6 days agoToronto Blue Jays first base prospect
Spencer Horwitz is expected to be called up from Triple-A Buffalo to join the team in Oakland on Friday for the start of their three-game series against the Athletics. Horwitz, the team's No. 16 prospect per MLB Pipeline, has hit a cool .335 (71-for-212) with four home runs, 38 RBI, three stolen bases and 41 runs scored in 57 games with Buffalo this year and had gone 16-for-36 with two home runs recently in order to earn the call-up back to the big leagues. The 26-year-old left-handed hitter made his big-league debut with Toronto last year, going 10-for-39 (.256) with a homer and seven RBI in 15 games. Horwitz's best path to playing time in Toronto could be at second base, where he had been playing at Buffalo before the call-up. He's worth a look in AL-only and deep mixed formats if he sees enough at-bats.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Sportsnet.ca - Shi Davidi
6 days agoToronto Blue Jays outfield prospect
Alan Roden launched his seventh long ball of the season on Thursday, which broke a 14-game powerless stretch. Through 48 games at Double-A this season, the 24-year-old has posted a strong .266/.372/.446 line with 26 RBI. Roden made his Double-A debut last summer and posted a .310/.421/.460 line with six long balls and 27 RBI in a similar 46-game sample size. The former third-round pick should be expected to be promoted to Triple-A fairly soon, which could open the door for a major league debut in the second half of the season. Roden is an interesting stash candidate in dynasty leagues if he continues to showcase his excellent contact skills and shows consistent power production.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
6 days agoThe Tampa Bay Rays reinstated infielder
Taylor Walls (hip) from the 60-day injured list on Friday and designated outfielder
Harold Ramirez for assignment in a corresponding move. Walls will be making his 2024 debut when he gets into a game after being sidelined up until this point after having offseason hip surgery. The 27-year-old former third-round pick in 2017 out of Florida State could take some playing time away from
Jose Caballeros at the 6, but Walls should mostly settle in as a utility infielder for Tampa now that he's healthy. During his five-game minor-league rehab assignment with Triple-A Durham, Walls went 8-for-21. The switch-hitting infielder has hit just .189/.289/.304 with 17 homers, 84 RBI, and 36 stolen bases in 295 career games. Walls is useful for his speed in AL-only affairs.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Bally Sports Florida - Tricia Whitaker
6 days agoThe Tampa Bay Rays designated outfielder/designated hitter
Harold Ramirez for assignment on Friday and reinstated shortstop
Taylor Walls (hip) from the 60-day injured list in a corresponding move. Ramirez will get the boot off the active roster after hitting .268/.284/.305 with a home run, 13 RBI, five stolen bases and 21 runs scored in 164 at-bats this year. The 29-year-old Columbian outfielder started the season as Tampa's primary DH but recently was relegated to a smaller role and now finds himself potentially joining another organization. Ramirez carries a .287/.325/.408 career slash line but with only 37 home runs, 231 RBI and 18 steals in his six major-league seasons. Walls had offseason hip surgery and will be making his season debut when he gets into a game. The 27-year-old is likely to serve as a utility infielder for the Rays.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Tampa Bay Times - Marc Topkin
6 days agoMilwaukee Brewers rookie right-hander
Tobias Myers will get the nod on Friday to start against the Detroit Tigers in Motown for the series opener. Myers was recalled from Triple-A Nashville earlier in the week and wasn't needed in a relief role, so he's fresh and ready to go for Friday's game in a strong matchup. The 25-year-old has been up and down in his first seven big-league appearances (six starts) for the Brew Crew this year, going 1-2 with a 5.40 ERA (5.76 FIP) and 1.46 WHIP with 10 walks and 27 strikeouts in 26 2/3 innings pitched. Detroit ranks 23rd in baseball with a .676 OPS on the year and also have the 10th-most strikeouts as a team with 548, so Myers could be an effective deep-league streamer for Friday's slate. Given how banged up the Brewers' rotation is right now, too, he could stick around for another start next week.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Curt Hogg
6 days agoCleveland Guardians outfield prospect
George Valera had a delayed start to the season with a hamstring injury but has recently begun to settle himself back in. In his past nine games, the 23-year-old holds a .353/.415/.618 line with two long balls, eight RBI, one swiped bag, and a 5:5 BB:K ratio. Through 28 total games this season at Triple-A, Valera has posted a .231/.339/.423 line and looks to have put his slow start behind him. The outfielder spent the majority of last summer with Triple-A and has played a cumulative 143 games at this level since 2022. Valera should be expected to make his major league debut this season and could become an interesting stash candidate in redraft leagues if he continues to perform well through June.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
6 days agoCleveland Guardians first base prospect
C.J. Kayfus was promoted to Double-A on June 3 and has already begun to look quite comfortable. He has tallied at least one hit in every game so far, highlighted by two three-hit performances on June 4 and June 6. Kayfus opened the season by making his High-A debut and held a stellar .338/.437/.578 line through 40 games with seven home runs. Kayfus is currently ranked as the 28th overall prospect in the Cleveland system on MLB Pipeline, but that is sure to change over the summer as he is progressing through the minor leagues much faster than expected. He is currently projected to reach the majors in 2026, but a debut next season is not out of the question due to his strong start to the season.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
6 days agoSt. Louis Cardinals starting pitching prospect
Cooper Hjerpe posted his second consecutive scoreless outing on Thursday, where he tossed four hitless frames. He allowed three walks and struck out five. The southpaw has looked quite sharp since the start of May with a 2.39 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, and 13:39 BB:K ratio compared to his 5.56 ERA, 1.76 WHIP, and 7:17 BB:K ratio he held in April. Hjerpe has remained with High-A Peoria ever since he was drafted in 2022 with the 22nd overall pick and has now logged a total of 78 ⅔ innings at this level. The Oregon State product should be expected to join Double-A in the coming months, which opens the door for him to potentially make his major league debut next season.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
6 days agoTampa Bay Rays starting pitching prospect
Santiago Suarez turned in his best start of the season with six shutout innings on Thursday. He struck out five and allowed just two hits with no free passes. This is a big bounce-back performance for the young right-hander as he entered Thursday with a hefty 9.45 ERA and 1.50 WHIP he posted in his past 20 innings of work. Overall, on the season with Single-A Charleston, the 19-year-old holds a 4.86 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, and 4:54 BB:K ratio in 50 total frames. He logged 19 ⅔ innings at this level last season. If Suarez continues to stay on track at Single-A, he should join High-A relatively soon. However, he is still several seasons away from a major league debut but should remain monitored in dynasty leagues as he has showcased elite command of the zone through his time in the minors.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MiLB.com
6 days agoPittsburgh Pirates second baseman
Nick Gonzales continued to swing a hot bat in Thursday's 11-7 loss to the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers in the series finale, going 2-for-5 with his fourth home run of the season, two RBI and a run scored. Gonzales' long ball came off right-hander
Walker Buehler in the third inning. The former seventh overall pick by the Pirates in 2020 out of New Mexico State has hit at every level he's been at and is really starting to heat up at the dish of late. He debuted in the bigs last year and hit only .209 (24-for-115) in his first 35 games, but he's now slashing a strong .315/.357/.528 with an .885 OPS, four homers, five doubles, 22 RBI and 13 runs in 24 games. Since May 29, Gonzales is 12-for-33 (.364) with two homers and eight RBI in eight games played.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
6 days agoThe Philadelphia Phillies acquired infielder
Buddy Kennedy from the Detroit Tigers on Friday in exchange for cash considerations. After acquired him, the Phillies optioned Kennedy to Triple-A Lehigh Valley, where he will provide the club with infield depth. The 25-year-old was originally a fifth-round pick by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2017. He made his big-league debut in 2022 and saw action in 30 games before playing in only 10 games for the D-backs in 2023. In just six games with Detroit this year, he went 2-for-10 with a homer and four RBI. In his 46 games since 2022 at the major-league level, Kenney has hit .205/.294/.316 with two homers and 17 RBI in 136 plate appearances. In 39 contests at Triple-A Toledo this year, Kennedy had gone 33-for-141 (.234) with three home runs and 14 RBI.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Tigers PR
6 days agoNew York Mets right-handed reliever
Edwin Diaz (shoulder) said the plan is for him to pitch in another minor-league rehab game for High-A Brooklyn on Sunday, and he could come off the 15-day injured list to rejoin the Mets' bullpen on Wednesday or Thursday of next week for a series against the Miami Marlins. Diaz made an appearance with Brooklyn on Thursday, giving up one hit and striking out two in a scoreless inning in his first rehab appearance. It sounds like he's only going to need one more rehab outing before rejoining the big-league roster after dealing with a right-shoulder impingement. Although the 30-year-old hard-throwing Puerto Rican closer hasn't been himself in 2024 (5.40 ERA, 1.25 WHIP), he should still be rostered in all fantasy leagues and will eventually get another shot at closing duties in Queens.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: SNY
6 days agoNew York Mets catcher
Francisco Alvarez (thumb) flew home to Venezuela for a family matter, according to manager
Carlos Mendoza. Alvarez's return to the Mets from the injured list, which was expected to come next Tuesday against the Miami Marlins, might be delayed a day or two now once the team returns home from their trip to London this weekend for a series against the division-rival Philadelphia Phillies. The 22-year-old backstop has been out since April 20 with a fractured left thumb, but he was set to catch in back-to-back games on his minor-league rehab assignment this weekend, so he's obviously close to rejoining the Mets' lineup. So far in five rehab games, he's gone 3-for-14 with a home run. New York might ease Alvarez back in once he comes off the injured list, but he's the team's clear starting catcher and needs to be rostered everywhere in fantasy.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: New York Post - Mike Puma
6 days agoSan Diego Padres third baseman
Manny Machado (hip) injured his hip trying to beat out a double-play ground ball in Wednesday's loss to the Los Angeles Angels and wasn't in the starting lineup for the series opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Thursday. However, despite dealing with a strained right hip flexor, Machado served as a pinch-hitter in the 4-3 loss on Thursday and grounded out to the pitcher in the eighth inning. It remains to be seen if the All-Star third baseman will be back in the lineup for the second game of a four-game set against Arizona on Friday, but his pinch-hit appearance is a good sign that he'll avoid a stint on the injured list. The 31-year-old veteran probably hasn't been fully healthy all year after having offseason elbow surgery, but he has picked it up of late, going 16-for-48 (.333) with a homer and seven RBI in 15 games since May 22.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com - AJ Cassavell
6 days agoColorado Rockies relief pitcher
Tyler Kinley recorded a one-out save on Thursday to secures the club's 22nd victory versus the St. Louis Cardinals on Thursday. Kinley reliever
Jalen Beeks, who had recorded the first two outs of the inning via strikeout and pop-up. Kinley allowed a single to
Paul Goldschmidt, but was able to get
Nolan Gorman to strikeout to end the inning for his third save of the season. The Rockies bullpen has been a mess this season and with limited wins, weather it is
Justin Lawrence, Beeks, Kinley or another option, it is recommended to avoid the situation completely.
--Daniel Burdeen - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
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