July 21, 2025
Detroit Tigers infielder/outfielder
Javier Baez (shoulder) is not in the team's starting lineup for Monday's series opener in Pittsburgh against the Pirates at PNC Park. Baez will take a seat to begin the week after aggravating a left-shoulder injury in Sunday's victory over the Texas Rangers and being pulled early. It doesn't sound like a serious injury for the 32-year-old veteran, but it's something to keep an eye on going forward.
Trey Sweeney is making the start at shortstop for the Tigers on Monday and will bat ninth against Pirates right-hander
Paul Skenes. Baez has had a resurgent season in 2025 with the Tigers that resulted in his third All-Star appearance. The Puerto Rican slugger is currently slashing .274/.308/.438 with a .746 OPS, 10 home runs, 39 RBI and 42 runs scored in 81 games for the first-place Tigers. He could be back as soon as Tuesday.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com
July 21, 2025
Cleveland Guardians outfielder
Steven Kwan (wrist) is back in left field and is batting leadoff for Monday's series opener against the visiting Baltimore Orioles and right-hander
Tomoyuki Sugano. The Guardians held Kwan out of each of the first three games of the second half from Friday through Sunday due to an injury to his right wrist. The 27-year-old is feeling better now, though, after receiving a pain-killing injection over the weekend. Kwan is hitless in three career at-bats against Sugano, but fantasy managers will want to get him back into their starting lineups for the week now that he's back. He made the All-Star team this year for the second straight season and begins the second half with a nice .285/.345/.396 slash line with a .741 OPS, six home runs, 32 RBI, 43 runs scored and 11 steals in 92 games.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com
July 21, 2025
Chicago Cubs right-hander
Jameson Taillon (calf) had a "very good day" in terms of throwing intensity last Thursday, according to manager Craig Counsell. Taillon should start throwing bullpen sessions soon, and the Cubs will look to get him throwing off a mound around the end of their next road trip, according to MLB.com. The 33-year-old veteran has yet to pitch in July due to a right-calf strain, but barring a setback as he begins to ramp up, Taillon could be ready to return to Chicago's starting rotation in early August. The former first-rounder has been pretty mediocre for fantasy managers in 2025 in his third season in Chicago, going 7-6 with a 4.44 ERA (5.17 FIP) and 1.11 WHIP with only 74 strikeouts and 20 walks in 95 1/3 innings over his 17 starts. Despite missing time with his calf injury, he leads MLB with 22 home runs allowed.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com
July 21, 2025
Chicago Cubs catcher
Miguel Amaya (oblique) has been taking live at-bats and catching bullpen sessions and is expected to start a minor-league rehab assignment on Thursday, according to MLB.com. Manager Craig Counsell said previously that Amaya will need a week's worth of rehab games before he's activated from the 10-day injured list. Amaya has been out since May 25 with a left-oblique strain, but barring a setback on his rehab assignment, he could rejoin the big-league roster in late July. The 26-year-old backstop was hitting a strong .280 (26-for-93) with four home runs, 25 RBI and 14 runs scored at the time of his injury, but when he returns to Chicago, he's expected to operate as the backup to
Carson Kelly. Kelly is in the midst of a career year, going into Monday's game slashing .267/.368/.505 with 12 homers and 33 RBI in 64 games.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com
July 21, 2025
Chicago Cubs right-hander
Javier Assad (oblique) is scheduled to make a minor-league rehab start in the rookie-level Arizona Complex League on Thursday, according to manager Craig Counsell. Assad suffered a Grade 2 left-oblique strain in his April 22 outing with Triple-A Iowa and has not pitched for the Cubs at all so far in 2025. The 27-year-old initially went on the 15-day injured list back on March 18 but was moved to the 60-day IL on April 30 after aggravating his oblique. Barring a setback on his rehab assignment, Assad could be cleared to make his season debut for the Cubs at some point in August. However, since Assad could very well be relegated to a long-relief role out of the bullpen, he won't be a big fantasy asset upon his return. He made a career-high 29 starts for Chicago in 2024 and had a 3.73 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 124:63 K:BB in 147 innings.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com
July 21, 2025
Chicago White Sox outfield prospect
George Wolkow hit a two-run home run in a 4-for-5 day at the plate on Sunday for Single-A Kannapolis, collecting three singles and scoring three times as well. It has been an up-and-down season for the power-hitting lefty, going through hot stretches mixed with prolonged cold stretches. The 19-year-old appears to be in the midst of a hot stretch, going 9-for-23 (.391) over his last six games, but this recent run was preceded by a woeful 0-for-28 stretch of nine games. Sunday's home run was his ninth of the year, and although he's striking out at a 28.0 percent rate, the 2023 Draft pick is walking at an 11.3 percent clip, which has in turn helped his stolen base total of 20. In all, the 6-foot-7 slugger is slashing .213/.315/.332, and he'll need to pick up the pace if he's going to get to the next level.
--Jarod RuppSource: MiLB.com
July
21,
2025
The
Chicago
Cubs
would
be
reluctant
to
trade
shortstop
prospect
Jefferson
Rojas,
who
was
recently
promoted
to
Double-A
Knoxville,
in
a
deal
this
summer
for
a
rental
player,
according
to
The
Athletic's
Patrick
Mooney
and
Sahadev
read more...
July 21, 2025
New York Yankees shortstop prospect
George Lombard Jr. hit a two-run home run in a 1-for-4 day at the plate on Sunday. It was the second consecutive game with a home run for the Yanks' top-ranked prospect, with four of his five home runs coming at Double-A Somerset. The former first-round draft pick was promoted earlier this year after slashing .329/.495/.488 in 24 games at High-A, but is hitting just .208 at the next level. With a strong 13.1 percent walk rate, the 20-year-old has still been able to register a decent .328 OBP, which has helped him use his speed, swiping 14 bases for the Patriots and 25 total on the year. At this rate, he'll finish out the year at Double-A, but should see time at Triple-A next year and potentially push for an MLB debut sometime later next season.
--Jarod RuppSource: MiLB.com
July 21, 2025
The Athletic's Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma write that Washington Nationals right-handed reliever
Kyle Finnegan is on the Chicago Cubs' radar with the trade deadline approaching despite the fact that his strikeout rates don't light up projection models. The Cubs are fully confident in current closer
Daniel Palencia, but the Cubs would like to expand the late-inning bullpen options for manager Craig Counsell as the team prioritizes matchups, rest and recovery for their pitchers. Finnegan hasn't been great with a 4.25 ERA and 1.28 WHIP this year, but the 33-year-old has 19 saves (107 in his career) and a knack for inducing ground balls. It's possible that he'd have more success in Chicago in more of a low-leverage, seventh-inning role instead of in the ninth inning.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma
July 21, 2025
Kansas City Royals catching prospect
Carter Jensen continued his torrid stretch of hitting on Sunday, going 2-for-5 with a single, a home run, and three RBI for Triple-A Omaha. It was his seventh multi-hit effort in his last 10 games, going 16-for-37 (.432) during that span, including four doubles and six home runs. The Royals' second-ranked prospect earned a promotion to Triple-A at the beginning of July, and he's now hitting .288 with a scorching 1.085 OPS in his 15-game sample with the Storm Chasers. There is no room for the youngster on the Royals' roster at the moment, but if either
Salvador Perez or
Freddy Fermin were to go down with injury, Jensen surely would be under consideration for a call-up. As hot as he's been, Kansas City may also need to consider getting Jensen some time at another position to help open up pathways to the majors.
--Jarod RuppSource: MiLB.com
July 21, 2025
It remains to be seen if the Arizona Diamondbacks will actually trade third baseman
Eugenio Suarez, but The Athletic's Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma believe the Chicago Cubs should be involved until the last minute up to the July 31 traded deadline, and it's no secret that they are looking at Suarez as a potential upgrade at third base over struggling rookie
Matt Shaw. Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer and D-backs general manager Mike Hazen are good friends who previously worked in Boston's front office, so that could help facilitate a trade of Suarez to the North Side. Making things more complicated, Arizona is prepared to wait until next week before deciding whether they will be buyers or sellers after sweeping the St. Louis Cardinals out of the All-Star break. Suarez is currently third in baseball with 35 homers and leads MLB with hi 85 RBI.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Athletic - Patrick Mooney and Sahadev Sharma
July 21, 2025
Minnesota Twins infield prospect
Luke Keaschall (forearm) went 2-for-5 with two singles and a pair of steals on Sunday during his rehab assignment at Triple-A St. Paul. The Twins' third-ranked prospect has now completed three rehab games, going 3-for-12 -- all singles -- with a 3:1 BB:K and two steals so far. The former second-rounder is working his way back from a fractured right forearm, which he sustained during his debut stint with the Twins earlier this year. The 22-year-old was performing well before the injury, going 7-for-19 (.368) with three doubles, five steals, and a 5:2 BB:K in just seven games. As such, he should be back on the waiver wire radar in redraft leagues, however, per Dan Hayes of the Athletic, the rehab assignment is expected to be a little longer than normal in order to make sure he's fully confident with the health of his forearm.
--Jarod RuppSource: Dan Hayes - The Athletic
July 21, 2025
Arizona Diamondbacks catcher
Gabriel Moreno (finger) will undergo another CT scan this week, per MLB.com. Moreno suffered a right-hand contusion on June 6 against the Cincinnati Reds and was later diagnosed with a hairline fracture in his right index finger. He originally went on the 10-day injured list on June 19 before being transferred to the 60-day IL on July 18. Barring a setback once he begins doing baseball activities, Moreno could return to the Diamondbacks in late August as their primary catcher. In the meantime,
Jose Herrera and
James McCann will continue to split time behind the dish in Arizona. The 25-year-old Moreno was hitting a strong .270/.324/.414 with a .738 OPS, five home runs, 20 RBI and 29 runs scored in 53 games before his injury. If he gets good news on his CT scan, he could resume baseball activities later this week.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com
July 21, 2025
Washington Nationals pitching prospect Yoel Tejeda Jr. is being promoted to High-A Wilmington after a solid showing at Single-A to begin the year. The Nats' 17th-ranked prospect posted a 3.43 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, and a 16.4 percent K-BB% over 16 starts for Fredericksburg (78 2/3 innings pitched). The 6-foot-8 hurler was proficient at keeping balls in the yard, logging just a 5.2 percent HR/FB% and walked batters at a better-than-average 6.5 percent rate. His tall frame allows his low-90s fastball to seem faster, although his K/9 was only 8.47 in those 16 starts. The 22-year-old right-hander will face stiffer competition at High-A, so it will be interesting to see how he fares, but for now, he is off the dynasty radar.
--Jarod RuppSource: MiLB Central
July 21, 2025
The Chicago Cubs are expected to call up right-hander
Ben Brown from Triple-A Iowa on Monday before their series opener versus the Kansas City Royals, per ESPN's Jesse Rogers. Brown could serve as Chicago's bulk reliever on Monday against KC after opener
Ryan Brasier, who will likely only go one or two innings as the "opener."
Jameson Taillon (calf) remains on the 15-day injured list for the Cubs, but it remains to be seen if the 25-year-old Brown will actually get any opening assignments before Taillon is back with the big-league squad. He was sent to the minors earlier this year after struggling to a 4-6 record, 6.13 ERA (4.10 FIP) and 1.52 WHIP, but he also had 91 strikeouts and 27 walks in 79 1/3 innings over his 16 outings (14 starts). For his strikeout upside alone, Brown might be worth a waiver pickup in NL-only formats.
--Keith HernandezSource: ESPN Chicago - Jesse Rogers
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