1 hour agoKansas City Royals outfielder
Nelson Velazquez went 2-for-4 with two home runs and three RBI in a 6-1 victory over the Minnesota Twins. After recording only one home run and seven RBI in April, Velazquez found his power stroke in May, with five home runs and 11 RBI recorded. His .221 batting average lies right around his .224 career average, but if you require some power in your lineup, Velazquez is a solid add. His 19 RBI are little to be desired, but he makes for a solid deeper league add especially while he's hitting in the middle of a Royal's lineup that is much improved this season.
--Joey Inglese - RotoBallerSource: MLB
2 hours agoAtlanta Braves pitching prospect
Spencer Schwellenbach fared well in his big-league debut on Wednesday versus the Washington Nationals. The right-hander tossed five innings and allowed five hits, three runs, one walk and struck out five batters. The 23-year-old fared well through four scoreless innings to open the game, but outfielder
Lane Thomas hit a three-run homer in the top of the fifth inning to give the Nationals the lead and eventual victory. Overall, Schwellenbach pitched well, but it has not been confirmed if he will remain in the rotation or not. Should the Braves stick with the youngster, Schwellenbach would be lined up to face the Boston Red Sox on the road. If the Braves commit to Schwellenbach, he is worthy of rostering in deeper leagues.
--Daniel Burdeen - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
2 hours agoAfter making his big-league debut in Game 2 of Wednesday's doubleheader, the Detroit Tigers have sent pitching prospect
Keider Montero back to Triple-A Toledo. It was an expected move for the club's No. 7 prospect, according to MLB.com. Montero worked 4 1/3 innings in his debut and was a bag of mixed results. Montero recorded five strikeouts, but also allowed five hits, four runs and one walk. Montero, 23, remains a bright spot on the farm for the Tigers, but will need an injury or two to make an impact at the big-league level in 2024. Montero can safely remain on the waiver wire.
--Daniel Burdeen - RotoBallerSource: Milb.com
2 hours agoNew York Yankees middle infield prospect
Jared Serna had a big night for High-A Hudson Valley on Wednesday. The 21-year-old went 2-for-4 with two runs, one walk, two homers and seven RBI. Four of those RBI came from Serna sending a grand slam to the bleachers in the bottom of the second inning. According to MLB.com, Serna is the club's No. 19 prospect and has a natural swing that allows him to make good decisions at the plate. The Yankees currently have shortstop
Anthony Volpe signed up for shortstop for years to come, but Serna is more fit for second base with his small frame in general. He is a name for dynasty managers to throw on the watch-list and monitor, but can be avoided otherwise for now.
--Daniel Burdeen - RotoBallerSource: Milb.com
2 hours agoWashington Nationals outfield prospect
Jeremy De La Rosa completed his rehab assignment in Single-A and has been activated from the seven-day injured list. De La Rosa was assigned to High-A Wilmington on Wednesday and went 1-for-4 with a double in his season debut. The 22-year-old was removed from the club's 40-man roster prior to the season after dealing with a flurry of injuries and struggling offensively since signing out of the Dominican Republic in 2018. De La Rosa will need to improve his numbers if he wants to reach the potential that many scouts saw from him as a teenager, but for now, he can be left on the waiver wire in all fantasy formats.
--Daniel Burdeen - RotoBallerSource: Milb.com
2 hours agoThe Boston Red Sox recalled infielder
Enmanuel Valdez on Wednesday to take the roster spot of outfielder
Tyler O'Neill (knee), with the latter being placed on the 10-day injured list. Valdez, 25, will be in his second stint with the Red Sox this season and made his debut in 2023. Valdez performed well in 49 games for the BoSox in 2023 with a .266 batting average and six homers, but has struggled in 29 games this season for the big-league club with a .156 batting average and two homers in 29 games. Valdez has graduated from the Red Sox prospect lists, but it wasn't too long ago that he was one of the more exciting names on it. The infielder is likely to serve a bench role and offers minimal value. He is best left on the waiver wire for time being.
--Daniel Burdeen - RotoBallerSource: Milb.com
10 hours agoTampa Bay Rays first baseman prospect
Xavier Isaac went 2-for-4 with a double and a home run for High-A Bowling Green on Wednesday. The home run was his ninth of the season, and the powerful lefty is now slashing .279/.367/.544 on the year, even chipping in nine stolen bases along the way. The former first-round draft pick is ranked No. 46 overall on MLB's Top Prospects list and No. 3 in the Rays' system. Although seemingly ready for his shot at Double-A pitching, it will be a couple years until we see him in the majors, but he should already be on the minds of dynasty managers.
--Jarod Rupp - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
10 hours agoColorado Rockies starting pitcher
Ty Blach threw seven strong innings in Wednesday's victory over the visiting Cleveland Guardians, allowing two runs on six hits and two walks with five strikeouts for his second win of the campaign. After giving up two runs on three hits and two walks in the first inning for the brunt of the damage to his ledger, Blach found a groove with six scoreless innings from that point on. The 33-year-old veteran left-hander will bring an ordinary 4.15 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, and a 17:7 K:BB across 34 2/3 innings (five starts) into his next scheduled start against the Cincinnati Reds at Coors Field on Tuesday. Severely lacking swing-and-miss stuff, Blach is nothing more than a low-upside fantasy streamer under the most favorable conditions.
--Joseph Barbati - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
10 hours agoNew York Yankees starting pitcher
Gerrit Cole (elbow) is scheduled to toss live batting practice again on Thursday in Tampa Bay, manager Aaron Boone said prior to Wednesday's game against the hosting Los Angeles Angels. It'll be Cole's third session facing hitters, with a two-inning, 30-pitch outing set to follow on Saturday. Cole still has a chance to be reinstated from the 60-day injured list sometime in June as long as he starts a minor-league rehab assignment sometime in the next week or two. The 33-year-old reigning American League Cy Young Award winner is obviously a must-stash fantasy asset, but the Yankees will have a tough decision to make regarding the odd man out when their ace returns from right elbow discomfort. Right-handers
Clarke Schmidt and
Luis Gil have done an admirable job in New York's rotation, and they remain close to must-roster players at this point in time.
--Joseph Barbati - RotoBallerSource: Bryan Hoch
10 hours agoToronto Blue Jays closer
Jordan Romano logged his eighth save of the year with one strikeout in the ninth inning of Wednesday's win over the hosting Chicago White Sox, but not before he allowed a solo home run in the victory. Romano served up a solo homer to White Sox catcher
Korey Lee, but he still locked down the save fairly comfortably on Wednesday. The hard-throwing 31-year-old right-hander has gone 8-for-9 on save chances this season, but fantasy managers will want to see him sharpen up on his 6.59 ERA, 1.46 WHIP and 13:4 K:BB over 13 2/3 innings after the hurler's late start to the campaign due to injury. While Romano is still Toronto's preferred ninth-inning man, he'll need to cut down on the homers if he wants to avoid losing out on save opportunities, as he's already given up four long balls.
--Joseph Barbati - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
10 hours agoPhiladelphia Phillies shortstop prospect
Aidan Miller went 2-for-3 with a walk for Single-A Clearwater on Wednesday. Miller's two hits both went for extra bases, one for a double and the other for a grand slam, finishing the day with four RBI and two runs scored. The 19-year-old is having a fine season thus far, slashing .319/.437/.569 with five home runs, 25 RBI, 25 runs scored, and 10 stolen bases. The 2023 first-round draft pick appears poised for a promotion, although he won't see the big leagues for a couple of years. Still, with a good power-speed combo, dynasty managers need to have him on their radar.
--Jarod Rupp - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
10 hours agoChicago White Sox catcher
Korey Lee accounted for the entirety of the team's offense in Wednesday's loss to the visiting Toronto Blue Jays, smashing his fifth home run of the season in the defeat. Lee skied a solo homer to left field off Jays closer
Jordan Romano to score Chicago's first run of the evening in the bottom of the ninth inning, but it wasn't enough to spark a rally. The 25-year-old former first-round pick has stolen three bases over 41 games this year, but his uninspiring .274/.309/.427 triple-slash line with five round-trippers, 12 RBI, and 11 runs scored for the White Sox render him a deep-league fantasy option at best. Lee doesn't have a ton of upside on this last-place club, so fantasy managers can do better.
--Joseph Barbati - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
11 hours agoWashington Nationals starting pitcher
MacKenzie Gore tallied double-digit strikeouts for the second time this year in Wednesday's victory over the division-rival Atlanta Braves, allowing a lone run on six hits and one walk over 5 1/3 innings for his fourth win of 2024. It was a dominant outing from Gore, who shut down the vaunted Braves offense on Wednesday. Over his past four appearances, the 25-year-old former No. 3 overall pick owns a 2.19 ERA with a scintillating 30:5 K:BB for the Nationals. Gore lines up to get the ball next on Monday at home against the visiting New York Mets, a team he owns a 2.40 ERA and 15:8 K:BB over three starts against in his career. He's a must-roster fantasy player with the way he's throwing right now.
--Joseph Barbati - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
11 hours agoArizona Diamondbacks shortstop prospect
Jordan Lawlar (thumb) began his rehab assignment on Wednesday with the team's Arizona Complex League affiliate, going 0-for-2 with a walk in his first game of 2024. The 21-year-old will be eligible to come off the injured list in a couple weeks but may begin with Triple-A Reno once activated. The former first-round pick hit well enough in Double-A and Triple-A last season to earn a promotion to the big-league club but wasn't able to do much with his playing time. He went 4-for-31 (.129) in 14 games, even picking up a pair of plate appearances during the postseason for Arizona (0-for-1 with a walk). Lawlar ranks as the team's top prospect and ninth overall prospect in all of baseball. Despite the initial showing in the majors, he still has offensive upside and should continue to be stashed where possible.
--Jarod Rupp - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
11 hours agoWashington Nationals outfielder
Lane Thomas filled up the box score in Wednesday's win over the division-rival Atlanta Braves, going 3-for-4 with a three-run home run, a double, a walk, two runs scored, and two stolen bases in the victory. Before making an awesome sliding catch in right field to retire Braves second baseman
Ozzie Albies in the fifth inning, Thomas hammered a three-run homer to left field to give the Nationals a 3-1 lead in the top of the frame. Although the speedy 28-year-old right fielder is still slashing a poor .210/.273/.330 with three big flies, 13 RBI, and nine runs scored over 100 at-bats overall this year, he's stolen 13 bases across 25 outings overall and gone 5-for-13 with four-extra base hits since returning from the injured list. The buy-low window in fantasy appears to be swiftly closing.
--Joseph Barbati - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
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