7 days agoChicago Cubs right-hander
Jameson Taillon (back) is penciled in to make his season debut on Thursday in the series opener against the Miami Marlins at Wrigley Field. Taillon started the 2024 regular season on the 15-day injured list but is ready to get his season started. The 32-year-old veteran only threw 68 pitches in 3 2/3 innings in his final minor-league rehab start with Triple-A Iowa last Friday, so nobody should be expecting him to go very deep in his first big-league start of the year. The matchup against Miami is enticing from a streaming standpoint, but Taillon doesn't figure to go deep into this one, making him a pretty low-upside streamer. Now that Taillon is getting ready to return, the impressive
Ben Brown could be out of a rotation spot.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
7 days agoLeft-hander
A.J. Puk (illness) has been confirmed as the Miami Marlins' starter for Thursday's series opener against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. After dealing with an illness in recent days, Puk was back at the ballpark on Wednesday playing catch and working out. The 28-year-old southpaw was pushed back twice in the rotation this week while feeling under the weather. It's good news that Puk is feeling good enough to start on Thursday, but most fantasy baseball managers will probably be wanting to stay away from him against Chicago after he's started the year by going 0-3 with a 5.91 ERA (6.90 FIP) and 2.44 WHIP with a league-leading 14 walks and just eight strikeouts in 10 2/3 innings in his first three starts.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com - Christina De Nicola
7 days agoBoston Red Sox manager Alex Cora said on WEEI that third baseman
Rafael Devers (knee) is feeling good and there's a chance he'll play on Wednesday against the Cleveland Guardians as the designated hitter. Devers was removed from Tuesday's contest early due to left-knee discomfort but appears to have avoided a long-term injury with his knee. Fantasy baseball managers will want to check back soon to see if the 27-year-old is officially back in the lineup. If he is, put him back into your lineups against Guardians right-hander
Ben Lively, who will be making his season debut. A shoulder caused Devers to miss some games last weekend, and the two-time All-Star has gotten off to a slow start by his standards by slashing .205/.352/.409 with two homers, three doubles, five RBI and five runs scored in his first 12 games in 2024.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: The Athletic - Jen McCaffrey
7 days agoLos Angeles Angels infielder
Brandon Drury (hamstring) is still out of the team's starting lineup on Wednesday versus the Tampa Bay Rays.
Luis Rengifo will start at second base again and bat seventh against Rays right-hander
Zack Littell. This will be Drury's second straight game on the sidelines due to a hamstring injury. The 31-year-old said he was available off the bench on Tuesday, so it doesn't sound like a very serious injury. Fantasy managers in deeper leagues will need to check back on Thursday to see if Drury is able to return for the series finale with the Rays. Rengifo doesn't have a hit in three career at-bats against Littell and is a low-cost, low-upside DFS play near the bottom of the Angels' lineup. In his first 42 plate appearances in 2024 Rengifo has 10 hits, no homers, three RBI and four stolen bases.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
7 days agoCincinnati Reds first baseman
Christian Encarnacion-Strand is getting his first day off this season on Wednesday when the team takes on the Seattle Mariners.
Spencer Steer is getting the start at first base and is hitting cleanup, while center fielder
Stuart Fairchild is batting in the three-hole against Mariners right-hander
Bryce Miller. Encarnacion-Strand went 0-for-4 on Tuesday to drop his season average to .192 (14-for-73) in the early going, while he's added two home runs, 12 RBI and seven runs scored. With a scheduled day off for the team on Thursday, he'll get two days to rest before likely returning to action on Friday to face the Los Angeles Angels. Fairchild has had a pretty nice start in 2024, going 8-for-29 (.276) with no homers, three RBI and five stolen bases.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Cincinnati Reds
7 days agoCincinnati Reds infielder
Jeimer Candelario (illness) remains out of the team's starting lineup on Wednesday in Seattle against the Mariners. Candelario was scratched from Tuesday's lineup, and it appears he's still under the weather.
Santiago Espinal is manning the hot corner for the second straight day for the Reds and is hitting ninth against Mariners right-hander
Bryce Miller. With an off day coming on Thursday, perhaps Candelario is feeling better on Friday for the start of a series against the visiting Los Angeles Angels. The 30-year-old switch-hitter has gotten off to a slow start in his first year in Cincinnati, going 11-for-58 (.190) with two home runs, seven RBI and seven runs scored. Espinal has never faced Miller in his career and should be avoided in DFS at the bottom of the Reds' lineup.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
7 days agoArizona Diamondbacks catcher
Gabriel Moreno (thumb) was scratched from Wednesday's starting lineup against the Chicago Cubs in the series finale. Moreno suffered a right-thumb contusion on a wild pitch on Monday night and was then scratched from Tuesday's starting lineup as well before appearing later in the extra-inning win as a defensive replacement. The 24-year-old appears to be not quite comfortable enough swinging a bat to return to action for the Snakes, so
Tucker Barnhart will catch again and bat eighth against Cubs left-hander
Jordan Wicks. Fantasy baseball managers will want to check back on Thursday to see if Moreno is able to return to the field when the team faces the division-rival San Francisco Giants on the road.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Arizona Diamondbacks
7 days agoSt. Louis Cardinals rookie outfielder
Victor Scott II will start on the bench again on Wednesday against the Oakland Athletics. The 23-year-old is now starting on the bench for the second game in a row, with
Michael Siani getting the start in center field and hitting ninth for the Cardinals against A's right-hander
Paul Blackburn. Scott's defense has been strong for St. Louis in center field, but he's gone just 5-for-65 (.089) with three doubles, two RBI, two stolen bases and 14 strikeouts in his first 62 big-league plate appearances over 18 games. He could begin to lose more playing time in center field if he doesn't pick it up offensively, and Scott will eventually head back to the minors when
Tommy Edman (wrist) and
Dylan Carlson (shoulder) return.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
7 days agoCleveland Guardians right-hander
Ben Lively (illness) has been reinstated from the 15-day injured list to start Wednesday's contest in Boston against the Red Sox. The Guardians signed the 32-year-old to a one-year contract this winter after he made his big-league return with the Reds in 2023. Lively spent three seasons in the KBO before returning to North America for the 2022 season but stayed at Triple-A with the Reds that year. He worked to a 5.38 ERA across 19 outings (12 starts) for the Reds last season and has made a pair of starts with Triple-A Columbus this season, posting a 3.24 ERA across 8 1/3 innings of work.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
7 days agoTampa Bay Rays right-hander
Zack Littell will look to keep his fast start going on Wednesday against the visiting Los Angeles Angels. Littell has yielded just two earned runs across his first three starts of the season spanning 15 1/3 innings, striking out 15 against five walks in that time. The 28-year-old has been solid for the Rays since the club claimed him from the Red Sox last season as he tossed a 3.93 ERA in 26 outings (14 starts) with the club last season before starting this season with a 1.17 ERA, albeit alongside a 3.90 SIERA. He takes on an Angels offense that is tied for 16th with a .314 wOBA and 19th with a 23.6% K% on the young season.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
7 days agoColorado Rockies outfielder
Kris Bryant (back) has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a lower-back strain. The move is retroactive to April 14 while outfielder
Sean Bouchard has been recalled from Triple-A Albuquerque to take his spot on the active roster. Bryant left Saturday's contest against the Blue Jays with back/rib soreness and was originally listed as day-to-day before landing on the injured list Wednesday afternoon. It's been a slow start to the season for the 2016 NL MVP who is hitting just .149 with one homer and a .528 OPS across 13 games and 55 trips to the plate.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
7 days agoColorado Rockies infielder
Brendan Rodgers (illness) will remain out of the starting lineup on Wednesday. The 27-year-old was scratched from Monday's lineup due to an illness and also sat out of Tuesday's 5-0 loss as well. It's been a sluggish start to the season for Rodgers, as he's hitting just .211 without a homer alongside a .553 OPS across the first 59 trips to the plate of the season. The oft-injured infielder has largely underperformed as a former top prospect, as he has hit .262 with 32 homers and a .720 OPS across 333 career games while playing his home games in the league's most hitter-friendly venue at Coors Field in Denver.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
7 days agoSeattle Mariners shortstop
J.P. Crawford is not in the starting lineup Wednesday versus the Cincinnati Reds and left-hander
Andrew Abbott. Crawford enjoyed a nice night at the plate on Tuesday, going 2-for-5 with a run scored in a 3-1 win but will take a seat to begin the lefty-on-lefty matchup on Wednesday. Despite the solid night on Tuesday, it's been a tough start to the season for Crawford who is hitting just .171 with a pair of homers and a .523 OPS across his first 79 plate appearances. Interestingly, he is 6-for-20 (.300) against left-handed pitching but is hitting only .100 (6-for-50) against righties.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
7 days agoColorado Rockies outfielder
Kris Bryant (back) remains out of the lineup on Wednesday as he will miss his fourth straight game after leaving Saturday's contest against the Blue Jays with back soreness. The veteran remains day-to-day. It's been a sluggish start to the season for the 2016 NL MVP as Bryant is hitting just .149 with one homer and a 32.7% K% across his first 55 trips to the plate of the season. This comes on the heels of a .233 average with 10 homers and a career-worst 73 wRC+ across an injury-shortened 80 games in the 2023 campaign.
Nolan Jones will man left field and hit sixth Wednesday against Phillies left-hander Christopher Sanchez.
--Brenton Kemp - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
7 days agoThe Arizona Diamondbacks moved left-hander
Eduardo Rodriguez (shoulder) to the 60-day injured list on Wednesday. Rodriguez recently suffered a setback with his left shoulder and now won't be able to return to Arizona's starting rotation until late May. The oft-injured 31-year-old southpaw pitched well in his final season with the Detroit Tigers in 2023 but was in line for regression with his move to the desert. Now that he's been unable to stay healthy early on in 2024, fantasy baseball managers in mixed leagues should probably look for better options instead of keeping him stashed in an IL spot. The good news for the D-backs is lefty
Jordan Montgomery is set to join the rotation to make his season debut later this week.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Arizona Diamondbacks
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