It’s hard to believe, but we’re down to fewer than 50 games remaining for each team. It’s genuinely the stretch run for all of these contenders, and we’ll slowly see some teams slip out of the race over the next few weeks (Hello, Pittsburgh). That’s why some of these teams need these players back, but it’s time for fantasy managers to cut bait with even less time remaining. That’s the goal of this article, and I hope it steers you in the right direction.
With that in mind, let’s dive into this week’s fantasy baseball injury updates and rankings.
All the players in this article are rostered in 75% or fewer of Yahoo leagues.
- Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Advice
- Fantasy Baseball Trade Advice
- Fantasy Baseball Start/Sit Lineup Advice
- Rest-of-Season Rankings
- Rest-of-Season Projections
2024 Fantasy Baseball Injury Stashes (Week 20)
Here are fantasy baseball injury updates for ailing pitchers.
Pitchers to Stash Right Now
Jared Jones looked like one of the best rookies in baseball through the opening months, but a small spell and a lat issue sent him to the injured list (IL). It’s taken Jones about six weeks to recover fully, making his first rehab start last Thursday. He only threw 47 pitches across 2.2 innings, so it’ll take at least one or two rehab starts before he can return. He had a 3.27 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 9.6 K/9 rate through his first 13 starts. He should return to that form when he’s healthy.
Bizarre injuries always happen in baseball, but Ryan Pepiot might have the strangest one of the season. The righty suffered an infection from a bug bite on his knee, and he had to be hospitalized with that issue. He’s made a full recovery since then and was able to make his first rehab start on Saturday. He struck out seven batters across 3.1 scoreless innings and is expected to start for the Rays on Friday.
Max Scherzer turned 40 just a few weeks ago, and his body feels like it. The former Cy Young winner has been out most of the season with numerous ailments, but some shoulder fatigue forced him to go to the IL a few weeks back. The ace hasn’t progressed as he had hoped, and he had an MRI on Monday. The results came back clean, with the veteran receiving a nerve injection sometime over the last week. He’s feeling good and could start throwing again next week.
Jacob deGrom has not pitched this season, rehabbing from Tomy John surgery. The plan was for deGrom to make a handful of starts at the end of the season, and that’s progressing well. The ace threw a 45-pitch bullpen session last weekend and is projected to complete a 20-pitch live batting practice session in the coming days. That’s the final step before some rehab games. deGrom will need at least a few before returning to the Rangers. In any case, he can be an asset in the closing weeks because he’s been the best pitcher in baseball whenever he’s healthy.
Clarke Schmidt looked terrific when he had a 2.52 ERA and 1.14 WHIP through the opening two months, but a lat issue has kept him out since the end of May. It’s been a lengthy rehab period to get to this point, but Schmidt has made some serious strides and is supposed to make a rehab start on August 22. His goal is to return in September so that he could make a handful of starts over the closing weeks.
Hunter Harvey was a massive acquisition by Kansas City, and it looked like he was going to take over as the closer before landing on the IL. The reliever has been dealing with some back tightness but likely only needs the minimum 15 days before being able to return. That means he could be back next weekend and could close games if Lucas Erceg doesn’t run away with this gig.
Jon Gray has been on the IL since July 24 and was projected to miss a month of action because of a groin issue he suffered during warm-ups. That means we’re about halfway through his recovery, but we haven’t heard anything about any rehab. That’s a concerning sign, but we’re talking about a guy who has had a 3.97 ERA and 1.23 WHIP since signing with Texas three years ago.
Must-Roster Fantasy Baseball Injury Pitcher Stashes
Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Justin Verlander, Reynaldo Lopez, Ranger Suarez, Grayson Rodriguez
Hitters to Stash Right Now
Here are fantasy baseball injury updates for hitters on the mend.
I mistakenly said Carlos Correa is dealing with a plantar fascia issue he’s had for years, but apparently, this one is on the other foot. As someone who’s dealt with this in the past, I can’t imagine having that problem on both feet. That’s why he’s been out longer than expected, but Correa was able to do some sprinting earlier in the week. That bodes well for him starting a rehab assignment soon, but who knows how a plantar fascia will act up?
Triston Casas said he’d be back on July 1, which was well over a month ago. The first baseman has been recovering from a severe rib injury and still feels pain on nearly every swing he takes during his minor league rehab assignment. The good news is he has six doubles and six RBI over his last seven rehab games en route to a 1.049 OPS. Boston said he wouldn’t return during this current homestand but could return sometime this weekend.
Max Muncy has suffered numerous setbacks with his oblique issue, but he’s finally cleared the critical hump. The third baseman is finally not feeling any pain, starting a rehab assignment last weekend. He stated he’d like to be back in action this week, so we have to assume he’ll be back with L.A. this weekend.
Bo Bichette is already having a lost season, but this IL stint made it even more dastardly. A calf injury sent the shortstop to the IL on July 11, and he was projected to miss at least four weeks when that occurred. He hasn’t resumed any baseball activities since then, so returning after the initial timetable is almost impossible. With that said, Toronto said he should resume some activities over the next few days, and then it’ll be at least two weeks before he can return.
Starling Marte is hitting .278 this season and was well on his way to a 20-20 season before landing on the IL. A bone bruise in his knee forced him there over a month ago, but the speedster was able to do some rehab games this week. He’s yet another guy who could be back this weekend, recording a steal and a homer in his first two rehab starts.
Nolan Jones is having a nightmarish season, landing on the IL multiple times due to numerous back issues. Kris Bryant has the same problem, but Jones still has some hope since he had a 20-20 season in 106 games last year. Jones started a rehab assignment last Thursday and has four extra-base hits over his last four rehab games. It’s hard to understand why he’s still down there, but we’d expect Jones to be back this weekend, like many players mentioned before.
Matt McLain is one of the riskiest stashes out there because we’re not even sure if he’ll be able to play. The shortstop hasn’t played yet this year, recovering from a shoulder injury during spring training. A lengthy rehab from surgery had him scheduled to start rehab games at the beginning of the month, but a stress reaction in his rehab cage halted that stint. The good news is that the shoulder is good, so we must wait to hear more about these ribs before he can restart his rehab assignment.
Must-Roster Fantasy Baseball Injury Hitter Stashes
Christian Yelich, Christian Walker, Kyle Tucker, Fernando Tatis Jr. Tyler O’Neill, Jazz Chisholm
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Joel Bartilotta is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Joel, check out his archive and follow him @Bartilottajoel.