Fantasy Baseball Injury Report: Texas Star Out Four Weeks

Delino DeShields Jr.
After DeShields' impressive spring, the Rangers were hoping his presence at the top of their lineup would be a catalyst for their offense. Unfortunately, the team is forced to wait at least four weeks to see if the speedster can do just that after Deshields suffered a wrist injury on Friday.

The Rangers outfielder suffered a fractured carpal bone, specifically the hamate. The distinctly shaped hamate sits at the base of the pinkie finger. The tiny bone is particularly susceptible to injury amongst baseball players, as its hook-like projection sits in direct contact with the knob of a bat. If a hitter attempts an awkward swing or grounds his bat, stress is often routed through the hamate, potentially resulting in a fracture.

Bone tissue in the wrist can be slow to heal and is prone to malunion. As a result, surgery is often the best treatment for a broken hamate. However, generally the surgeon will simply remove the damaged bone rather than stabilize the fracture site with surgical hardware.

Several complications can arise with these types of injuries. To start, the hamate acts as an attachment site for several wrist flexor muscles. Furthermore, the hamate is positioned by a nerve. As a result, there's risk of associated nerve damage that could leave the injured individual with diminished sensation in the pinkie and a decrease in grip strength.

Fortunately, it appears DeShields avoided any supplementary damage and is set for surgery sometime this week. The long-term effects of surgery for a hamate excision are minimal with multiple players returning to top form following the procedure. The laundry list of MLB hitters to suffer this injury includes Hall-of-Famer Ken Griffey Jr., David Ortiz, Dustin Pedroia, Jose Bautista, Giancarlo Stanton, and J.D. Martinez. Each of these players was productive following surgery, though a small dip in power often occurs in the first few weeks back in action. DeShields owners shouldn't worry too much about this, as he likely was targeted for his wheels not his power numbers.

DeShields absence will have a noticeable trickle-down effect on the Texas lineup. Shortstop Elvis Andrus will take over the leadoff role, dropping out of the No. 3 spot in the lineup. This shift subsequently alters the positions of Adrian Beltre and Nomar Mazara, bumping each up a place as well. Beltre will now bat third, with Mazara batting cleanup. Jurickson Profar may find himself staring at more at-bats, with Carlos Tocci also expected to see more playing time while manning center field.

Josh Donaldson
It was discouraging for fantasy owners to watch Donaldson skip his throws into his first base on Opening Day. Limited by "dead arm," the Jays third baseman has struggled throwing the ball and been limited to a DH role since that first game of the season.

Dead arm is a bit of a catchall term used to describe someone that is having problems throwing with speed and accuracy due to a feeling of fatigue and pain. The root of dead arm syndrome can be a myriad of things including shoulder instability, bone spurs, tendinitis, and even a potential labrum tear. Because of the wide array of possible problems, a detailed evaluation is important to insure some significant injury isn't hiding.

Believing overuse is the culprit, Toronto has attempted to ease Donaldson's workload by moving him to the designated hitter spot. He has continued to throw on the side under the watchful eye of the medical staff. Donaldson recently completed a long toss session and spent time doing fielding drills over the weekend. A return to third base could happen in the next few days, though any extra time off the Jays can afford to give him could prove beneficial to his long-term health. I'd tread cautiously here if I were invested in Donaldson and hope he's able to return to full strength soon.

Check Swings

Greg Bird: The often-injured Bird is back on the DL after undergoing a second ankle surgery. One season after having an os trigonum bone removed from his ankle, Bird had another ankle debridement. This time, the slugger had a coin-sized bone spur removed from the joint and is expected to miss six to eight weeks recovering. Hopefully, Bird will be able to move quickly past this latest setback with the root of his ankle pain gone. However, Bird will have to prove he can put together a stretch of sustained health before he can earn the trust of fantasy owners.

Nelson Cruz: Nelly will be sidelined for a few days after spraining his ankle over the weekend. The Seattle designated hitter is slated for an MRI to determine the severity of the sprain. However, the team may still opt to place Cruz on the DL with roster flexibility a necessity for the upcoming schedule. The team plays two interleague games in San Francisco to start the week and could move Cruz to the 10-day DL to have an extra player available. Regardless of any impending roster moves, it appears this minor issue could sideline Cruz for the week ahead. Look elsewhere for now.

Joe Musgrove: The right-hander will have to wait to make his Pirates debut, as the team placed him on the 10-day DL. Musgrove struggled with discomfort in his throwing shoulder for most of the spring but seemed to turn a corner in recent weeks. However, renewed pain in the shoulder forced the move, and team is now calling the injury a strained shoulder. The term strain indicates the injury is muscular in nature, though knowing the involved muscle would help establish a firmer timetable. The injury is an unfortunate setback for the starter turned reliever turned starter.

Wil Myers: Myers didn't play Saturday but was available to pinch hit despite experiencing stiffness in his back. The move appears precautionary, as the team didn't play Sunday, giving Myers two days off. He's slated to be re-evaluated prior to Monday's series opener against Colorado. Check for any last-minute updates before starting him with any sort of confidence, especially in weekly formats.