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Dave Funnell's Fantasy Baseball Injury Report -- Week 13 updates on Chris Sale, Adley Rutschman, Tyler Glasnow, Shota Imanaga, Jake Burger, and more.
Welcome, RotoBallers, to my fantasy baseball injury report for June 22. Every week, we look back at the major injury developments in baseball and look ahead at what might transpire. Today, we examine recent injuries and updates for Chris Sale, Adley Rutschman, Tyler Glasnow, Shota Imanaga, Jake Burger, and more.
Injuries are an unfortunate part of the game, but how you handle them can mean the difference between a last-place finish and somewhere near the top of your league's standings.
The hope is that whatever comes your way, you can understand what the injury is, what it means for your fantasy team, and what actions you should take. Let's get right to this week's injury-related news.
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Chris Sale - SP, Atlanta Braves
The #Braves today recalled LHP Austin Cox to Atlanta and placed LHP Chris Sale on the 15-day injured list, backdated to June 19, with a fractured left ribcage.
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) June 21, 2025
The biggest news of the week came yesterday, when it was revealed that Braves ace Chris Sale would likely miss significant time with a fractured left rib cage. This is a major injury that will keep him out of the rotation for the time being, leaving a big hole that may have to be filled at the trade deadline. He injured himself while diving for a ground ball late in Wednesday's game.
What makes this a worrisome injury is that Sale's career is littered with extensive time away due to injuries. What's peculiar about his injury timeline is that more than one of them is due to fractured body parts.
Over his 15 seasons, he has suffered a fractured wrist, pinky, and rib cage, albeit on the right side of his body. While these four instances over 15 years may not seem like a lot, it's worth noting that he has suffered many breakages.
As we advance, it's difficult to project his return. His last rib cage fracture was a bit different in that he suffered a stress fracture, which is a smaller break in the bone, while a fracture is a complete break. That being said, a fractured rib cage typically takes about six weeks to heal. Assuming this is the standard here, that would lead us to August, which seems like a best-case scenario.
What makes this tricky is that there could be setbacks, and Sale still needs to ramp himself back up, too. In leagues with injured list spots, he is worth stashing and waiting. However, in leagues without them, the decision becomes more difficult, and it's understandable if fantasy owners want to move forward without him.
MLB Injury News Quick Hits
The Rangers placed Jake Burger on the injured list with a strained left oblique on Saturday. It's worth noting that he has suffered an intercostal strain and an oblique strain before, so this is nothing new for the slugger. These sorts of injuries can be tricky to recover from, and they do tend to linger, so his absence will likely take him into the All-Star break.
The Cubs had some good news on Saturday, as the impending return of Shota Imanaga seems imminent.
Craig Counsell said Shota Imanaga will make his next start for the big league team after 4.1 scoreless innings in a rehab outing at Triple-A Iowa last night. Imanaga will travel with Cubs to St. Louis next week. @suntimes_sports
— Vinnie Duber (@VinnieDuber) June 21, 2025
Chicago has gotten the most out of its depleted rotation this year, as someone will need to find a new role. Matthew Boyd and Jameson Taillon have done their job, while Colin Rea has been a little more effective than expected. Should the Cubs choose to remove one of them, it would signify their desire to let young pitchers Ben Brown and Cade Horton work out their warts start-to-start as opposed to in relief appearances. It will be interesting to see what they choose to do.
Adley Rutschman was placed on the injured list on Saturday with a left oblique strain. The severity of the issue isn't known, but it was more than enough for him to warrant some time away. It's worth noting that the Orioles have not been discussing prospect Samuel Basallo as a replacement option.
Tony Mansolino, asked by @ByMattWeyrich about Samuel Basallo's development and his potential to be a replacement in case of an IL stint for Adley Rutschman, said the Orioles want the top prospect to "knock the door down" before he's considered.
Full: pic.twitter.com/DyykIWbSq1
— Andy Kostka (@afkostka) June 21, 2025
For now, the team will use Gary Sanchez as the primary catcher and utilize Maverick Handley.
Despite showing minimal progress while being stalled in his recovery, Michael King believes that he will pitch again this season. It's understandable if fantasy owners have already traded him away, as the team doesn't even fully understand the injury as it is right now.
The Dodgers need some pitching relief, and it starts with good news like this. First, Roki Sasaki has restarted his throwing program by tossing from both 60 and 90 feet. This is significant after being shut down due to discomfort while throwing earlier this month. As for Tyler Glasnow, he begins a rehab assignment today and will embark on his first of at least three starts before hopefully returning around the All-Star break. Both pitchers are part of the bigger picture for the Dodgers, which revolves around a healthy World Series rotation.
Dylan Crews took an encouraging step forward this past week, taking dry swings for the first time since being shut down in May. His return time remains unknown at this time.
The Padres could welcome back Jackson Merrill today from the concussion injured list, and his playing catch was a good sign in that direction. It remains to be seen if that will happen, but this is encouraging nonetheless.
Good to see Jackson Merrill doing some light activity on the field. He is eligible to come off the injured list Sunday (but that isn’t an absolute). #Padres pic.twitter.com/PzXiEDKa9k
— Annie Heilbrunn (@annieheilbrunn) June 20, 2025
Sean Manaea will need one more rehab outing before the idea of him joining the Mets rotation is discussed. While his earlier starts left a lot to be desired, he was quite effective on Friday, striking out seven batters over 5.1 innings of work. Should he be able to repeat this, or something similar, he may make his 2025 debut by this time next week.
Keep an eye on this, but Nathan Eovaldi has built himself up to 50 pitches and could be activated this week. The Rangers are in desperate need of some stability in their rotation, and a healthy Eovaldi could provide just that.
Bryce Harper will travel with the Phillies, as he recently advanced to some soft tossing. The fact that he will be with the team while they travel likely signifies that he won't need a rehab assignment, but instead that he will play once he's physically ready to do so.
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