Help Needed: Hitters Who Played Through a 2019 Injury
While the 2019 season is still semi-fresh in everyone’s mind, I have one simple request. Which hitters played through an injury instead of going on the Injured List this past season?
I’ve collected the players for the past couple of seasons (2017 and 2018). It’s time to compile the 2019 list even though the effects on a projection may be limited. Here are the players I have so far.
Name: Injury (link)
- Nolan Arenado: Toe injury (link)
- Javier Báez: Bruised heal limited his production, (link)
- Cody Bellinger: Bum shoulder (link)
- David Bote: Broken toe (link)
- Khris Bryant: Knee issues (link)
- Lorenzo Cain: Not batting leadoff until wrist healthy (link)
- Matt Chapman: Ankle/knee issues (link)
- C.J. Cron: Thumb (link)
- Nelson Cruz: Wrist? (link)
- Khris Davis: Hip bothered him (link)
- Daniel Descalso: Ankle (link)
- Freddie Freeman: Bone spur in elbow (link)
- Keston Hiura: Hamstring (link)
- Rhys Hoskins: Hand (link)
- Aaron Judge: Oblique (link)
- Max Kepler: Knee (link)
- Ramón Laureano: Shin (link)
- Yadier Molina: Finger (link)
- Mike Moustakas: Fractured finger (link)
- Daniel Murphy: Finger (link)
- Brandon Nimmo: Neck (link)
- Marcell Ozuna: Shoulder not 100% (link)
- Tommy Pham: Hand (link)
- Roberto Pérez: Ankle (link)
- Gregory Polanco: Shoulder (link)
- Hunter Renfroe: Ankle and elbow (link)
- Anthony Rizzo: Sprained ankle (link)
- Justin Smoak: Quad (link)
- Domingo Santana: Inflamed elbow (link)
- Mike Trout: Foot (link)
- Trea Turner: Finger (link)
- Alex Verdugo: Back issues (link)
- Luke Voit: Hernia (link)
Late adds
Marwin Gonzalez (link)
If anyone knows of anyone I missed, please say so in the comments with a link to the source. I not looking for guess but the player or his team saying he’s hurt. Thanks for the help.
Jeff, one of the authors of the fantasy baseball guide,The Process, writes for RotoGraphs, The Hardball Times, Rotowire, Baseball America, and BaseballHQ. He has been nominated for two SABR Analytics Research Award for Contemporary Analysis and won it in 2013 in tandem with Bill Petti. He has won four FSWA Awards including on for his Mining the News series. He's won Tout Wars three times, LABR twice, and got his first NFBC Main Event win in 2021. Follow him on Twitter @jeffwzimmerman.
Domingo Santana played through elbow inflammation in late July and the end of September. (Source: https://twitter.com/GregJohnsMLB/status/1154529860045295619)
Thanks. Adding.
Rhys Hoskins hurt his hand, wasn’t the same after. https://www.mlb.com/phillies/news/rhys-hoskins-sustains-bruised-hand
Thanks. Adding.
Brandon Nimmo played through neck issues from Apr 16 through May 22 before going to the IL: https://www.sny.tv/mets/news/mets-of-brandon-nimmos-neck-injury-isnt-just-inflammation-but-hes-feeling-better/307453894
Thanks. Adding.
Freddie Freeman irritated a bone spur in his elbow early in September.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/mlb/freddie-freeman-leaves-game-with-elbow-soreness/ar-AAHgbw1
He didn’t even travel to KC last week.
Thanks. Adding.
Anthony Rizzo suffered a moderate ankle sprain September 15th, but returned four days later. He played through it for six games to close the year. https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/cubs-anthony-rizzo-diagnosed-with-sprained-ankle-could-miss-rest-of-regular-season/
Thanks. Adding.
Kris Bryant played through a knee issue suffered in late June (Source: https://chicago.suntimes.com/cubs/2019/9/8/20856052/barking-knee-sidelines-kris-bryant-again-raises-questions-about-status-for-cubs-down-stretch)
Thanks. Adding.
Kris Bryant-knee issues. Was really hobbled before he had cortisone shot, then did well for about 2 weeks, then tailed off again.
Thanks. Done
If you’re including Verdugo on the list(he’s not played since August 4), you have to include Trea Turner who has been playing with a bad finger since returning from the IL.
Thanks. Adding
Ramon Laureano hurt his shin in the Japan series and played through it until going on IL 7/31: https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/27298208/a-put-laureano-il-right-leg-injury
Thanks . Adding
https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sports/padres/story/2019-09-12/padres-hunter-renfroe-ankle-injury-expects-return
Hunter Renfroe had a few injuries 2nd half
Thanks. Adding.
Gregory Polanco, shoulder was never healthy – https://www.cbssports.com/fantasy/baseball/news/pirates-gregory-polanco-not-expected-back-soon/
Joe Musgrove offseason abdominal surgery cost him a ton of velocity in the 1st half of the year – https://www.mlb.com/pirates/news/joe-musgrove-easing-into-throwing-this-spring-c303902114
Thanks. Adding
Roberto Perez was playing through a concussion, a bruised foot, and a strain in his leg at various points through the season. The leg strain got mentioned by Perez and Francona in Fox broadcasts at points, but I can’t find a record of it with a quick search.
Possible Cano: https://twitter.com/mkfox52/status/1179081722454917120
I’ll dive in later.
He’s got a chronic case of Old-dude-playing-for-the-Mets Syndrome.
I found nothing written
id update to Tommy Pham – all over
I think it would be helpful/important to look into the before and after injury stats to see what was taking the biggest hit.
Sonny Gray played through an elbow injury
Hitters only. I assume all pitchers are hurt
Votto-missed several games with back issues, on more than one occasion.
He missed a few days and then went on the IL.
Keston Hiura played through hamstring issues late in season. Don’t think he attempted a steal and they were pretty conservative on the basepaths with him through the end of year.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.mlb.com/amp/news/keston-hiura-returns-from-injured-list.html
Thanks. Added
Justin Turner also had back issues late in the year and officially “played” through them but due to the Dodgers playoff position, the game log might make you think otherwise
He didn’t go on the IL but really didn’t play with the expanded rosters.
Some guy named Trout played through a foot/toe issue… and should probably still be MVP
Thanks. Added
Daniel Murphy hurt his finger and played with it not fully healed. He wore a mitten on his hand
Thanks. Added
Matt Carpenter – Lower Back https://www.mlb.com/news/matt-carpenter-placed-on-injured-list
He went on the IL for back and for his foot
Dansby Swanson
https://www.mlb.com/news/dansby-swanson-heel-injury-worse-than-braves-expected
He only played one, maybe two games between injury and IL,.
What about Posey and other players coming off major off-season surgery?
They could be a separate list.
Yadier Molina spent three weeks trying to play through a not quite healed thumb injury that sent him back to the IL after already spending time there after it was first injured.
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2019/07/cardinals-place-yadier-molina-on-10-day-il-activate-matt-carpenter.html
That Ozuna article said that Ozuna was only limited on his throws. That’s not relevant to his fantasy value.
Smoak Blue Jays quad https://www.sportsnet.ca/baseball/mlb/exit-interviews-blue-jays-infielders-assess-2019-seasons/