May 6, 2025
Right-handed pitcher
Ross Stripling announced his retirement from professional baseball on Monday with a post on X. Stripling will call it quits after failing to make the Opening Day roster with the Kansas City Royals this spring out of camp. The 35-year-old veteran was originally a fifth-round pick by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2012 out of Texas A&M. He spent the first four years of his major-league career with the Dodgers and also made his lone All-Star appearance with the team back in 2018, when he went 8-6 with a 3.02 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 136:22 K:BB in 122 innings pitched. Stripling really struggled on the mound in his final two years with the San Francisco Giants and Athletics, posting a combined 5.68 ERA and 1.44 WHIP in 174 1/3 frames. He ends his nine-year MLB career with a 4.17 ERA (4.06 FIP), 1.24 WHIP, 20.9% strikeout rate and 5.6% walk rate in 846 1/3 regular-season innings.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Ross Stripling
May 6, 2025
The San Francisco Giants recalled left-hander
Kyle Harrison from Triple-A Sacramento on Monday, and the team's plan is for Harrison to work out of their bullpen, according to NBC Sports Bay Area's Alex Pavlovic. Harrison's velocity has improved in recent weeks and he had a 3.46 ERA and 1.31 WHIP with eight walks and 38 strikeouts in 26 innings over his six starts for Sacramento. The 23-year-old southpaw could eventually work his way back into the Giants' starting rotation, but for now he'll pitch in relief and won't really be much of a fantasy weapon. In his first two big-league seasons in 2023 and 2024, the former third-rounder went 8-8 with a 4.47 ERA (4.59 FIP) and 1.30 WHIP with 53 walks and 153 strikeouts in 159 innings over 31 starts for the Gigantes. It's encouraging that his velocity is back up, but fantasy managers will need to see more.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: NBC Sports Bay Area - Alex Pavlovic
May
6,
2025
The
San
Francisco
Giants
are
saying
that
outfielder
Jerar
Encarnacion
(hand)
could
play
in
minor-league
rehab
games
as
early
as
this
weekend,
and
it
looks
like
he's
on
track
to
be
fully
ready
when
he's
read more...
May 6, 2025
New York Mets left-handed reliever
A.J. Minter (lat) will have season-ending surgery next Monday to fix a torn left lat, according to the New York Post's Mike Puma. Even if Minter didn't have the surgery, he wasn't going to be able to rejoin the big-league bullpen until maybe the final month of the regular season in September. It's a tough loss for the Mets' bullpen, as the 31-year-old veteran southpaw has plenty of late-inning experience and was off to a strong start in 2025 with a 1.64 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, five walks and 14 strikeouts in 11 innings pitched over 13 appearances out of the 'pen. New York will be hoping that lefty
Brooks Raley (elbow) can contribute at some point this season now that Minter is out. As of right now,
Genesis Cabrera is the only southpaw in the team's major-league bullpen.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: New York Post - Mike Puma
May 6, 2025
Kansas City Royals relief pitcher
Carlos Estevez closed out his team's shutout of Chicago to earn his 10th save of the season in 12 save opportunities. He allowed one hit but no runs while lowering his ERA to 2.25 in his 15 games. He has worked a total of 16 innings and has 13 strikeouts along with nine walks and nine hits allowed. The Royals signed Estevez to a big offseason contract to be their primary closer, and so far, he has been very solid in the role. He has pitched scoreless innings for saves in each of his last five appearances and really just had one disastrous outing against the Rockies. He's fairly secure in his role and should be one of the better closers in the American League going forward.
--Zach Thompson - RotoBallerSource: ESPN.com
May 6, 2025
San Diego Padres relief pitcher
Robert Suarez closed out the Padres' wild comeback win at a soggy Yankee Stadium on Monday night. After the Yankees' bullpen faltered in the eighth, giving up four runs, Suarez slammed the door with a perfect ninth inning. He struck out
Anthony Volpe to start the inning and
Jasson Dominguez to end the contest, earning his 14th save of the season. He has more saves than any other pitcher in Major League Baseball and has given up just one run in 16 innings this season while racking up 18 strikeouts and allowing just five hits and four walks. He'll continue to be an elite closer for the Padres as they continue their road trip with two more games in the Bronx before heading to Colorado for three games this weekend.
--Zach Thompson - RotoBallerSource: ESPN.com
May
6,
2025
New
York
Yankees
relief
pitcher
Luke
Weaver
came
into
a
messy
situation
in
the
eighth
inning
on
Monday
night
and
could
not
put
out
the
fire,
as
the
Yankees'
lead
evaporated
and
the
Padres
pulled
off
read more...
May 6, 2025
New York Mets starting pitcher
Griffin Canning worked five solid innings in Arizona to earn a win in his fifth straight start. He improved to 5-1 on the season with a 2.50 ERA, 3.34 FIP, and 1.39 WHIP along with 37 strikeouts in 36 innings. Canning gave up a solo home run to
Corbin Carroll to lead off the game, but he didn't give up any more runs while finishing five innings with his hits allowed and six strikeouts. He handed over the lead to the bullpen, who barely held on to secure the 5-4 road win to start their series in Arizona. Canning will look to continue his strong start to the season and get a sixth straight win in his second start of the week, which is scheduled for Sunday in a tough matchup at home against the Cubs.
--Zach Thompson - RotoBallerSource: ESPN.com
May 6, 2025
Kansas City Royals third baseman
Maikel Garcia went 1-for-2 with two walks, an RBI, a run scored, and two stolen bases to help the Royals run past the White Sox, 3-0. Garcia is up to nine stolen bases in 14 attempts this season while hitting .322 with nine doubles, four home runs, and a .388 wOBA. Garcia has a 52.9% hard-hit rate that supports his early-season power and production, and he has been one of the few consistent contributors in Kansas City's lineup. His speed is a huge fantasy asset and if he keeps hitting the ball so well, he'll continue to be a strong mixed-league option at the hot corner. The 25-year-old is a great waiver wire pickup if available as he continues his very productive start to the season.
--Zach Thompson - RotoBallerSource: ESPN.com
May 6, 2025
Atlanta Braves outfielder
Alex Verdugo went 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles, a walk, and a stolen base in the Braves' 4-0 win over the Reds on Monday night. Verdugo is up to .322 in his 14 games with the Braves and has a .367 wOBA with seven doubles, seven RBI, nine runs scored, and six walks. He has taken over as the team's regular leadoff hitter and has hit safely in 11 of his last 13 games. He should continue to serve as the primary spark plug at the top of the order for Atlanta until
Ronald Acuna Jr. is fully recovered from his knee injury suffered last season. Verdugo has been a huge addition for Atlanta and can help your fantasy team if you need on-base production and runs scored for the next few weeks.
--Zach Thompson - RotoBallerSource: ESPN.com
May 6, 2025
Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter
Shohei Ohtani connected on his ninth home run of the season on Monday night against the Marlins. He went 1-for-4 with his two-run home run in the fifth inning and also had a walk and a stolen base before scoring on
Freddie Freeman's home run in the third. After his record-setting season with 54 home runs and 59 stolen bases last year, Ohtani now has nine home runs and 10 stolen bases through his first 33 games this year, just slightly below last year's pace. He is hitting .292 with a .420 wOBA and continues to be one of the best players in all of fantasy baseball.
--Zach Thompson - RotoBallerSource: ESPN.com
May 6, 2025
Miami Marlins catching prospect
Joe Mack has held his own during his first look at the Triple-A level. Mack was promoted to Triple-A Jacksonville earlier in April. Through his first 10 games at the top level of the minor leagues, Mack has posted a .270/.372/.486 slash line with two doubles and two home runs. He has held an 11:5 K:BB, tallied three RBI, and scored five runs. Earlier in the campaign, Mack held a .318/.464/.614 slash line at Double-A. Last season, the No. 9-ranked prospect in the Miami system posted a .241/.322/.456 line across 112 games at Double-A. Fantasy managers should continue to monitor his progression as he could eventually earn a promotion to the majors later in the season. However, with
Agustin Ramirez now in Miami, Mack will likely only see a part-time role when he earns the call.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
May 6, 2025
The Pittsburgh Pirates have promoted right-handed pitching prospect
Hunter Barco to Triple-A. Barco has enjoyed an incredible start to the 2025 campaign at the Double-A level and is being rewarded with an early-season promotion. Through 25 2/3 innings of work, Barco has not allowed a run and posted a stellar 0.70 WHIP. During this stretch, he has struck out 34 batters and served up just seven free passes. Last summer, Barco spent most of his time at High-A before earning a brief taste of Double-A. At High-A, the No. 7-ranked prospect in the system held a 3.34 ERA with a 1.10 WHIP. Fantasy managers should keep a close eye on his progression at Triple-A, as Barco could eventually push for a second-half MLB debut if he is able to adjust well.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: Alex Stumpf
May 6, 2025
Athletics right-handed pitching prospect
Jack Perkins tossed four shutout innings in his season debut on Thursday at Triple-A Las Vegas. The right-hander struck out four batters and allowed three hits. He did not allow a run or a walk. Perkins has been sidelined through the opening month of the campaign due to an undisclosed injury. However, this was a strong debut for the No. 9-ranked prospect in the Athletics system. Last summer, Perkins spent most of his time at the Double-A level, where he logged 76 innings to the tune of a 2.96 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP. During this stretch, he struck out 100 batters and served up 35 walks. Fantasy managers should expect the 25-year-old to spend a majority of the campaign at Triple-A, and he could be in the mix for a late-season MLB debut if he continues to show steady progression.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
May
6,
2025
Chicago
White
Sox
right-handed
pitching
prospect
Shane
Smith
struck
out
five
batters
in
his
loss
to
the
Kansas
City
Royals
on
Monday
evening.
Smith
allowed
three
runs
across
five
innings
of
work.
He
allowed
five
hits
read more...
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