Fantasy Baseball Injury Reports for Pitchers - Updates for Joe Ryan, Hunter Greene, Ryan Helsley, Nathan Eovaldi, more

As always, several key fantasy pitchers are dealing with either minor or major injuries with several months of the 2023 MLB season in the books. Fantasy managers must stay tuned for the latest updates to stay competitive. Let's take a look at the top injured pitchers including Joe Ryan, Hunter Greene, Ryan Helsley, Nathan Eovaldi, and more.

This is our weekly edition of fantasy baseball injury updates for pitchers as of August 17, 2023. We'll be covering all positions throughout the week, so stay tuned. Some players on this list impact fantasy baseball more than others, but with leagues of all shapes and sizes, you never know which guys will force fantasy managers to search waiver wires in hopes of finding adequate replacements.

To keep close tabs on all of the news across the MLB, make sure to favorite or bookmark the fantasy baseball player news page and download the free RotoBaller fantasy baseball mobile app with push notification alerts on all the latest news. Let's look at the injury updates for pitchers.

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Joe Ryan Injury Update

Minnesota Twins right-hander Joe Ryan (groin) threw a successful bullpen session on Tuesday, and if he comes out of it feeling good on Wednesday, the next step would be for him to go on a minor-league rehab assignment. It means that Ryan is pretty close to rejoining Minnesota's starting rotation for the stretch run. The 27-year-old will probably be ready to come off the injured list after a couple of rehab starts down on the farm.

Barring a setback, Ryan could be back in the big leagues later this month. Before going on the IL, he went 9-8 with a 4.43 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 152 strikeouts in 126 innings over his 22 starts. The strikeout upside makes him valuable in mixed leagues, but Ryan was struggling before his injury, posting an 8.87 ERA with 11 homers allowed in his previous five starts, although he had struck out 38 in 23 1/3 innings.

Hunter Greene Injury Update

Cincinnati Reds right-hander Hunter Greene (hip) is lined up to come off the 60-day injured list and start against the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday. Greene will be making his return to Cincy's starting rotation for the first time since June 17 due to a hip injury.

The 24-year-old hard-throwing hurler made four minor-league rehab starts in the Arizona Complex League and with Triple-A Louisville and had a nice 2.57 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, seven walks and 15 strikeouts in 14 innings pitched. Greene built up to 83 pitches in his last outing on the farm and should be fully stretched out for a tough first start back against Toronto. Even if you're wary of using him this weekend in fantasy lineups, Greene should be rostered in all fantasy leagues for the stretch run.

Ryan Helsley Injury Update

St. Louis Cardinals right-handed reliever Ryan Helsley's (forearm) next minor-league rehab outing has been pushed back from Wednesday due to soreness, according to manager Oliver Marmol. Helsley has been out since early June with forearm pain. This is a setback, but it remains to be seen how serious it is.

The 29-year-old has been out since June 12 with a right-forearm strain. Once he's able to return to St. Louis' bullpen, it's expected that he will retake the primary closing duties, so Helsley is worth stashing if you're in need of saves the rest of the way. In his absence, Giovanny Gallegos and JoJo Romero have been sharing save duties for the Cardinals of late. Before his injury, Helsley had a 3.24 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, seven saves and 33 strikeouts in 25 relief innings.

Nathan Eovaldi Injury Update

Texas Rangers right-hander Nathan Eovaldi (forearm) threw another encouraging bullpen session on Tuesday and pitched the equivalent of two innings. Eovaldi continues to ramp up his throwing program and will next need to face live hitters before eventually going on a minor-league rehab start. If he doesn't require a rehab assignment, there's a chance that he could be back in Texas' starting rotation before the end of August.

The 33-year-old veteran should be stashed in all fantasy leagues after the way he's pitched to this point in the year. Eovaldi currently has an 11-3 record, a league-best 2.69 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 111 strikeouts in 123 2/3 innings over 19 starts. Fantasy managers can only hope he'll be half as good down the stretch when he returns from his forearm injury.

Nick Lodolo Injury Update

Cincinnati Reds left-hander Nick Lodolo (leg) is moving his minor-league rehab assignment from the Arizona Complex League to Double-A Chattanooga on Tuesday. Lodolo made his first rehab appearance in the Arizona Complex League last Friday and tossed two scoreless innings while striking out four.

Barring a setback on his rehab assignment, the 25-year-old southpaw is expected to rejoin Cincy's starting rotation later this month after being out since early May with a stress reaction in his left tibia. Lodolo didn't have the best results on the mound earlier this year for the Reds before landing on the injured list, but he's worth a pickup in mixed leagues when he returns for his strikeout upside down the stretch.

MacKenzie Gore Injury Update

Washington Nationals starting pitcher MacKenzie Gore (undisclosed) was forced to exit early during Wednesday's game against the Boston Red Sox. This is a shame considering the southpaw was pitching extremely well before he exited the game.

Gore only allowed three baserunners over 6 1/3 shutout innings with seven strikeouts. It's uncertain what is wrong with Gore as he looked to be in obvious pain after throwing a pitch. There should be an update on his status shortly.

Tanner Houck Injury Update

Boston Red Sox right-hander Tanner Houck (face) is lined up to come off the injured list to start against the Houston Astros on the road on Monday. Houck will be making his first start since having surgery to fix a facial fracture that he suffered on a comebacker in June. Fantasy managers should temper their expectations in a tough matchup, especially since Houck hasn't pitched in the big leagues in two months.

However, the 27-year-old is worth a look in deeper mixed leagues the rest of the way if he sticks in Boston's starting rotation. In 13 starts for the BoSox before his scary injury, Houck went 3-6 with a 5.05 ERA (4.22 FIP), 1.26 WHIP, 23 walks and 64 strikeouts in 67 2/3 frames. He shouldn't be limited pitch-count wise in his return next week, but it's a shy-away matchup in fantasy.

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