Welcome to the Fantrax MLB Injury Report. In this edition, I examine the injury questions that surround the Los Angeles Dodgers. Most people want to hand over the 2025 World Series to the defending champs, but they have some hurdles to clear first. Here are some questions that need to be answered.
MLB Injury Report
1. Shohei Ohtani
When we last saw Shohei Ohtani, he was not just holding up a World Series trophy, he was also holding his injured left shoulder. Almost immediately after the season, he had surgery to repair a torn labrum in his left shoulder. The latest report in December was that he was unlikely to pitch for the Dodgers when they start the 2025 season in Japan.
Shohei Ohtani is "very unlikely" to pitch in Tokyo, Dave Roberts said. But when the Dodgers' two-way superstar is fully healthy, Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes said he expects Ohtani to be able to DH on the days he pitches (his first game doing both in MLB was in April 2021).
— Sonja Chen (@SonjaMChen) December 10, 2024
This, compounded with the fact that he is recovering from (what we think) is his second Tommy John Surgery, makes his future on the mound incredibly cloudy. Though the news didn’t hint at his absence from the lineup, this is an indication that he won’t be ready for Opening Day. This may not affect his swing too much, and it’s quite possible that it’s a non-issue altogether. Still, because he will be back in the rotation at some point, his speed on the basepaths will likely be reduced.
Worry Level – 8/10
A significant chunk of this worry is ADP-related, as he is being drafted as the 1.01 in many drafts. When taking anyone in the first two rounds, fantasy baseball owners want minimal questions to be asked and as many straightforward answers as possible. There are too many unknowns right now to feel comfortable. The only counter to all of these worries is that he’s Shohei Ohtani, and if anyone could make the almost impossible incredibly possible, it’s him.
2. Mookie Betts
For someone as good as he is, Mookie Betts has missed significant time due to injuries that were seemingly out of his control. While his overall numbers last season were good considering the amount of time missed, there was one major red flag: his hard-hit rate and his barrels were significantly down.
A closer examination of this shows that the years where this stat was at its lowest were those where he was injured. In 2016 and 2017 he was months removed from offseason knee surgery and was possibly playing through the recovery. Also, the 2021 season was when he was suffering through his season-long hip ailment, which caused for significant time away. This past season he came back from a fractured hand, and it is those types of injuries that sap the power from one’s swing. Here’s hoping that this drop was injury-related, and nothing more.
Worry Level – 3/10
Significant dips in any power over a season should be monitored and taken into consideration, and while he is on the wrong side of 30, he is still one of the best players in baseball and should be treated as such.
3. Freddie Freeman
It’s hard to imagine that one of the most reliable first basemen and the reigning World Series MVP would have injury concerns, but here we are. The 35-year-old went through a lot both on and off the field last year, and his offseason began with surgery in his ankle to remove loose bodies from the area.
Earlier today, Dodger first baseman Freddie Freeman underwent surgery on his right ankle consisting of debridement and the removal of loose bodies. The surgery was performed by Dr. Kenneth Jung at Kerlan Jobe in Los Angeles. Freeman is expected to be able to participate in…
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) December 5, 2024
Worry Level – 4/10
The good news is he is fully expected to be ready for Spring Training, but he will be 35 years old next year, and his diminished results across the board were a bit concerning. If we find out there were any setbacks in the offseason, we could see his already reduced speed all but eliminated.
4. Max Muncy
The veteran third baseman is no stranger to the Injured List. Since the 2019 season, he has been placed there five times, with one of those sessions extending itself into the 60-day Injured List.
Whether or not this continues remains to be seen, but this is a team that will be playing for October. Muncy has been known to push through injuries before in an effort to limit his time away from the team, but his production has also suffered. Over the past three seasons, he has accumulated a .210 batting average and struck out 371 times, putting him 50th in baseball in that time. While his power numbers seem steady, he is anything but a sure thing to remain in the lineup.
Worry Level – 2/10
Sure he misses time due to injury, but his 136 and 135 games played in 2022 and 2023 give some confidence. The worry comes that, at age 34, his body might take longer to heal if and when he does get hurt.
5. Michael Conforto
One of their big free-agent signings this offseason was that of Michael Conforto. He signed a 1-year, $17.5M contract, and is projected to be the starting left-fielder on Opening Day. The problem is, his injury history is littered with hamstring injuries and two shoulder surgeries. It’s quite possible that something will happen again and time will be missed.
Worry level – 3/10
For fantasy purposes, the cost to draft him is quite low, therefore the risk here is minimal. With respect to real-world baseball, however, it’s quite possible that the team takes their time with any injury and saves his body for the postseason.
6. Yoshinobu Yamamoto
Last season, Yoshinobu Yamamoto came to the Dodgers with a lot of hype. He had succeeded in Japan where he pitched approximately once a week. Here, that schedule was intensified, where he was part of a five-man rotation with the odd spot start mixed in between. The end result was an injury to his triceps alongside a strain of his rotator cuff, where both of which cost him almost three months of action. Additionally, a look into his past suggests that he needed extra time off in order to help preserve his body.
Worry level – 6/10
Will a six-man rotation help keep Yamamoto healthier? Absolutely. It remains to be seen if it will keep him healthy. Judging by how he was used in the past, long stretches of rest may be needed here to keep his arm and shoulder from breaking down again. For fantasy purposes, that’s not an ideal solution, as his workload could actually decrease.
7. Tyler Glasnow
Arguably the biggest red flag of all is Tyler Glasnow this offseason. After throwing for a career-high 134.0 innings pitched in 2024, he went to the Injured List with inflammation in his elbow, followed by a follow-up MRI that showed a sprain. He missed the postseason, but later in the fall revealed that his elbow feels good unless he throws.
"It's really difficult sitting and watching."
Tyler Glasnow shared the latest on his recovery timeline and convos he's had with doctors. pic.twitter.com/Ue4sfHWGrE
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) October 23, 2024
Worry level – 10/10
Tyler Glasnow has a sprain, which is another word for a tear (potentially). These do not always heal with just rest, but rather may need surgery. That is not what I am suggesting here, but rather I am making note of the fact that Glasnow himself said that it only hurts when he throws. He also said in the interview that his offseason routine would not change and that he would throw twice a week throughout the entire offseason. That to me speaks of someone who believes he will be fine with rest. He might be one of the players that we see get shut down once he begins to ramp up this spring, intensifying his velocity and movement. I am not a doctor, nor do I pretend to play one on TV.
8. Roki Sasaki
Roki Sasaki came to the Dodgers, much to the chagrin of the rest of the league. He arrives from Japan having thrown just 129.0 innings as a career-high in 2022. Since then, he has tossed 91.0 and 111.0 innings respectively, making him potentially someone to be concerned about for workload. Why did he not accrue that many innings? There isn’t much of an answer, but there is this:
Right arm discomfort is not ideal, no matter where you’re pitching. The hope here is that it was nothing more than a preventive measure of keeping him away from the mound.
Worry level – 6/10
Adapting to the schedule, talent, and game here in North America may prove to be tricky for someone who may not be able to persevere. The team will be utilizing a six-man rotation, but will that be enough to preserve Sasaki’s arm? Time will tell.
9. Dustin May and Tony Gonsolin
Both pitchers are projected to be in the rotation as it stands, but a reminder that both haven’t pitched since the 2023 season. Gonsolin underwent Tommy John Surgery in August of 2023 and will be 19 months removed from the procedure. Meanwhile, Dustin May has spent the last year and a half recovering from UCL and flexor surgery while also recovering from an esophageal tear.
Worry level – 7/10
Both pitchers may be rusty due to health concerns and the process of recovery. While they are feel-good stories in their own respect, they may not be ready to be thrown into this rotation with any sort of consistency. That said, they will be needed in order to help facilitate this six-man rotation to keep the big arms healthy. If one of them goes down, there is a potential domino effect here.
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