This article is part of our Fantasy Baseball Injury Report series.
Gerrit Cole and Jameson Taillon
The Yankees are carefully navigating injuries to the starting rotation. Cole left his start last week with tightness in his left hamstring but has progressed nicely since the early exit. He says any remaining discomfort is gone and the team is hopeful he will return to the mound Tuesday against the Orioles. Cole's availability is crucial to the Yankees and any possible postseason aspirations. Ensuring the hamstring is 100 percent is extremely important to Cole's short-term and long-term health, as any sort of aggravation or reinjury would likely result in weeks lost. As a result, look for the team to closely monitor his status throughout his first start back and quickly replace him on the mound should he report any lingering symptoms. Fantasy managers should tread cautiously here and scale back their initial expectations.
While Cole is slated to return Tuesday, the same can't be said for Taillon. Taillon has been placed on the 10-day injured list with an ankle injury. To be clear, the injury is not an ankle sprain and does not involve any ligament damage. The right-hander is dealing with a strain, specifically a partially torn ankle tendon.
Most of the muscles of the ankle are situated in the lower leg but anchor to the foot via lengthy tendons that extend beyond the joint. The muscles not only move the ankle in multiple directions but also stabilize the joint. Taillon's injury is a Grade 2 or moderate strain of one of these
Gerrit Cole and Jameson Taillon
The Yankees are carefully navigating injuries to the starting rotation. Cole left his start last week with tightness in his left hamstring but has progressed nicely since the early exit. He says any remaining discomfort is gone and the team is hopeful he will return to the mound Tuesday against the Orioles. Cole's availability is crucial to the Yankees and any possible postseason aspirations. Ensuring the hamstring is 100 percent is extremely important to Cole's short-term and long-term health, as any sort of aggravation or reinjury would likely result in weeks lost. As a result, look for the team to closely monitor his status throughout his first start back and quickly replace him on the mound should he report any lingering symptoms. Fantasy managers should tread cautiously here and scale back their initial expectations.
While Cole is slated to return Tuesday, the same can't be said for Taillon. Taillon has been placed on the 10-day injured list with an ankle injury. To be clear, the injury is not an ankle sprain and does not involve any ligament damage. The right-hander is dealing with a strain, specifically a partially torn ankle tendon.
Most of the muscles of the ankle are situated in the lower leg but anchor to the foot via lengthy tendons that extend beyond the joint. The muscles not only move the ankle in multiple directions but also stabilize the joint. Taillon's injury is a Grade 2 or moderate strain of one of these tendons. The injury is often accompanied by pain, swelling, and functional limitation. Consequently, Taillon would likely struggle with pitch delivery, especially during the wind-up phase when he would need to balance on the injured ankle. New York had initially hoped he would be fine after missing one start and ready to return when first eligible. However, Taillon reported soreness as recently as Friday and was still in a walking boot over the weekend. He did manage to throw on the field Monday, but he remains without a definitive timeline. It seems unrealistic to expect Taillon back this week, making him likely waiver wire material in most fantasy formats.
The Padres infielder suffered a broken finger September 10 against the Dodgers. Cronenworth fractured his left right finger after being struck by a rogue pitch from Julio Urias. The fracture is reportedly small, and since the bone did not displace, surgery will not be required. Furthermore, the break appears to have occurred to the distal phalange (the tip of the finger) and not closer to the hand. Instead, the team is more concerned about the resulting inflammation that is limiting his range of motion and could negatively impact his grip. San Diego is confident the issue will resolve quickly and do not plan to place him on the IL. Cronenworth even admitted he doesn't normally have an overly tight grip at the plate and expects to return shortly. He should be fine moving forward but will be at risk for a recurrence of symptoms if the injury site is aggravated.
Check Swings
Tim Anderson: The White Sox expect Anderson to return to action on Tuesday. The shortstop has not played since August 28 due to lingering hamstring woes. He has progressed smoothly through the team's rehab protocol and should be healthy enough to contribute. However, how much playing time he sees remains unclear. With the playoffs on the horizon, Chicago will likely take a conservative approach with his health and provide ample amounts of rest. Play him when you can but make sure you have a plug-in option readily available.
Shane Bieber: Bieber has completed two simulated games without suffering any sort of setback in his previously strained throwing shoulder and will now begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Columbus. The Cleveland right-hander has not appeared in a big-league game since suffering the injury in mid-June. Bieber's injury involved the subscapularis muscle, one of the four rotator cuff muscles. He will be limited to 40 to 45 pitches according to the team and has a chance to see major league action before the conclusion of the season. However, his fantasy value likely has a limited ceiling, as the team will closely monitor his workload for the remainder of the year.
Nico Hoerner: A twice strained oblique has kept Hoerner sidelined, but at long last a return is nearing. He started a rehab assignment Sunday with Triple-A Iowa, finishing 0-for-2 in limited work. The good news is he did not suffer any sort of setback, and a return to the Cubs remains a possibility. He will likely remain with Iowa through the end of the week but is worth a speculative add for fantasy teams still competing and in need of Hoerner's skillset.
Aaron Judge: The Yankees slugger was removed from action over the weekend after reporting to the medical staff he was feeling dizzy. The dizziness was significant enough to warrant removal from the game but, after a detailed evaluation, Judge was cleared to return to activity. He started Monday's come-from-behind win and did not disappoint, hitting a three-run homer late in the game. Keep Judge in your lineup and hope it was nothing more than an isolated incident.
Blake Snell: The Padres starter left Sunday's game against the Dodgers with what was described as left adductor tightness. The adductors are a group of muscles located on the inner thigh that help pull the leg inward toward the midline of the body. They're more commonly referred to as the groin. Snell's injury is similar to Cole's previously detailed hamstring injury but simply involves a different muscle group. The team will likely monitor his progression over the next few days and may opt to skip his next start. There have been some rumblings that Snell's injury is more likely a strain than tightness. If this is true than the severity of the strain will ultimately determine Snell's time lost. A low-grade strain may be manageable enough for him to improve with a missed start or two. Anything more severe is going to result in a significant absence and a probable IL stint.
