The Reds hope to get speedster Billy Hamilton back this season

With the calendar closing in on September, injuries can be trickier for fantasy owners to deal with. Major league teams have the luxury of expanding their rosters, which often lessens the rush to place injured players on the disabled list, which can leave fantasy owners in limbo during the most critical time of the season. Also, with the playoff picture becoming clearer, many teams will be conservative with their injured players, as the goal is now to get healthy for 2016. Here are some significant names to know in this week’s injury report.

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• Aroldis Chapman (CIN RP) has been dealing with soreness in his left shoulder and is considered day-to-day. This situation does not appear to be anything serious but expect the Reds to hold him out of there is any residual soreness, as the team has nothing to gain this season.

• Lucas Duda (NYM 1B) returned to action after missing six games but left Friday’s contest early because of tightness in his lower back and was placed on the disabled list on Friday. On Monday the same specialist that saw David Wright will evaluate him. “He obviously never fully healed to have it reoccur that quickly,” explained assistant general manager John Ricco. “We gave it a chance last time [without the DL]. The four, five, six days didn’t knock it out. I think it’s obvious we need to give it more time. While he was cleared to play last time, obviously there was still something in there that it reoccurred. So we decided this time to give it the full 15 days.”

• Yunel Escobar (WAS 3B) left Friday’s game after colliding with a fan standing in the first row in Washington. He was chasing a foul ball and the collision resulted in a hyperextended neck. He is considered day-to-day.

• Maikel Franco (PHI 3B) was placed on the disabled list on August 18, retroactive to August 12, after he was diagnosed with a non-displaced fracture in his left wrist. In regards to a return at some point this season, interim manager Pete Mackanin stated, “That’s still up in the air [if he would return], but he very well might be able to come back. I was told there’s a chance he can come back and play some this year.” If you play in redraft leagues and need the roster spot, go ahead and drop Franco, as I am not convinced that the Phillies will rush him back this season since the team is already looking ahead to 2016.

• Randal Grichuk (STL OF) was placed on the disabled list last week and an MRI showed a mild ligament sprain in his right elbow. While he could return in early September, I am not optimistic about his outlook for the rest of the season.

• Billy Hamilton (CIN OF) injured his right shoulder early last week while throwing out Alcides Escobar. An MRI revealed a sprained capsule, which is a collection of connective tissue that is designed to stabilize the ball-and-socket portion of the shoulder. He will miss at least two weeks and, at this point, it does not sound like the injury is a season-ending one. “He’s going to be working on rehab for the next couple of weeks, and hopefully be ready to go after his DL stint,” explained manager Bryan Price.

• Josh Hamilton (TEX OF) continued to deal with soreness in his left knee so the Rangers placed him on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to August 16. Because of his injury history, I think he is too risky to own in any format.

• Daniel Norris (DET SP) left his start on Wednesday because of soreness in his right side. An MRI showed a strained oblique muscle and Norris will miss at least four weeks, though we might not see him again until 2016. Manager Brad Ausmus indicated the injury is worse than what the team originally expected and Norris could be shut down for the season.

• Joe Panik (SF 2B) has not had any setbacks in his recovery from the inflammation in his back but he has not made much progress either. The Giants are now targeting a return during the early part of September. If San Francisco falls back in the playoff race I can see a scenario where the Giants shut Panik down for the remainder of the season.

• Dustin Pedroia (BOS 2B) won’t make his return to Boston’s lineup until September 10, at the earliest. I expect the Red Sox to be very conservative with him and his right hamstring strain for the rest of the season, which will severely limit his fantasy value for the remainder of 2015.

• Hunter Pence (SF OF) was placed on the disabled list because of a left oblique strain. This is Pence’s third trip to the disabled list this season. Expect him to miss at least two more weeks.

• Glen Perkins (MIN RP) received multiple cortisone injections last week because of a bulging disc in his neck. He is hoping to return to action this week but remember that he was shut down last September because of neck issues. Check out the FantasyPros update on closers here.

• Michael Pineda (NYY SP) should return for the Yankees from a forearm strain on Wednesday, about one week ahead of schedule. Make sure he is active.

• Anibal Sanchez (DET SP) has a strained right rotator cuff and will be out for at least two weeks. “We don’t think it will be anything more than a regular 15-day DL stint,” explained Tigers manager Brad Ausmus.

• George Springer (HOU OF) suffered a non-displaced fracture in his right wrist on July 2, when he was hit by a pitch. He was cleared to resume baseball activities on August 14 and could start taking batting practice at some point this week. “It feels good,” he said. “Obviously I got to be smart about it still. I have to build up strength some more, but I’m excited about the progression.”  If there are no setbacks he could head out for a rehab assignment by the end of the week.

• Mark Teixeira (NYY 1B) has been out since Monday, after fouling a ball off his right shin. He has a deep bone bruise but has, hopefully, made enough progress that he will attempt to take batting practice on Sunday. He is a risky play next week, as the Yankees have not publicly announced a time frame for his return or whether a trip to the disabled list is necessary.

• Devon Travis (TOR 2B) will receive a second opinion this week in regards to his injured left shoulder, as he is not progressing as the Blue Jays expected him to. With concerns that he could need an entire off-season of recovery you can safely drop Travis in all formats.

• Danny Valencia (OAK 3B) had an MRI on his right hamstring and could miss several days. Valencia has hit well since Oakland claimed him off waivers from the Blue Jays and, hitting four home runs in just 13 games. With Oakland out of the playoff race I don’t expect them to rush Valencia back in action, as he should be the team’s starting third baseman in 2016.

• David Wright (NYM 3B) should be activated from the disabled list in time for the Mets’ game in Philadelphia. For the remainder of this season I only see Wright as an option in NL-only leagues, as his playing time will be limited. “He is not going to be an everyday guy,” explained manager Terry Collins. Unless you are absolutely desperate for a third baseman avoid the risks of owning Wright.

Jeremy Tiermini is a correspondent at FantasyPros. To read more from Jeremy, follow him @JeremyTiermini.