Panthers Mindful Of Christian McCaffrey's Workload

Carolina Panthers head coach Ron Rivera and offensive coordinator Norv Turner are mindful of running back Christian McCaffrey's workload and want to minimize the punishment he takes this year. "We want him to have his 300 touches," Rivera said recently, referencing the fact that McCaffrey had 219 carries and 107 receptions last season. "We just […]

Pirates Release Francisco Cervelli

The Pittsburgh Pirates released catcher Francisco Cervelli (concussion) on Wednesday. The 33-year-old was on a minor league rehab assignment but had been out since late May and was hitting just .193/.279/.248 with a homer and five RBI in 109 at-bats this season. Cervelli had a career-high 12 homers -- his first time ever with double-digit […]

Cowboys Make New Offer To Ezekiel Elliott

The Dallas Cowboys most recent offer in negotiations with running back Ezekiel Elliott would make him one of the league's two highest-paid running backs, which suggests that the team is offering more than Le'Veon Bell and less than Todd Gurley money. With only two weeks left in the preseason, Elliott continues to hold out, but […]

Matt Carpenter Riding Pine Thursday

St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Matt Carpenter is not in the starting lineup on Thursday. Tommy Edman is at the hot corner and is batting seventh against Rockies starter German Marquez. Carp has been putrid all year (.212/.321/.363 with 11 homers and 33 RBI) and hasn't shown any signs of pulling out of his season-long […]

Patrick Chung Indicted On Cocaine Possession

New England Patriots strong safety Patrick Chung was indicted on a cocaine-possession charge earlier this month, according to assistant attorney Keith Cormier. Chung knowingly possessed cocaine on July 25 in New Hampshire where he owns a home. He's scheduled to appear in court next Wednesday and will be facing a suspension at some point in […]

Keke Coutee Still Sidelined

Houston Texans wide receiver Keke Coutee (ankle) is still out with his sprained ankle. It's now fair to wonder if Coutee will even be ready for Week 1 or how effective he might be early in the year if he does suit up. The second-year wideout is quickly developing a reputation for being injury-prone and […]

Ryan Pressly Out 4-6 Weeks

Houston Astros relief pitcher Ryan Pressly (knee) will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his right knee on Friday, according to general manager Jeff Luhnow. Pressly is expected to return in four to six weeks. The 30-year-old has only three saves this year, but he's been relevant in deeper leagues for his ratios, as he's been excellent […]

Jose Suarez To Start On Friday

Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Jose Suarez will be called up in order to start against the Astros on Friday, taking the rotation spot of Griffin Canning (elbow). Suarez, a 21-year-old left-hander, has an ugly 6.75 ERA, 1.69 WHIP and 53 strikeouts and 22 walks in 53 1/3 innings over 11 starts and one relief […]

Astros Calling Up Another Top Prospect

The Houston Astros are calling up infield prospect Abraham Toro-Hernandez from Triple-A Round Rock on Thursday, according to sources. Toro, 22, has done nothing but hit at Double-A Corpus Christi and Round Rock in 2019, slashing a combined .324/.411/.527 with 17 home runs, 80 RBI and four steals in 114 games. He was hitting .424 […]

J.D. Davis Breaking Out In 2019

New York Mets outfielder J.D. Davis, who won the Pacific Coast League batting title by hitting .342 last year, is a student of the game and studies the way opposing pitchers attack him. Davis had a .194 average in 66 games over two years with the Astros before being traded earlier this year. He started […]

JuJu Smith-Schuster Wants To Be More Of A Deep Threat

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, who ranked among the NFL leaders in receptions and yards in 2018, is now the team's top target with Antonio Brown gone, and he wants to evolve to become more of a dangerous deep threat. “Being able to catch the deep balls down the field, those go balls, those […]

Amari Cooper Not Worried About Injury

Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Amari Cooper (foot) said he's confident he'd be effective if he had to play in the regular season. “Real effective,” Cooper said from his locker at the Star on Tuesday. “I’m not really worried.” He's dealing with plantar fasciitis, something that he's had experience with before. Cooper has been seeking treatment […]

Anthony Miller Taking A Step Back

Chicago Bears wide receiver Anthony Miller (ankle) hasn't practiced since Aug. 10 due to a sprained ankle and also missed most of the team's work at organized team activities and minicamp while recovering from offseason shoulder surgery. The 24-year-old has plenty of potential but could start off slow in 2019 because of his lack of […]

Cardinals Sign Michael Crabtree

The Arizona Cardinals officially signed free-agent wide receiver Michael Crabtree to a one-year deal on Wednesday. The 31-year-old will have to prove himself to make the roster in the next two weeks, but he does offer some intrigue in head coach Kliff Kingsbury's offense if he sticks around, although he'll have to compete with rookies […]

Nick Chubb Could See More Work In Passing Game

Cleveland Browns running backs coach Stump Mitchell talked up running back Nick Chubb on Wednesday. "I think he’s going to be special like he was last year," said Mitchell. "He’ll be used a little more in the passing game than he was last year. Nick just continues to improve on the skillset that he has, […]

Cardinals Close To Signing Michael Crabtree

The Arizona Cardinals are closing in on signing free-agent wide receiver Michael Crabtree, according to sources. The Cards released former first-rounder Kevin White on Wednesday, and it looks like Crabtree is who they'll replace him with. It remains to be seen how Crabtree might fit in head coach Kliff Kingsbury's offense behind Larry Fitzgerald and […]

Brandon Lowe Suffers Setback On Rehab Assignment

Tampa Bay Rays infielder Brandon Lowe (quadriceps) left the game at Triple-A Durham on Wednesday with a left quadriceps strain. It's unrelated to the bruised right leg he was recovering from initially. He's heading back to Tampa for tests, which means he'll miss even more time, although how much longer is unknown as of now. […]

Ryan Shazier Is High On Devin Bush

Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Ryan Shazier has been impressed with rookie linebacker Devin Bush, who the Steelers traded up to get with the 10th overall pick. "I think he's going to make a lot of splash for us. He's going to be a big-time player for us," Shazier said. Shazier continues to make progress in his […]

Felix Hernandez To Start Saturday

Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Felix Hernandez (shoulder) will return from the injured list to start on Saturday against the Blue Jays. King Felix, hardly baseball royalty these days, will be making his first start since May 11. The veteran right-hander and future Hall of Famer doesn't have much left in the tank, though, and you'll […]

Stephen Piscotty Back In Lineup Wednesday

Oakland Athletics manager Bob Melvin said that outfielder Stephen Piscotty (ankle) was pulled on Tuesday due to soreness in his ankle, but the outfielder is back in the starting lineup on Wednesday and is hitting sixth against Yankees left-hander J.A. Happ. Piscotty has been a pretty big disappointment in 2019, hitting .246/.308/.403 with 12 home […]

Deivi Garcia Moving To Bullpen

The New York Yankees are moving their top prospect, starting pitcher Deivi Garcia, to the bullpen for the rest of the year. The 20-year-old is currently pitching with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. The move is a way to limit the young hurler's innings, and it'll be a way for the Yankees to see if they'd like to […]

Dustin May To Return To Starting Soon

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Dustin May will return to a starting role soon, according to manager Dave Roberts. May, the team's No. 2 prospect per MLB Pipeline, is 1-2 with a 4.26 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 15 strikeouts in 19 innings over three starts and one relief appearance in his first taste of the […]

Lions Give Damon Harrison One-Year Extension

The Detroit Lions agreed to a one-year, $11 million extension with defensive tackle Damon Harrison on Wednesday. Snacks Harrison won't do much in the sack column -- he has just nine total sacks in his six years in the league -- but he's most known for being an elite run clogger up the middle with […]

Paul Richardson, Trey Quinn Unlikely To Play Thursday

Washington Redskins wide receiver Trey Quinn (thumb) will not play in the preseason game on Thursday against the Falcons, while wide receiver Paul Richardson (quadriceps) will "probably not" play either. Richardson played in just seven games and caught 20 passes for 262 yards and two touchdowns in his first year in D.C. He continues to […]

Brett Gardner Likely To Return Thursday

New York Yankees outfielder Brett Gardner (toe), who had an ingrown toenail removed on Sunday night, is likely to return to the starting lineup on Thursday, according to manager Aaron Boone. The 35-year-old veteran is hitting a mediocre .254/.335/.484 with 17 home runs, 67 runs, 50 RBI and nine steals in 370 at-bats this year […]

Ramon Laureano Close To Returning

Oakland Athletics outfielder Ramon Laureano (shin) thinks he can play right now and has been hitting, throwing and started running drills on Tuesday. He doesn't think he'll need a rehab assignment before returning, but that won't be his call. The 25-year-old started the season off slow but came on strong and is hitting a nice […]

Casey Mize Being Shut Down

The Detroit Tigers have decided to shut down their top prospect, starting pitcher Casey Mize, with just under two weeks left in the season for Double-A Erie. Mize's shutdown isn't medically-related and is expected to take part in the team's instructional league on Sept. 13. He'll be cleared to have a normal offseason. Mize was […]

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Out Against Dodgers

Toronto Blue Jays rookie third baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is not in the starting lineup on Wednesday. Instead, Brandon Drury will start at third base and hit fifth against Dodgers starting pitcher Walker Buehler. Drury is hitting a poor .230/.270/.410 with 14 home runs, 37 runs and 39 RBI in 344 at-bats this year. He's […]

Cardinals Release Kevin White

The Arizona Cardinals released wide receiver Kevin White on Wednesday, according to a source. White was a former first-round pick with the Bears and had recovered from a hamstring injury that kept him out the last week. It remains to be seen if another team will take a chance on the oft-injured wideout. His release […]

Brandon Morrow's Season Is Over

Chicago Cubs president Theo Epstein said that relief pitcher Brandon Morrow (elbow) suffered another setback and will miss the rest of the season. The team's former closer hasn't pitched in the majors since before the All-Star break in 2018. He lost any real chance to return to fantasy relevance when the Cubs traded for Craig […]