When Will Spencer Strider, Colton Cowser, Grayson Rodriguez Return? Fantasy Baseball Injury Update

When will Strider, Cowser, and Rodriguez return and play? Will Strider, Cowser, and Rodriguez be back again this season? Read the latest fantasy baseball injury updates and return date for Week 4 of the 2025 MLB season.

We're almost a month into the Major League Baseball season, and many fantasy teams are dealing with multiple injuries as they try to get their squads shaped up for the dog days of summer ahead. Some stars are still working their way to a season debut, others were hurt early in the season, and some came back only to land on the IL again. In this post, we'll look at the latest updates on the injuries to Spencer Strider of the Atlanta Braves, along with  Colton Cowser and Grayson Rodriguez of the Baltimore Orioles.

All three of the players in this post were counted on to make a big fantasy impact this season, but have each been severely disappointing since they haven't been able to be on the field for much of the year. Successfully navigating players' absences and managing your team through injuries is vital to fantasy success during the course of the long season. Keeping on top of all the injury news can help you correctly value players for redraft or dynasty leagues.

Strider and Rodriguez were expected to be top-20 starting pitchers this season, and Cowser was coming off a rookie year that saw him finish second in the AL Rookie of the Year race. When will each of them be back and ready to make a difference this season? Let's take a look at the latest updates for each star player and how you should approach each situation.

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Spencer Strider Injury Update For Fantasy Baseball

Strider got a late start to the season after needing extra time to get to full strength after an internal brace procedure on his throwing elbow this past offseason. The good news is that his elbow is fine, but the bad news is that he's back on the IL with another issue.

He pitched one game for the Braves after working his way back through a minor-league rehab stint, and he was scheduled to pitch again on Tuesday in Atlanta. However, when he was playing catch on the field before the Braves game on Monday, he suffered a hamstring strain.

Spencer Strider has a Grade 1 hamstring strain. He injured it playing catch at 75-feet. He says that “it sucks that he is back here, not contributing again.” pic.twitter.com/Bz3H02VrrQ

— Barrett Sallee 🇺🇸 (@BarrettSallee) April 22, 2025

He was afraid that he would be out longer, but even with a Grade 1 strain, the team opted to put him on the 15-day IL. They were able to make it retroactive to April 18, so he could return in early May. It's uncertain at this point if he'll need another rehab start or return directly to the rotation.

While on his last rehab start, Strider made three starts in Triple-A with the Gwinnett Stripers. He went 13 2/3 innings with 27 strikeouts and allowed just two runs on five hits and five walks. In his one start, he went five innings against the Blue Jays and allowed two runs on five hits.

When healthy, it still looks like Strider can be a dominant ace. If you're a Strider manager, you've already practiced patience waiting for his return once, and it's time to do the same once again. This isn't expected to be a long absence, and hopefully, he'll be ready to go in early May.

In his place, the Braves went with a bullpen game with Scott Blewett as the opener. The team could recall AJ Smith-Shawver to fill in while Strider is out, although off-days could help them stretch their existing rotation of Spencer Schwellenbach, Bryce Elder, Chris Sale, and Grant Holmes until next Tuesday in Colorado.

Colton Cowser Injury Update For Fantasy Baseball

The Orioles lost Cowser to a thumb injury just four games into the season. The leadoff man was trying to beat out a slow infield roller to first base and dove into the bag, arriving at the same time as Blue Jays pitcher Brendon Little. Cowser was not only ruled out on the play, but he also jammed his thumb into the base.

#Orioles Colten Cowser broke his thumb sliding head first into first base. You can’t make this stuff up.

Just brutal luck pic.twitter.com/PSFtjmLlw7

— Mike Kurland (@Mike_Kurland) March 31, 2025

On the following day, Cowser was diagnosed with a thumb fracture, and manager Brandon Hyde said he would need six to eight weeks of recovery time. Last week, GM Mike Elias said that he has not suffered a setback and is still looking for a return in late May or early June. He will likely need a rehab stint to get back up to full speed, but things continue to progress as planned, so far.

Cowser went just 2-for-16 (.125) with a home run in the season-opening series in Toronto before being hurt, but his spring training was excellent, and he looked ready to hit leadoff at the top of the stacked Orioles order. If you've been holding Cowser, continue to do so, and if someone dropped him and you have the space, scoop him up or at least watch him closely on waiver wires. When he is ready to get back on the field, he will make a big impact.

While he has been out, Heston Kjerstad has gotten a chance for more playing time and is hitting .245  with three home runs, 12 RBI, and a .325 wOBA. His xwOBA is even higher at .395, indicating his quality of contact has been even better than his results. When everyone is healthy, Baltimore could end up with a logjam in the outfield, but we're still a ways from that becoming an issue.

Grayson Rodriguez Injury Update For Fantasy Baseball

While Cowser's return will be an important addition for the Orioles' batting order, the more important injury for their team is starting pitcher Grayson Rodriguez's shoulder injury, which has prevented him from playing even one game this season.

Rodriguez was shut down last August with a lat strain, and although he did get some work in towards the end of the season did not make it back to the mound in any games down the stretch. He came into spring training healthy but was shut down after experiencing triceps soreness in his second game of the spring.

He got a cortisone shot in his elbow and was placed on the 15-day IL to start the season with what the team called "elbow inflammation." He worked his way up to throwing bullpens in mid-April and was on track to start a rehab stint before suffering a setback. This time, it was a mild lat strain. He had an MRI on his shoulder that showed no major injury, but he was shut down from throwing for a few weeks.

Grayson Rodriguez has a mild lat strain, Brandon Hyde said. He’s already feeling better, and he’ll start throwing again in a couple weeks.

All things considered, good news for Rodriguez, who was already rehabbing elbow inflammation.

“I’m trying to stay optimistic about it.”

— Jacob Calvin Meyer (@jcalvinmeyer) April 23, 2025

Since Rodriguez won’t resume throwing again for at least a few weeks, it sounds like the sometime around the All-Star break is looking like a best-case scenario for Rodriguez to return. He only made one spring training start before leaving his second start early, and after all these setbacks will need a full build-up like in spring training along with an extended rehab assignment.

The Orioles' rotation desperately needs help, with Charlie Morton, Dean Kremer, Tomoyuki Sugano, Cade Povich, and Brandon Young currently holding down starting spots. Unfortunately, it doesn't look like they'll be able to add Rodriguez to the group anytime soon, and they may have to look for help via trade.

If you have Rodriguez, he's a long-term stash if you have he space, but he's so far away that he is droppable in shallow re-draft formats if you can't manage around him taking up a spot on your roster for several more weeks.

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