When Will Matt McLain, Pablo Lopez, Reynaldo Lopez Return? Fantasy Baseball Injury Update

April 13, 2025

When will McLain, Lopez, and Lopez return and play? Will McLain, Lopez, and Lopez be back again this season? Read the latest fantasy baseball injury updates and return date for Week 3 of the 2025 MLB season.

Managing injuries is a part of managing your fantasy baseball roster. Every week, players go down with injuries, which can keep them sidelined for a wide variety of timeframes. Players out for just a short time don't lose much value, but longer absences can radically impact their fantasy value. In this post, we'll look at the latest info on Matt McLain of the Cincinnati Reds, Pablo Lopez of the Minnesota Twins, and Reynaldo Lopez of the Atlanta Braves.

Successfully navigating injuries and surviving the absence of key contributors is critical to fantasy success. Getting your players in the lineup when available but making the smart moves when they're not pays off over the long haul of a full season.  Keeping on top of all the injury news helps correctly value players for redraft or dynasty leagues.

All three of the players in this post began the year healthy but were hurt in the first few weeks of the season. Let's examine each one's outlook and how it should impact your fantasy baseball strategy.

Matt McLain Injury Update For Fantasy Baseball

McLain was limited to 89 games in 2023 and missed all of last year after surgery to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder. This year, he got off to a fast start with three home runs over his first eight games, but then he landed on the injured list again.

Thankfully for McLain and his fantasy managers, the injury was not to his shoulder, so he will not need nearly as long of a recovery time. He was in the lineup before being scratched a few times and pinch-hit in one game while trying to play through the injury.

The team decided to be cautious with McLain, though, and put him on IL to give him time to heal fully. He went on the 10-day IL retroactive to April 5, which makes him eligible to return on Tuesday. Manager Terry Francona had encouraging news on Friday:

Terry Francona said he’s pretty confident McLain will return on Tuesday. Diaz will throw back to backs over the next two days in Triple-A. Spencer Steer will take his throwing work to the next step and start working on throws from first over the next few days.

— Charlie Goldsmith (@CharlieG__) April 11, 2025

McLain hit just .214 (6-for-28) before landing on the IL, but half of his six hits were home runs. He had a 64.7% hard-hit rate, per Statcast, and an impressive 29.4% barrel rate. He should be even more productive when he returns if he continues those metrics.

If you held McLain, the good news is he's just about back, and if someone in your league dropped him, he's a priority add since he should be an excellent contributor and a key part of the Reds lineup when he returns. While he has been out, Gavin Lux and Santiago Espinal have played 2B, but Lux will likely return to the outfield and Espinal to 3B when McLain is activated. Those moves could limit playing time for Blake Dunn, Spencer Steer, and Jake Fraley in the outfield and Noelvi Marte at 3B.

Pablo Lopez Injury Update For Fantasy Baseball

The Twins gave Lopez the ball as their Opening Day starter, and the 29-year-0ld righty made three starts this season before landing on the 15-day injured list with a hamstring injury. Lopez left his start last Tuesday after 78 pitches in 4 2/3 innings after feeling hamstring tightness. He had an MRI that revealed a Grade One hamstring strain.

Grade One strain is the least severe, and manager Rocco Baldelli is confident that he will not need long on the injured list.

Rocco Baldelli and the Twins seem pretty confident that Pablo Lopez' hamstring injury is "very mild"... pic.twitter.com/9oCOzfwcDi

— Minnesota Sports Fan (@realmnsportsfan) April 9, 2025

Before landing on the IL, Lopez was off to a strong start in his third season in Minnesota. He allowed three earned runs over 16 2/3 innings for a 1.62 ERA to go with a 3.23 FIP and 7.6 K/9.  He gave up just one earned run in seven innings against the White Sox to earn a win in his second start, and he hadn't given up a run against the Royals before departing with the injury last week.

If he is on the shelf for the minimum time, he could return at the end of this month and will likely not need a rehab start since his time out of the rotation would be limited. He's still a hold in all formats and will hopefully return to his ace form quickly after he's activated.

While he is out, the Twins will get a look at a couple of their exciting young arms. David Festa was already in the plans to start on Friday, and Zebby Matthews is a strong candidate to fill Lopez's spot in the starting rotation on Monday. The team could go to a six-man rotation to include both young starters, although an official announcement has not been made.

Festa went 4 2/3 innings in his start, allowing one unearned run on three hits and striking out four. Matthews was outstanding in spring training and dominant in the minors in the early going this year. He quickly rose through the Twins' minor league system in 2024 with great results until he made it to the MLB, where he struggled. With increased velocity and a better pitch mix, he could be ready to make the leap as well.

When Lopez returns, the rotation will be crowded, but the Twins will figure out a way to get all the arms work. They could also be a team to watch at the trade deadline if they have excess arms since they have struggled out of the gate. If you can grab Matthews or Festa off waivers, they both have very high ceilings, but hold onto Lopez as well, since his absence isn't expected to be a long one.

Reynaldo Lopez Injury Update For Fantasy Baseball

Reynaldo's injury is the most serious of the three players highlighted in this post. He was knocked around by the Padres in his only start of the season, allowing three runs over five innings with one strikeout. Two days later, the team placed him on the 15-day IL with "shoulder inflammation."

Shoulder injuries for pitchers are always complex and require a wide range of treatment and recovery. Lopez needed arthroscopic surgery and was transferred to the 60-day IL. The positive news for Lopez and his fantasy managers is that the surgery was successful and did not immediately result in him being ruled out for the season.

Reynaldo Lopez’s arthroscopic surgery today turned out to be a cleanup. No structural damage. He’ll be shut down until he’s re-evaluated in July. Braves haven’t closed the door on the chance he could pitch again late this season. But timeline keeps his return questionable at best

— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) April 8, 2025

Lopez still faces a very long road to recovery and won't be re-evaluated until July. Even at that point, he would need a long rehab stint to build up and would probably not return until August or September if he pitches this season at all. He could possibly contribute down the stretch out of the bullpen or return to the rotation, but that is a long way away.

Due to the severity of the injury and the length of the layoff, Lopez can be dropped in most formats unless it's an extremely deep league or one that has many IL spots. The 31-year-old had a breakout season for the Braves last year, going 8-5 with a 1.99 ERA, 2.92 FIP, and 9.8 K/9. Unfortunately, it looks like this season will mostly be lost due to injury. Looking ahead, he is under contract for 2026 with a club option for 2027.

The Braves rotation is still stacked without Lopez. Reigning Cy Young winner Chris Sale will soon be joined by former Cy Young winner Spencer Strider at the top of the rotation, with strong arms behind them in Spencer Schwellenbach, AJ Smith-Shawver, Bryce Elder, and Grant Holmes. They'll definitely feel the loss of Lopez, but they have the organizational depth to overcome his long-term injury.

More Fantasy Baseball Analysis