need to build up his pitch count, which would take a few starts, and then require consecutive “full length” starts to show he can handle it before he is reinstated into an already successful Braves rotation. I am reading he could be back just after the All Star break now, but I don’t blame people for having doubts about him coming back as Tommy John setbacks can lead to bad endings (Daniel Hudson). |
| Adam Eaton | 7/19/2013 | Eaton has been DHing in his rehab games. Its uncertain when he will play the OF, but that will be the real test. Until then it is hard to determine a return date, but mid to late July is what we have to assume/expect. He will pay off if you stashed him, the guy is talented. |
| Troy Tulowitzki | 7/20/2013 | Tulo could be cleared to swing a bat soon as the rib pain subsides. The timetable for after the All Star break still seems realistic here. |
| Ryan Vogelsong | 7/22/2013 | Vogelsong can begin throwing again soon. You figure by the time he goes through the process of throwing, long toss, flat ground pitches, bullpens, and rehab starts, he is probably still a month away from returning. The end of July is likely for his return to the Giants rotation. |
| Curtis Granderson | 7/23/2013 | Granderson is able to throw but not catch, and he cannot swing a bat yet. The bone is healed but the tendons are apparently not at full strength yet. He is still around 4 weeks away from returning. |
| Jake Peavy | 7/23/2013 | Peavy played catch the other day which is a major step forward from last week’s “riding a stationary bike” update. He is still on pace, barring setbacks, to rejoin the White Sox after the All Star break. |
| Colby Lewis | 7/25/2013 | Lewis still hasn’t faced live hitters, and until that happens there is no way to guess when his rehab assignment will begin. You can guarantee this, he is probably still a month away. Being that he has been out so long, and it being an elbow injury, he will require an extensive rehab assignment, at least 4 starts. I am leaning towards August at this point, but I’ll keep my end of July date in here for now. |
| Alexi Ogando | 7/26/2013 | Ogando has said his shoulder doesn’t feel right yet and the Rangers are now saying they don’t plan on him being back until mid to late July. He has been battling this issue for a while now, so there should be a level of concern here. Stash if you must because when the guy is healthy and pitching, he is very good. But I am starting to have my doubts here. |
| Derek Jeter | 8/1/2013 | Jeter is participating in full on baseball activity, including full BP and charging ground balls in the field. A rehab assignment could be as soon as a week away from the Yankees captain, but he will not be back until after the All Star break. My conservative date of August 1 may be off, but I have to keep it until I hear any real timetable from Cashman. |
| Angel Pagan | 9/17/2013 | Pagan is having surgery to repair a torn hamstring. He MIGHT be back mid-September, but probably not. Hamstring strains take a long time, and this is a complete tear that needs surgery, rest, and rehab. We will see Pagan on a field again this year, that is if the Giants get their act together and make the playoffs. You can stash him on your DL if you have the spot, but his season is pretty much toast for fantasy purposes. |
| Mark Teixeira | OUT FOR SEASON | Well the looming cloud of surgery I talked about last week turned into a horrid thunderstorm. Teixeira will have season ending surgery. He is slated to be cleared to resume baseball activities by New Years so he will be fine to start next season on schedule (barring more injuries). He can obviously be dropped in all re-draft leagues. |
| Corey Hart | OUT OR SEASON | Hart, who was on the DL for a surgically repaired right knee, is now having problems with his left knee. His season is probably toast. Drop away folks. |
| Alex Rodriguez | UNKNOWN | ARod tweeted he can start to play in rehab games on Tuesday, then a day later told Hal Steinbrenner and Cashman that he may not be able to play again this year, or ever. The never-ending soap opera continues for ARod. There is no way to put any kind of timetable on his return after all of this, so he has entered the phantom zone. |
| Jon Niese | UNKNOWN | Niese is out with a partially torn rotator cuff in his pitching shoulder. He is shut down as of now but could resume throwing soon. Until he gets back on the bump for a bullpen, there is no way to guess when he will be back. Worst case scenario is obviously season ending surgery but that has not been mentioned once. |
| Alex Cobb | UNKNOWN | Cobb has been doing some exercises but there is absolutely no timetable for his return, stated as recent as yesterday by the Rays pitching coach. He wouldn’t need much in terms of a rehab assignment if at all being that it wasn’t a “pitching muscle” hurt. Here’s to a speedy return to the mound after such a scary incident. Cobb had enjoyed a very nice breakout season up until that point. |
| Brett Anderson | UNKNOWN | Anderson is out until at least mid August. He is in a walking boot for the three weeks minimum. Then he would have to begin throwing, then bullpens, then live hitters, then a rehab assignment. He is probably out until late August. His fantasy value is extremely low at this point. If you need the DL spot for another player, feel free to drop him. |
| Chris Carpenter | UNKNOWN | After Carpenter’s setback two weeks ago, there can be no promise he will pitch this year. he was cleared to throw a bullpen again. However, the injury could flare up again at any moment. Those that are stashing him shouldn’t expect anything at this point, but Carpenter has silenced doubters before. With that said, consider me one of the doubters. |
| Brandon Morrow | UNKNOWN – OUT INDEFINITELY | Morrow is still shut down after the MRI that showed inflammation in his forearm. There is no timetable for his return, but at the least I would say a month. |
| Josh Beckett | UNKNOWN – OUT INDEFINITELY | Beckett has resumed throwing in an effort to try and avoid having season ending surgery. There is no progress report on how that is going, so there is no timetable for his return, if there even will be a return. Beckett appears to be in the twilight of his career even though he’s not all that old. |
| Cory Luebke | UNKNOWN – OUT INDEFINITELY | Sorry stashers, but Bud Black said that after a series of setbacks since Spring Training,Luebke may not pitch at all this season. They are still saying possibly mid-August, but its doubtful. If you need the spot for another player you can definitely can Luebke to the waiver wire. |
| Ryan Madson | UNKNOWN – OUT INDEFINITELY | Madson was moved to the 60-Day DL. I think his season is toast. 12 teams or less mixed leagues can drop him without thinking twice. His prognosis has not improved once all season. All setbacks. Plus Frieri owns that closer spot right now. If you’re counting on Madson to help your team in the second half, you probably have bigger concerns. |
| Roy Halladay | UNKNOWN – OUT INDEFINITELY | Halladay’s on the 60-day DL. He could be back for the last month of the season, but thats impossible to determine until he starts some form of throwing after he rehabs post-surgery. Based on how he has pitched this year, his age, and the surgery, his fantasy value for this season is very low. |
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