​In this week’s Injury Report, Ronald Acuña Jr. took his next step towards a return as he began a minor league rehab assignment on Monday. Kyle Harrison has downplayed the elbow soreness that landed him on the injured list to end the first half. And A’s slugger Nick Kurtz has been sidelined with a thumb strain. All that and more as we cover all of the latest relevant injury news around baseball.⚾️ Baseball is back! MLB returns to NBC and Peacock in 2026! In addition to becoming the exclusive home of Sunday Night Baseball, NBC Sports will broadcast MLB Sunday Leadoff, “Opening Day” and Labor Day primetime games, the first round of the MLB Draft, the entire Wild Card round of the postseason, and much more.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementAcuña began a minor league rehab assignment on Monday in the Florida Complex League, going 0-for-3 with a strikeout. He’ll be there this week while all teams are on break to get a few games in before potentially returning when the Braves resume play on Friday at home against the Rangers. At worst, we’re looking at a return by next week. Acuña has been out of action since June 10 with a Grade 1 left hamstring strain, the second occurrence of the injury this season after a hamstring strain forced him to miss some time in May. The 28-year-old outfielder has been limited to 53 games this season, hitting .251/.373/.421 with seven homers, 31 runs scored, 22 RBI, and 15 steals.MLB: New York Mets at Atlanta BravesFantasy Baseball Waiver Wire: A.J. Ewing, Jared Jones show league-winning potentialAdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementEric Samulski and James Schiano discuss their favorite fantasy baseball waiver wire adds for the weekend.SamulskiBW.jpg Eric Samulski,JamesSchiano copy.jpg James Schiano,Harrison told reporters following his last start on July 8 that he had been dealing with some soreness on the outside of his left elbow for a couple of weeks. It went just four innings in that one after lasting just 2 2/3 in his previous start. The next day, Harrison was placed on the 15-day injured list with left forearm tightness. Hopefully, with the extra rest over the All-Star break, he won’t have to miss more than a start or two. Harrison did provide an update over the weekend, stating that he was feeling much better and “not too worried” about the injury. The 24-year-old left-hander has enjoyed a breakout season through the first half, posting a 3.01 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, and 101 strikeouts over 83 2/3 innings.Kurtz was originally pulled from last Wednesday’s contest against the Tigers with an illness, though there was some speculation after he appeared to jam his hand in the first inning. He returned to the lineup on Thursday, then held out on Friday with a right thumb capsule strain before ultimately landing on the 10-day injured list. The injury will sideline Kurtz for the All-Star game, as he could be facing a multi-week absence. The 23-year-old slugger has followed up an impressive rook