5 days agoHouston Astros right-hander
Luis Garcia (elbow) threw another bullpen session on Wednesday as he continues to rehab from Tommy John surgery that he had in May of 2023. Garcia started throwing bullpens in April and is taking a slow progression to eventually go out on a minor-league rehab assignment. The expectation is that he will be able to rejoin Houston's starting rotation at some point in the middle of the season. The 27-year-old will mostly likely not be activated from the injured list until the second half of the season after the All-Star break in mid-July. When healthy, Garcia has been quite intriguing for fantasy managers because of his ability to create plenty of swings and misses. However, given his long layoff, you should temper expectations for him in 2024 as he returns from Tommy John surgery.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
5 days agoTexas Rangers infield prospect
Echedry Vargas went 3-for-4 at the plate on Wednesday with his second home run of the season. Across his first extended look at Single-A, the 19-year-old has posted a .242/.290/.403 slash line with four stole bases. Vargas spent most of last season with the Rookie League and only played one game at Single-A, where he flashed his elite power and speed combination with 11 long balls, 17 swiped bags, and a .317/.388/.568 line. MLB Pipeline ranks Vargas as the 16th overall prospect in the Texas system and projects him to reach the major leagues in 2027. However, with how he is performing at Single-A, he could easily climb through the Texas system and develop into one of their top prospects. Dynasty fantasy managers should continue to monitor him to see if he can continue to showcase his power and speed combination.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
5 days agoHouston Astros infielder
Zach Dezenzo (wrist), the team's No. 5 prospect per MLB Pipeline, was limited in major-league camp during spring training with a wrist injury and remains on a slow rehab plan. Dezenzo appeared in 31 games last year at High-A Asheville and 63 games for Double-A Corpus Christi, where he hit .257 with 14 home runs and 41 RBI as a third baseman. The 24-year-old opened the year on Corpus Christi's seven-day injured list. Despite the power he displayed at Double-A last year, Dezenzo also struck out nearly 30 percent of the time. He has above-average raw power from the right side of the plate that could allow him to hit 30-plus home runs over a full season. Dezenzo's primary goal right now is just getting healthy, though.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
5 days agoHouston Astros shortstop
Brice Matthews (back), the team's No. 4 prospect per MLB Pipeline, was placed on the seven-day injured list on May 7 at High-A Asheville with lower-back tightness. Matthews, the team's first-round pick last year, was hitting just .229/.364/.286 with two doubles in 35 games for the Tourists before getting hurt. The 22-year-old has not played since late April after being taken with the 28th overall pick in 2023. Matthews stands at 5-foot-10 and 190 pounds and has plenty of power, enough to eventually be a 20-25-homer guy at the next level. He's an impressive athlete who also played quarterback in his senior season in high school, but his pull-heavy tendencies and high strikeout rate could be an issue as he advances higher up the Astros' minor-league system.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
5 days agoSeattle Mariners third base prospect
Ben Williamson is being promoted to Double-A. Williamson has been progressing through the Seattle system very quickly over the past two seasons. Last season, he spent time in the Rookie League and Single-A and posted an overall .268/.318/.415 line. Then he began this season with High-A Modesto and posted a dominant .315/.408/.459 slash line through 29 games. He posted a strong 15:21 BB:K ratio, tallied eleven doubles, and swiped four bags. MLB Pipeline projects the 23-year-old to reach the major leagues in 2026, but that timeline could quickly change. He is moving through the Seattle Pipeline much faster than expected and could push for a major league promotion next season. Dynasty managers should monitor the former William and Mary graduate to see if he can carry this momentum into Double-A.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB Central
5 days agoHouston Astros outfielder
Chas McCormick (hamstring) played in his second straight minor-league rehab game on Wednesday with Double-A Corpus Christi and went 0-for-4 as the designated hitter. McCormick went 0-for-2 in five innings in center field on Tuesday after going 2-for-5 in his first rehab game on Sunday for Triple-A Sugar Land. He'll have the day off on Thursday before playing for Corpus Christi again on Friday. If the 29-year-old outfielder comes out of Friday's game fine, there's a good chance the Astros will reinstate him from the injured list and have him available for Saturday's contest against the visiting Milwaukee Brewers. When he returns to the majors, McCormick will continue to battle for playing time in Houston's outfield as a platoon option. Through his first 72 at-bats in 2024, he's hit .236 (17-for-72) and is still searching for his first home run.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
5 days agoOakland Athletics outfield prospect
Colby Thomas went 3-for-6 at the plate on Wednesday with a two-run shot, which was his ninth of the season. Through his first 33 games at Double-A, the 23-year-old has posted a strong .281/.331/.540 slash line with 23 RBI and nine swiped bags. Last season, through a similar 54 games at High-A, Thomas posted a .290/.333/.516 line with 10 long balls and 11 stolen bases. This is a great sign for the former third-round selection, as he has yet to face any growing pains when facing harder competition. Thomas is projected to reach the major leagues next season but could see time in Triple-A late this summer.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
5 days agoNew York Yankees infielder
DJ LeMahieu (foot) will do a full workout on Thursday at Double-A Somerset with the expectation being that he will start his minor-league assignment on Friday. LeMahieu went on a rehab assignment in the minors last month before being shut down after just one game due to renewed soreness in his right foot, so hopefully this time around he'll be able to get through a handful of games and then be activated from the injured list in order to make his 2024 debut in the Bronx. The Yankees surely won't rush the 35-year-old veteran back to the majors, but when he's ready, he figures to be the team's primary option at the hot corner despite a disappointing performance at the plate in 2023.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: New York Post - Greg Joyce
5 days agoTampa Bay Rays shortstop
Taylor Walls (hip) has started a spring training-type progression at the team's spring complex in Port Charlotte, Fla., which will take about two weeks before he starts getting into games. Manager Kevin Cash said the team received a "very good report" from Walls' visit with Dr. J.W. Thomas Byrd on April 1. But given the amount of time that Walls has missed, it's likely he'll have to recreate a progression similar to spring training when he returns to game action. He was transferred to the 60-day injured list on April 20 after having surgery on Oct. 27 of last year to fix a labral tear and to relieve discomfort from an impingement in his right hit. It's something that Walls had been dealing with for more than a year. It's unclear what Walls' role will be when he eventually returns to the majors, but it's likely to be a bench role.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
5 days agoLos Angeles Dodgers starting pitching prospect
Maddux Bruns tossed four shutout innings on Wednesday. He struck out seven and allowed just two hits and one free pass. After allowing just one earned run in his first start of the season, the 21-year-old has kept the scoresheet clean in his previous three starts. On the season, the former first-round selection holds a 0.71 ERA and 1.11 WHIP through 12 ⅔ innings at High-A. Bruns struggled at this level last season with a hefty 4.74 ERA last season and has clearly begun to figure things out. He is ranked as the 14th overall prospect in the Dodger system on MLB Pipeline and is projected to reach the major leagues next season. Dynasty managers should pay close attention to see if Bruns carries this momentum into Double-A when he is prompted there later this summer.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
5 days agoTampa Bay Rays right-hander
Chris Devenski (knee) is throwing pain-free bullpen sessions and will soon face hitters in live batting practice at the team's spring complex in Port Charlotte, Fla. Devenski landed on the injured list on April 29 (retroactive to April 26) with right-knee tendinitis. Devenski said he was optimistic that he wouldn't miss much time. An MRI exam on April 30 revealed what manager Kevin Cash called "pretty strong patella tendinitis." The 33-year-old swingman is now ramping up his throwing program and could return to the Rays before the end of May, barring any setbacks with his knee. When he's healthy enough to be reinstated from the injured list, Devenski will return to a relief role for Tampa. He's not on the fantasy radar, though, and was sporting a 7.71 ERA and 1.79 WHIP with 11 K's and six walks in 14 innings before his injury.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
5 days agoWashington Nationals outfield prospect
Dylan Crews went 3-for-5 at the plate on Wednesday with two doubles and four RBI. After starting off slow at Double-A with a .224/.296/.367 slash line through April, the top prospect in Washington has bounced back with a strong showing through the first half of May. Since May 1, the 22-year-old has a .303/.400/.636 line with one long ball and a solid 6:10 BB:K. This is an excellent sign for the former LSU Tiger, as he is now clearly settled in at Double-A and showcasing his elite talent. MLB Pipeline ranked Crews as the No. 7 prospect in all of baseball in their updated rankings earlier this month and projects him to reach the major leagues this season. The former No. 2 overall selection in the 2023 MLB draft should be rostered in all keeper and dynasty leagues and could be worth stashing in redraft formats when he is promoted to Triple-A.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
5 days agoTampa Bay Rays right-hander
Ryan Pepiot (leg) was placed on the 15-day injured list after being struck by a line drive against the Mets on May 5, but he said he felt good after throwing a bullpen session off the mound on Sunday.
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5 days agoColorado Rockies outfielder
Nolan Jones (back) started his minor-league rehab assignment with Triple-A Albuquerque on Wednesday and went 0-for-3 with an RBI and a strikeout for the Isotopes while playing five innings in left field. It was the 26-year-old's first game since going on the 10-day injured list in late April with a lower-back strain. If Jones doesn't suffer any setbacks in the minors, he should be ready to return to the big-league roster pretty soon, possibly as early as this weekend against the Giants in San Francisco. The former second-round pick of the Cleveland Guardians in 2016 hit nearly .300 in 2023 with 20 homers and 20 stolen bases, so his power/speed combination makes him intriguing in all fantasy formats, especially playing half his games at hitter-friendly Coors Field. His fantasy managers will be hoping he can turn around his slow start in 2024 when he's activated, as he's currently slashing .170/.243/.277 with a homer and seven RBI in 26 games.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Milb.com
5 days agoNew York Yankees top prospect
Jasson Dominguez (elbow) will be optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and not rejoin the Yankees as a starting center fielder or bench player when he completes his rehab assignment in his recovery from Tommy John surgery. Dominguez's 20-day rehab assignment will be up on June 4. The 21-year-old is rusty after having surgery last Sept. 20 and then rehabbing with no games for almost eight months, so he's understandably rusty, and the Yankees may choose not to bring him to the majors at all in 2024. At the very minimum, Dominguez needs a month of building up since he didn't play at all in spring training. As the DH for Low-A Tampa on Tuesday in his first rehab game, the young switch-hitter went 1-for-3 with a walk in four trips to the plate. He will DH for about two weeks and then start playing in center field. Despite this news, the guy they call the Martian still deserves to be stashed in most fantasy leagues.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: NJ Advance Media - Randy Miller
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