Welcome back to the next edition of the fantasy baseball injury report. Opening Day is now in the rear-view mirror and it looks like fantasy GMs escaped the first couple days of the season without any catastrophic injuries. However, it is inevitable that your roster will be decimated at some point, so you might as well start preparing by taking a look at some of the maladies we dealt with over the first couple days of the season. So without further ado, here is the next installment of the MLB walking wounded.

Noah Syndergaard (SP-NYM)

Thor was his dominant self on Opening Day against Atlanta putting up goose eggs through six innings. However, he developed a blister on his middle finger and was taken out of the game before the Mets could muster any offense for him. His next start has been pushed back to Sunday to allow a little extra time for the blister to heal. Fear not as Thor will still throw down his mighty hammer, just one day later than expected.

Felix Hernandez (SP-SEA)

King Felix tweaked his groin while running to cover first base during Seattle’s Opening Day game against Houston on Monday. He was then taken out of the game after five innings when he felt tightness in the groin, but the injury does not appear to be serious. Seattle expects Hernandez to make his next start so fantasy owners have no reason to be concerned at this point.

Adrian Beltre (3B-TEX)

Beltre was officially placed on the 10-day disabled list before Opening Day as he looks to recover from a calf injury sustained last week. He should be able to return once he is eligible, but muscle injuries for a player at his age are something to monitor (he is my age so I know what I am talking about). Joey Gallo should see most of the playing time before Beltre comes back. The future Hall of Famer is still one of the top third base options and he will be motivated this year as he is poised to reach 3,000 hits and 600 double while also inching closer to 500 home runs.

J.D. Martinez (OF-DET)

Martinez suffered a Lisfranc sprain in his foot and has been in a cast until Monday. The initial reports were that he would be out at least until May, but we should get some clarity on that time frame now that the cast is off. He will have to resume baseball activities and test the foot before we can estimate when he might return. Martinez will provide a solid boost in power and run production for fantasy GMs who are stashing him to start the season.

Anthony Rendon (3B-WAS)

It came as no surprise that Rendon was not in the Nationals’ lineup on Opening Day as he recovers from fouling a ball off his calf last week. The expectation is that Rendon will be back on the field on Wednesday when Washington plays its second game of the season.

Junior Guerra (SP-MIL)

The Brewers placed Guerra on the disabled list after suffering a strained calf on Opening Day. He suffered the injury while trying to run out a bunt and was taken out of the game. Milwaukee has indicated that Guerra likely will not be able to return within ten days as he was seen on crutches after the game. Stash Guerra on your DL if you have roster flexibility, but if you have to think for more than five minutes about whether you should drop someone in his stead then it probably isn’t worth doing.

Seth Lugo (SP-NYM)

Lugo was supposed to provide the Mets with extra starting pitching depth and also serve as the long man out of their bullpen. However, an elbow injury has landed him on the DL and now he is going for a second opinion because the injury could be worse than expected. Lugo serves merely as surplus and depth in very deep fantasy leagues, so this should not impact many GMs’ rosters. However, if there are other injuries in the Mets rotation then someone like Rafael Montero could be next in line for some starts.

 

Michael A. Stein, Esq. is the Chief Justice of Fantasy Judgment, the industry's premier dispute resolution service, and co-host of the Fantasy Alarm Podcast. You can contact him at michael.stein@fantasyjudgment.com or on Facebook and Twitter (@FantasyJudgment),