September 17, 2025
Tampa Bay Rays outfielder
Christopher Morel (abdomen) will start in left field and bat cleanup for the Rays on Wednesday against the division-rival Toronto Blue Jays and right-hander
Kevin Gausman. Morel is returning to the starting lineup after being pulled from Sunday's series finale against his old team, the Chicago Cubs, with an abdominal contusion. The 26-year-old appeared as a pinch-hitter in Tuesday's game against Toronto and will now return to the starting nine. He has faced Gausman just twice in his career and has a solo home run. Morel's playing time has dipped in 2025, as he is rarely on the field against right-handed pitchers. The Dominican native is batting a weak .227/.293/.410 with a .703 OPS, 11 home runs, 27 RBI, and seven steals in 256 at-bats. However, he has hit .316 (6-for-19) with a homer and four RBI so far in 10 games in September.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com
September 17, 2025
Boston Red Sox rookie left-hander
Payton Tolle will be a reliever for the rest of the season in Boston, according to manager Alex Cora. With Tolle moving to the bullpen the rest of the way, left-hander
Kyle Harrison will move to the starting rotation and will take on the division-rival Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday, per Tim Healey of The Boston Globe. Fellow rookie
Connelly Early has been much more impressive than Tolle in their first couple of big-league starts, and Early will start on four days of rest in the series finale on Sunday. Tolle, the team's No. 2 prospect per MLB Pipeline, struggled in his first three major-league starts against the Pirates, Diamondbacks, and Athletics, allowing nine earned runs on 11 hits (four homers) while walking six and striking out 12 in 10 1/3 innings. He'll serve in a long-relief role down the stretch as Boston looks to hang onto one of the final wild-card spots in the American League.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Boston Globe - Tim Healey
September 17, 2025
New York Mets catcher
Francisco Alvarez (triceps) is doing the catching for left-hander
David Peterson and will hit eighth on Wednesday against the visiting San Diego Padres and right-hander
Nick Pivetta. Alvarez was hit on the triceps by a pitch in Monday's win over the Padres and was quickly replaced by a pinch-runner, but he avoided a serious injury and is back in there the very next day. The 23-year-old backstop has been a magnet at the plate and is also playing through a broken pinkie finger on his left hand and a torn UCL in his right thumb, so he's nowhere near 100 percent as the Mets try to hang onto the final wild-card spot in the National League over the final week and a half of the 2025 season. The Venezuelan catcher has hit just .194 (6-for-31) with a homer and an RBI in 11 games in September and can't be counted on for much power while playing through his injuries.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com
September 17, 2025
Athletics outfielder/first baseman
Tyler Soderstrom (groin) is starting in left field and batting cleanup in Wednesday's contest on the road at Fenway Park against the Boston Red Sox and right-hander
Lucas Giolito. Soderstrom will return to action in Beantown after missing the last five games with groin tightness. Fantasy managers will want to get the 23-year-old left-handed slugger back in their lineups against a right-handed pitcher. He's in the midst of a breakout 2025 campaign in his first full season in the big leagues and comes into Wednesday's game hitting .278 (146-for-525) with career-highs across the board in home runs (24), RBI (89), runs scored (71), and stolen bases (eight) in 147 games. Soderstrom has been red-hot in September, too, going 13-for-32 (.406) with a homer, four doubles, and 11 RBI in 10 games. Start him against Giolito.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com
September 17, 2025
Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora said that rookie left-hander
Connelly Early will make his next start on four days of rest in Sunday's series finale against the division-rival Tampa Bay Rays, according to Mass Live's Christopher Smith. The 23-year-old former fifth-round pick in 2023 out of Virginia has looked sharp in his first two MLB starts for the BoSox, giving up only one earned run on 10 hits while walking one and striking out 18 over 10 1/3 innings against the Athletics in both outings. While Early has been impressive, this will be only the third time all year that he's been asked to pitch on four days of rest. The team's No. 6-ranked prospect, per MLB Pipeline, went 10-3 with a 2.60 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 132:40 K:BB in 100 1/3 innings with Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester before getting the call to the majors. Early hasn't been known as an overpowering pitching prospect, but he has set up his impressive offspeed pitches with his fastball nicely early in his MLB career.
--Keith HernandezSource: MassLive.com - Christopher Smith
September 17, 2025
Chicago White Sox infield prospect Caleb Bonemer has been named the Single-A Carolina League Most Valuable Player for 2025. Chicago's fourth-ranked prospect slashed .281/.400/.458 with 10 home runs, 27 steals, and a strong 15.7 percent walk rate in 96 games for Single-A Kannapolis. The 2024 second-rounder was then promoted to High-A in late August, where he put up similar numbers, slashing .278/.409/.611 with two home runs, two steals, and a 15.9 percent walk rate in 11 games there. The 19-year-old currently ranks as MLB.com's No. 83 prospect overall, and could see time at Double-A next year, although at his age, he is still likely at least a couple of years away from the majors. Dynasty managers should consider stashing him away, or at the very least, monitor his progress.
--Jarod RuppSource: Kannapolis Cannon Ballers
September 17, 2025
Los Angeles Dodgers outfield prospect Eduardo Quintero has been named the Single-A California League Most Valuable Player. The Dodgers' No. 4 prospect was promoted to High-A Great Lakes in late July, but before that, he spent 81 games at Single-A Rancho Cucamonga, where he hit .306 with 14 home runs and 35 steals. The 6-foot-1 Venezuelan boasted a 16.5 percent walk rate, which also helped him to an elite .426 on-base percentage. All told, it was a .448 wOBA and 160 wRC+ campaign for the youngster. Although his .259 average at High-A seems to indicate that level has been more challenging, the 20-year-old is 13-for-42 (.310) over his last 12 games, including three home runs and two steals. Quintero was not on MLB.com's preseason Top 100 list, but debuted there in August at No. 55 overall, and he could be even higher next year. He looks like a must-stash in dynasty formats.
--Jarod RuppSource: MLB.com
September 17, 2025
Chicago Cubs infield prospect
Ed Howard was promoted to Triple-A Iowa on Tuesday. The former first-round draft pick has dealt with injuries since coming into the minor league system in 2021, much of which centered around a hip injury in 2022 that required surgery, which has derailed his progress. This year, the 23-year-old played two games at High-A and 15 more at Double-A prior to his promotion to Triple-A this week. Including a 1-for-4 game for Iowa on Tuesday, the right-handed hitter is just 6-for-61 (.098) in 2025. He'll use the remainder of the 2025 season and the Arizona Fall League to recoup some at-bats, and it will allow the Cubs to see if he's going to be a part of their future, a player who once ranked as the club's No. 5 prospect back in 2021.
--Jarod RuppSource: Tommy Birch
September 17, 2025
Arizona Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said the team will go with a four-man starting rotation for the rest of the season, which means right-hander
Nabil Crismatt will pitch out of the bullpen the rest of the way, according to Alex D'Agostino of SI.com. Crismatt surprisingly held his own as a member of Arizona's rotation in the second half of the season after being called up from Triple-A Reno on Aug. 17. The 30-year-old native of Columbia has made six appearances (five starts) for the D-backs and has posted a solid 2.70 ERA (3.85 FIP) and 1.27 WHIP with 21 strikeouts and seven walks in 30 innings pitched while going 3-0. Crismatt was a bit fortunate to have an ERA under 3.00, but he'll attempt to continue pitching well out of the bullpen as Arizona tries to sneak into the final wild-card spot in the National League the last two weeks of the season.
--Keith HernandezSource: SI.com - Alex D'Agostino
September 17, 2025
Los Angeles Angels pitching prospect
George Klassen was promoted to Triple-A Salt Lake on Tuesday after spending the entirety of 2025 at Double-A. The Angels' third-ranked prospect posted a 5.35 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, and struck out 126 batters in 102 2/3 innings pitched (24 starts) this season, but had been better as of late, recording a 1.17 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, and a 21.4 percent K-BB% over his last four starts prior to the promotion. After being traded from the Phillies in August of last year, the former sixth-round draft pick registered a 16.9 percent walk rate in eight starts, but improved that to 10.0 percent in 2025, so there could be less reliever risk than there once had been. In his first start at Triple-A on Tuesday, the 23-year-old allowed two earned runs on six hits and one walk while striking out eight in six innings of work. He's worthy of consideration in dynasty leagues and could debut in the majors in 2026.
--Jarod RuppSource: Taylor Blake Ward
September 17, 2025
San Diego Padres right-hander
Joe Musgrove (elbow) threw an up-and-down bullpen session at Citi Field on Tuesday before the team's game against the New York Mets. Musgrove threw around 15 pitches in what amounted to a two-innings simulated game. The 32-year-old still has a ways to go, but he's hoping to be cleared to potentially work out of the team's bullpen in October if they make a deep run in the playoffs. He underwent Tommy John surgery on his right elbow on Oct. 11 of 2024 and has not pitched at all during the 2025 campaign, and even though he's ramping up his throwing program off a mound, he remains more of a long shot to return before spring training of 2026. Getting Musgrove back in the rotation next year would be a huge boost to the Padres' pitching staff, but it remains to be seen if he can return to his pre-injury form.
--Keith HernandezSource: The San Diego Union-Tribune - Kevin Acee
September 17, 2025
San Diego Padres left-hander
Nestor Cortes (biceps) will face live hitters on Friday at the team's spring training facility in Arizona, according to Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune. Cortes has been cleared to take the next step after throwing a few bullpen sessions following his placement on the 15-day injured list on Sept. 5 with tendinitis in his left biceps. He's on track to make it back to the big-league roster before the end of the regular season, but when he's back, there's a good chance he'll be relegated to a long-relief bullpen role. And if the Friars make the postseason, the veteran hurler won't be a lock to be on the roster after how poorly he's pitched in 2025. Cortes has more often than not thrown batting practice in his eight starts with the Padres and Milwaukee Brewers this year, surrendering eight home runs and 16 earned runs in 26 1/3 innings.
--Keith HernandezSource: The San Diego Union-Tribune - Kevin Acee
September 17, 2025
Los Angeles Angels infielder
Carter Kieboom was recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake on Tuesday after shortstop
Zach Neto (hand) was placed on the 10-day injured list with a hand injury. Kieboom was on fire at Triple-A, collecting at least one hit in 24 of his last 25 games, going 40-for-100 (.400) over that stretch, including six doubles, a triple, one home run, five steals, and an 11:16 BB:K. In 93 games for the Bees, the former first-round draft pick slashed .319/.368/.449 with nine home runs and 11 steals. Unfortunately, the 28-year-old has never been able to translate that success to the majors, with a career .200/.297/.301 slash line in 134 major league games dating back to 2019. The 6-foot-1 slugger drew the start at first base for the Halos on Tuesday in his first game back in the bigs, going 1-for-3 out of the seventh spot in the order, so perhaps he can keep his momentum going this time around. For managers looking to take a risk in hopes of catching lightning in a bottle, the right-handed hitter is eligible at 1B, 2B, and 3B in Yahoo! leagues.
--Jarod RuppSource: Angels PR
September 17, 2025
San Diego Padres shortstop
Xander Bogaerts (foot) worked out at the team's spring training facility in Arizona the last couple of days and could come off the 10-day injured list to rejoin the team this weekend for a series in Chicago against the White Sox, according to manager Mike Shildt. Bogaerts has been running, fielding, and hitting against live pitching in recent days and hasn't suffered any setbacks. It looks like he could return to the big-league roster without going on a minor-league rehab assignment. The 32-year-old veteran has been out since late August with a non-displaced fracture in his left foot. He should return to regular starting duties at shortstop in San Diego when he's ready, allowing
Jake Cronenworth to shift back to second and
Luis Arraez back to first base/designated hitter duties. In his third year in SD, Bogaerts is hitting .262/.330/.387 with only 10 homers, 49 RBI, and a career-high 20 steals in 131 games.
--Keith HernandezSource: The San Diego Union-Tribune - Kevin Acee
September 17, 2025
Baltimore Orioles left-hander
Trevor Rogers (toe) is listed as the team's probable starter for Friday's contest against the division-rival New York Yankees, according to Roch Kubatko of MASN Sports. Rogers was pulled from his last start early on Friday against the Toronto Blue Jays after he developed a blood blister under the nail of his left big toe. He won't end up missing a turn in Baltimore's rotation, though, and will get the ball in a tough matchup against the Yanks this weekend. The 27-year-old southpaw has bounced back in a big way with the O's in 2025 after he was sent to the minors a year ago following a tough stretch after the club acquired him in a trade with the Miami Marlins. Although it's not an ideal matchup on Friday, Rogers has been money in his 15 starts with Baltimore over 94 1/3 frames, posting a 1.53 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, and 88:24 K:BB while going 8-2.
--Keith HernandezSource: MASN Sports - Roch Kubatko
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