5 days agoTexas Rangers infielder
Maximo Acosta went 3-for-5 on Wednesday with his first home run of the season. The 21-year-old has looked quite sharp since the start of May with a .296/.333/.426 slash line with 16 hits, three swiped bags, and a 1:7 BB:K. Overall, through his first look at Double-A this season, Acosta has held a solid .255/.319/.345 line through 39 games. Acosta joined the Rangers system back in 2021 and has moved up one level every year. Last season with High-A, he held a similar .260/.312/.390 line, which is a good sign that the young infielder has not regressed since facing harder competition. Currently, Acosta sits outside of MLB Pipeline's top-30 Rangers prospects, but that could change if he continues this hot stretch at Double-A.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
5 days agoCincinnati Reds manager David Bell said that right-hander
Carson Spiers will start on Monday against the Pirates in Pittsburgh. Spiers most recently served in a long-relief role on Sunday against the Chicago Cubs after he was called up from Triple-A Louisville, and he impressed with 5 2/3 shutout innings while striking out seven. The 26-year-old has made five relief appearances for the Reds over 19 1/3 innings this year, allowing six runs (five earned) on 19 hits while walking four and striking out 15. Spiers had been stretched out in a starting role for the Bats in the minors and had a nice 2.51 ERA and 1.05 WHIP with 49 K's and 15 walks in 46 2/3 frames over nine outings (eight starts). For now, it's just a spot start for Spiers in a solid matchup, but if he pitches well again, he could stick in the rotation after the Reds demoted
Graham Ashcraft to the minors recently.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: The Cincinnati Enquirer - Charlie Goldsmith
5 days agoNew York Yankees catcher
Jose Trevino is getting a breather in Thursday's series finale against the Kansas City Royals on the road. Trevino will give way to
Austin Wells, who will catch left-hander
Nestor Cortes and hit eighth against Royals right-hander
Alec Marsh. Despite being out on Thursday, Trevino has started three of the last four games and has been the team's primary backstop over Wells. The 31-year-old veteran has been pretty solid offensively, too, batting .272 (34-for-125) with six home runs, 23 RBI and 17 runs scored in 42 games played. Trevino is 6-for-21 (.286) with a homer and five RBI in seven games so far in June. Wells, on the other hand, is hitting just .211/.295/.325 with two homers and 10 RBI in 114 at-bats in 2024.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: New York Yankees
5 days agoPittsburgh Pirates outfielder
Connor Joe is taking the day off on Thursday against the hosting St. Louis Cardinals. It's a good day for Joe to get some rest, as he's in a bit of a funk right now at the plate, going 2-for-27 in his last eight games to drop his season line to .255/.331/.426. Outside of his recent slump, the 31-year-old has been one of the team's more consistent hitters all year. The former 39th overall pick in 2014 out of the University of San Diego has added seven home runs, 28 RBI and 36 runs scored in 60 games in his second year with the Pirates. With Joe out of the lineup in the series finale,
Edward Olivares is in right field and is batting cleanup against Cardinals right-hander
Lance Lynn. Olivares is hitting only .229 (30-for-131) but will profile as a DFS sleeper on Thursday in the cleanup spot.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
5 days agoTexas Rangers starting pitching prospect
Jack Leiter posted a strong bounce-back performance on Wednesday, where he struck out seven batters across 5 1/3 innings of one-run ball. In his past two outings, he has allowed a combined 10 earned runs and 11 hits in just 4 2/3 innings. Leiter made his major-league debut earlier this season but struggled with a high 16.39 ERA and 2.57 WHIP across three starts. In 40 1/3 innings at Triple-A Round Rock, he holds a 4.24 ERA and 1.29 WHIP. While Leiter has flashed elite strikeout potential at times, he has struggled to show consistency, which has severely hurt his prospect status. Leiter is still worth holding onto in deeper dynasty leagues but should remain on the waiver wire in smaller dynasty/keeper leagues.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
5 days agoPhiladelphia Phillies outfielder
Brandon Marsh (hamstring) is starting a minor-league rehab assignment with Double-A Reading on Thursday. Marsh landed on the injured list with a right-hamstring injury on June 3 but is nearing a return and could be reinstated from the IL to rejoin the Phillies major-league roster at some point this weekend or early next week for the start of their homestand. When the 26-year-old left-handed-hitting outfielder is ready to return, he'll resume his role as Philly's regular center fielder, at least against right-handed pitching. Before getting injured, Marsh was batting .265 (43-for-162) with six home runs, 26 RBI, eight stolen bases and 21 runs scored in 52 games played. With Marsh hurt,
Johan Rojas has seen more run in center field for the Phils.
UPDATE: Marsh will serve as the designated hitter on Thursday and will have four or five at-bats before playing center field on Friday. If everything goes well, he could return to the Phillies lineup on Saturday against the Baltimore Orioles.--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Philadelphia Phillies
5 days agoPittsburgh Pirates shortstop
Alika Williams (wrist) will begin a minor-league rehab assignment with Triple-A Indianapolis on Thursday. Williams is finally ready to start playing in games again after suffering a right-wrist sprain. The 25-year-old former 37th overall pick by the Tampa Bay Rays in 2020 out of Arizona State has been a utility infielder for the Bucs since making his major-league debut in 2023. Williams has played in only 23 games so far this year for Pittsburgh in a reserve role and is batting just .210/.234/.290 with no home runs, and two RBI in 68 plate appearances. He's eligible to return from the injured list at any time, so whenever he concludes his rehab assignment, he'll return to the Pirates as a utility infielder. Williams can be ignored in all mixed fantasy leagues.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Pittsburgh Pirates
5 days agoPittsburgh Pirates outfielder/designated hitter
Andrew McCutchen and second baseman
Nick Gonzales are both getting the day off on Thursday in the series finale against the Cardinals in St. Louis.
Bryan Reynolds will serve as the DH and hit second,
Jack Suwinski is starting in left field and batting seventh, and
Jared Triolo will play the keystone and hit sixth against Cardinals right-hander
Lance Lynn. The 37-year-old McCutchen has hit just .222 with two RBI in 54 career at-bats against Lynn, so it's a good day to get the veteran some rest. Gonzales, a former seventh overall pick in 2020 out of New Mexico, has done nothing but hit for Pittsburgh while playing regularly at second base since his call-up. He's currently slashing .306/.339/.500 with an .839 OPS, four homers and 23 RBI in 108 at-bats.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
5 days agoPittsburgh Pirates catching prospect
Shawn Ross posted his first three-home run game of the season on Wednesday. Ross has now launched six home runs in his past ten games. Ross has remained at High-A since joining the Pittsburgh organization in 2023 and holds an overall .194/.341/.483 line through 92 career games. This season, he is on pace to set a new career-high in SLG and home runs. In addition, he is holding a much better 26:52 BB:K ratio this summer compared to the 33:88 BB:K ratio he posted last season. The 24-year-old is currently not ranked in Pittsburgh's top 30 prospects on MLB Pipeline but could join this group if he continues to showcase his raw power and also improve his batting average.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
5 days agoThe New York Yankees are giving outfielder/designated hitter
Giancarlo Stanton a day off on Thursday against the Kansas City Royals. Stanton will get the day off in a matinee affair after going deep in each of the last two games in Kansas City. The 34-year-old right-handed power hitter has stayed healthy in 2024 and is currently hitting .233/.288/.491 with 17 home runs, 40 RBI and 30 runs scored for the first-place Yankees. Stanton is never going to give fantasy teams a useful batting average, but as long as he can stay healthy, the power will be top notch and he'll be productive in the RBI department with the way the Yankees have been playing this year. With Stanton out,
Aaron Judge will serve as the DH and bat third, while
Trent Grisham will make the start in center field and hit ninth against Royals right-hander
Alec Marsh.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
5 days agoNew York Mets shortstop
Francisco Lindor went 2-for-5 with a double and his 11th home run of the season in Wednesday's 10-4 win over the Marlins. It was Lindor's fourth multi-hit game in his last six and is rounding into form after a slow start. After an 0-for-5 day on May 18 that saw his batting average dip to .190, Lindor is 29-for-90 (.322) with eight doubles, four home runs, 10 RBI, 13 runs scored, and three stolen bases over his last 21 games, raising his average to .234 on the season. He's making decent contact (79.9%) and barreling the ball at a career-high rate (12.6%), so if not for the .245 BABIP (career .289), his BA might be higher. Either way, it looks like he's back on track and is still a top-12 option at SS.
--Jarod Rupp - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
5 days agoBaltimore Orioles first baseman
Ryan Mountcastle is not in the team's starting lineup for Thursday's series finale against the visiting Atlanta Braves.
Ryan O'Hearn will get the nod at first base for the O's and will bat third against Braves right-hander
Reynaldo Lopez. The 27-year-old Mountcastle will get the day off after starting in each of the team's last 14 games. The 36th overall pick in 2015 has hit .234 (11-for-47) with five home runs and 12 RBI in 12 games in June but has been better overall in 2024, slashing .277/.324/.488 with an .812 OPS, 11 home runs, 32 RBI, two stolen bases and 36 runs scored in 242 at-bats. As the team's regular first baseman in a strong lineup, Mountcastle is useful in all fantasy formats. O'Hearn has been just as good this year, going 50-for-177 (.282) with nine homers and 24 RBI for Baltimore.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Baltimore Orioles
5 days agoLos Angeles Dodgers starting pitching prospect
Jackson Ferris turned in another strong performance on Wednesday, where he tossed five shutout innings with six punchouts. He allowed just one hit and two free passes. This was a nice follow-up to the best start of the season he posted last week, where he struck out 10 batters across five ⅓ one-run frames. Through his first look at High-A, Ferris has logged 52 ⅓ innings with a 4.47 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, and a 26:65 BB:K ratio. However, in his past four starts (20 ⅓ innings), he holds a strong 2.21 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, and a 7:26 BB:K ratio. The 20-year-old southpaw is ranked as the number six best prospect in the Dodger system on MLB Pipeline and is projected to reach the major in 2026. However, if he continues to dominate High-A batters, he could reach Double-A this summer which opens the door for a 2025 major league debut.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
5 days agoAtlanta Braves catcher
Sean Murphy is taking the day off for Thursday's series finale against the hosting Baltimore Orioles. In his place,
Travis d'Arnaud will do the catching for right-hander
Reynaldo Lopez and bat sixth against Orioles left-hander
Cole Irvin. After making his first career All-Star appearance in 2023 in his first year in Atlanta, Murphy has struggled in just 12 games for the Braves this year. A pretty serious oblique strain kept him out for a large chunk of time early on, and he's gone just 5-for-42 (.119) with a home run and four RBI. Fantasy managers that invested in Murphy this year will be hoping he can get things going sooner than later. d'Arnaud has been much better, batting .245 (34-for-139) with five home runs and 21 RBI this year.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
5 days agoNew York Mets outfielder
Harrison Bader went 2-for-5 with a home run, two RBI, and two runs scored in Wednesday's 10-4 win over the Marlins. The home run was Bader's fourth of the season. He's now got a .266-4-25-23-8 line on the season but is hitting just .231 in June, albeit with two doubles and two home runs. The 30-year-old offers some multi-category appeal in deeper 14+ team leagues, but in shallow leagues, he should probably be left on the waiver wire.
--Jarod Rupp - RotoBallerSource: ESPN
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