Injured MLB Players Set for Returns Who Could Bolster Their Teams

Teams need as much help as they can get at this point in the season. The dilemma is that this is the time of the year when legs become heavy and arms become tired, and teams' injury lists tend to be a little on the long side.

Time is running short for injured players to get healthy and back into the swing of things, but there are a handful of injured players out there who will fortunately be back on the field in the very near future. And not a moment too soon as far as their employers are concerned.

CC Sabathia, ace lefty of the New York Yankees, comes to mind. The Yankees had to put him on the disabled list for the second time this season a couple of weeks ago with an elbow problem, but he'll soon be back to help the Bronx Bombers capture what they hope will be their third AL East title in the last four years.

Here's a look at him and seven other injured players who are getting healthy at the perfect time.

Note: All stats come from Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.

Dee Gordon, Los Angeles Dodgers

Remember Dee Gordon?

I don't blame you if you don't. He was only hitting .229 with a .280 on-base percentage when he landed on the DL in early July with a bad thumb injury. To boot, he was having an awful season in the field as well.

Regardless, Gordon is getting closer to returning to the Dodgers. According to AM 570 Dodgers beat reporter David Vassegh, Gordon was cleared for baseball activities last week, and the plan is for him to start playing rehab games this week.

If all goes well, it sounds like he has a shot to make his return in early September or maybe even before the month of August is out.

Dodgers manager Don Mattingly hinted earlier this month, via the Los Angeles Times, that Gordon will resume everyday shortstop duties once he gets healthy with Hanley Ramirez taking up a permanent residence at the hot corner.

But one presumes that Gordon won't go back to hitting leadoff where Shane Victorino now resides. Instead, he'll probably be a fixture in the No. 8 spot in the Dodgers' lineup.

That's not such a bad place for him. If he gets on base, it's not hard to imagine him swiping a couple of bases before the inevitable sac-bunt from the pitcher is put down. If he continues to hit .229 with a .280 OBP, it will be less of a problem seeing as how he won't have the responsibility of getting on base for the team's big guns.

Of course, since Luis Cruz has been playing so well recently, there's always the chance that Gordon could be banished to the bench and used only as a pinch-runner.

Either way, Mattingly will find a use for Gordon that benefits the club.

Henry Rodriguez, Washington Nationals

Henry Rodriguez was not having a good season before his back acted up earlier this month. He had a 5.83 ERA in 35 appearances, and he was walking nearly seven hitters per nine innings.

The bright side is that Rodriguez's stuff was never a problem. His fastball was averaging 97.6 miles per hour according to FanGraphs, and he had a solid swinging-strike percentage of 10.6.

The word from James Wagner of the Washington Post is that Rodriguez reported no discomfort after a bullpen session last week, and he was able to throw another one on Tuesday. He could be ready to begin a rehab assignment.

Washington's bullpen has been solid this month, posting a 2.03 ERA with four wins and nine saves. But if Rodriguez comes back and pitches the way he did in 2011, a strength will get even stronger.

Despite the fact he struggled with control problems last season too, Rodriguez still managed to post a 9.59 K/9 and a solid 3.56 ERA. He only gave up one home run all season, holding hitters to a razor-thin .252 slugging percentage.

Perhaps the time off to rest his back will prove to be just what the doctor ordered for Rodriguez, in which case he'll go back to blowing hitters away in no time.

That's the last thing Washington's opponents want to have happen. If the Nationals add a healthy and productive Rodriguez to a late-inning core that already features Drew Storen and Tyler Clippard, their bullpen is going to be just as fearsome as their starting rotation.

Koji Uehara, Texas Rangers

The Texas Rangers already have a deep, strong bullpen, but it's going to get even stronger and even deeper once Koji Uehara is back in the mix.

And that will be very soon. According to Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News, Uehara was able to throw live batting practice without any trouble from his wounded lat muscle. He's going on a rehab assignment and could be activated as soon as this weekend. 

Uehara has been out of commission since early June, at which point he was sitting on a 2.11 ERA and a sparkling 0.70 WHIP. He had 22 strikeouts and only two walks in 21.1 innings pitched.

When he returns, he'll take his place as one of Joe Nathan's primary setup men alongside Mike Adams, who has a 2.70 ERA in 48 appearances this season. The Rangers will also have Robbie Ross (1.72 ERA), Mark Lowe (2.12) and Alexi Ogando (2.88) in their bullpen.

That's an excellent collection of relievers, one that the Rangers are sure to make good use of down the stretch.

Ron Washington won't have much of a choice, really. His starting rotation is as unpredictable as any rotation in baseball, meaning the Rangers bullpen could be tasked with saving the day at any time.

It's already capable of doing that. Uehara's presence will only make the pen more formidable.

Brandon Inge, Oakland A's

Brandon Inge is at a point in his career where he's never going to be 100 percent healthy at any given moment. For him, a sprained right shoulder suffered earlier this month is just the latest in a long line of maladies.

However, this one isn't going to keep Inge out for much longer. Joe Stiglich of the Bay Area News Group reported on Monday that Inge was able to throw this week and that he's hoping to come off the DL as soon as he's eligible on August 27.

The A's will take whatever offense they can get out of Inge, but what they really miss for the time being is Inge's glove. He's always been an above-average defensive player, and this year he bears a 10.7 UZR and a DRS of +6, according to FanGraphs.

Good defense at the hot corner is more important now for the A's than it was before. The A's upgraded offensively when they acquired Stephen Drew to play shortstop down the stretch, but they downgraded defensively with Cliff Pennington moving over to second base.

Once Inge is playing next to Drew, nobody's going to be able to tell that the A's downgraded defensively at short. The left side of Oakland's infield will be just fine.

Mike Napoli, Texas Rangers

Mike Napoli was one of the most dominant sluggers in baseball in 2011, hitting .320 with 30 home runs and a 1.046 OPS.

He hasn't been the same player this season, as he's hitting just .223 with 17 homers and a .771 OPS. He hasn't played since August 10 due to a strained left quad. 

Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported on Monday that Napoli is no longer feeling any pain in his troublesome left quad, and that he's generally "feeling good." The team's official site said Napoli was feeling "90-95" percent as of Tuesday.

Barring any setbacks, it sounds like Napoli could rejoin the Rangers before the month is out.

Geovany Soto has been playing well lately, but Napoli shouldn't have any trouble forcing his way back into the lineup. He was, after all, showing signs of life just before he got hurt, hitting five home runs and racking up nine RBI in 10 games between July 21 and August 1.

If Napoli returns to being anywhere near the hitter he was last season, Texas' offense is going to have even less trouble generating more runs than usual. The fact that they lead all of baseball in runs scored despite poor performances from Napoli and Michael Young and sporadic production from Josh Hamilton goes to show just how deep their lineup goes.

If Napoli returns and the Rangers offense proceeds to catch fire in September, they're going to have a ton of momentum heading into October. That's a scary thought for the rest of the American League.

A.J. Griffin, Oakland A's

With word coming out on Wednesday from MLB that veteran right-hander Bartolo Colon has been suspended 50 games for a positive PED test, the A's suddenly find themselves in need of a starting pitcher.

Fortunately for them, A.J. Griffin is on the comeback trail. 

According to Jane Lee of MLB.com, Griffin is set to make a rehab start on Wednesday. The plan was for him to make two starts before considering whether to call him back up to the big club, but one assumes there's a greater sense of urgency now with Colon out of the picture for the rest of the season.

Griffin, who landed on the DL with an injured right shoulder, is a guy who can make up for the loss of Colon. In eight starts with the A's this season, he went 3-0 with a 2.42 ERA, pitching at least six innings in all but one of his starts (the one in which he hurt himself).

Griffin certainly appears to be a better option to take Colon's spot in the rotation than Tyson Ross, who the San Francisco Chronicle says will start in Colon's place on Thursday. Ross has a 6.35 ERA in 12 starts with the A's this season, giving up at least four runs in five of them.

Once Griffin's health checks out, don't be surprised if he is substituted for Ross immediately.

Jason Hammel, Baltimore Orioles

The Orioles' starting rotation has been in flux virtually the entire season. They have a lot of options but few good ones.

Earlier in the season, they were at least able to rely on Jason Hammel and Wei-Yin Chen to provide quality innings on a consistent basis. That duo was broken up when Hammel had to undergo surgery on his right knee in July.

According to Dan Connolly of the Baltimore Sun, Hammel was able to throw 41 pitches during a side session on Tuesday, and he was also able to take fielding practice. He could throw a simulated game on Friday in Baltimore.

The next step after that would be a rehab assignment, which means Hammel could be back in early September.

The O's need him as soon as possible. Their starting rotation is holding up well enough at the moment, as it has a 9-5 record with a 4.40 ERA in August, but there's no denying that it's a patchwork affair with very unreliable parts.

Baltimore's rotation certainly misses Hammel, who went 8-6 with a 3.54 ERA in 18 starts before he got hurt. Half of the 18 starts he made were quality starts, and there was a point in June where he struck out 18 and allowed zero earned runs in two starts that spanned 17 innings.

The O's have the postseason in their sights for the first time since 1997. Hammel can help them get there.

CC Sabathia, New York Yankees

The Yankees haven't really missed CC Sabathia since he last started on August 8. In 13 games since, they've gone 8-5. It helps that David Phelps has pitched well in his stead.

So it goes for the Yankees. They've dealt with more than their fair share of injuries this season, but you'd never know it by looking at their record. They're having a typical Yankees season.

They won't have to tough it out without Sabathia much longer. The word from MLB.com is that his wounded left elbow held up just fine in a bullpen session on Tuesday. He's in line to start against the Cleveland Indians, one of his former teams, on Friday.

Sabathia hasn't been his usual dominant self this season, but there's very little to complain about regarding his performance in general. He's 12-3 with a 3.56 ERA in 20 starts, and he actually ranks sixth among AL starters in WAR, according to FanGraphs.

His return can only help the Yankees hold off the hard-charging Tampa Bay Rays. Beyond that, he'll just be looking to gain some momentum heading into October.

Shouldn't be too much trouble for him.

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