11 hours agoSan Francisco Giants manager Bob Melvin said on Tuesday that right-hander Keaton Winn (forearm) is "getting close" and could be an option for the team the next turn through the starting rotation. Winn walked off the mound with team trainer Dave Groeschner after his velocity began to dip in the fifth inning in the loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on May 14. MRI results showed a mild strain of his right forearm. Winn was able to throw two bullpen sessions recently, most recently with 45 pitches on Monday. The 26-year-old could come off the 15-day injured list sooner than later, potentially avoiding a minor-league rehab assignment since his injury wasn't all that serious. If Winn avoids a rehab assignment, his next start could come in a plus matchup against the Arizona Diamondbacks on next Monday or Tuesday. Winn was 3-6 with a bloated 6.17 ERA and 1.29 WHIP in nine starts before getting hurt.Source: MLB.com
11 hours agoSan Francisco Giants outfielder Austin Slater (concussion) cleared the concussion protocol and started a minor-league rehab assignment with Triple-A Sacramento on Tuesday. Slater suffered a concussion after running into the center-field wall while trying to make a catch in a loss to the Cincinnati Reds at Oracle Park on May 10. He continued to experience fogginess and blurry vision the next day, which prompted the Giants to put him on the seven-day concussion injured list. After missing more than two weeks due to his head injury, the 31-year-old is finally feeling better and has returned to game action. If he continues to progress, Slater could be an option to be activated and rejoin the team this weekend. When healthy, Slater is an option for the short side of a platoon in San Fran's outfield against lefties. He's gone just 5-for-39 (.128) on the year with no homers.Source: MLB.com
11 hours agoDetroit Tigers infield prospect Kevin McGonigle has been dominant through his first 38 games at Single-A. In 26 games this season at Single-A Lakeland, the 19-year-old has posted a stellar .340/.436/.505 line with two home runs, 17 RBI, eight stolen bases, and an 18:14 BB:K ratio. In his past eight games, the number four prospect in Detroit has tallied at least one hit in each of the games and brought in 11 total runs with an 8:5 BB:K ratio. McGonigle showed similar production in his 12 games at Single-A last summer with a .350/.438/.475 line. McGonigle currently sits as the number 99 prospect in all of baseball on MLB Pipeline and should be able to climb those ranks rather quickly as he progresses through the minor leagues.Source: MiLB.com
11 hours agoSan Francisco Giants shortstop Nick Ahmed (wrist) started taking batting practice on Wednesday and has also started taking ground balls on the field as he ramps up his baseball activities. Ahmed was forced from the game on May 9 in the loss to the Colorado Rockies in the fourth inning after he took an awkward swing in his previous plate appearance. The 34-year-old veteran had been experiencing pain in his wrist since taking a 108 mph liner off his wrist during a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on April 27. An MRI exam on May 10 revealed his wrist sprain. It's uncertain if Ahmed will go on a minor-league rehab assignment before returning to the Giants. With Marco Luciano (hamstring) day-to-day, Brett Wisely heads into this weekend's games as San Fran's primary shortstop with Ahmed still on the IL. When healthy, Ahmed is more of a glove guy than a fantasy asset for his offense.Source: MLB.com
11 hours agoLos Angeles Dodgers outfielder James Outman has been performing well since being moved down to Triple-A and should be back up in the major leagues fairly soon. Through nine games with Triple-A Oklahoma City, the 27-year-old has posted a .333/.524/.567 line with two home runs, four RBI, two stolen bases, and a 10:13 BB:K ratio. Outman had a big game on Thursday where he tallied three hits, including a home run, and brought in two runs. The former seventh-round pick struggled at the plate during the early part of the season and posted a poor .147/.250/.266 line, which resulted in his demotion. However, Outman is looking much more comfortable since taking some time in the minor leagues and is worth stashing in deeper redraft leagues as he could still provide fantasy managers with a solid combination of power and speed when he returns to Los Angeles.Source: MiLB.com
11 hours agoOakland Athletics right-hander Luis Medina (knee) gave up two runs and struck out six in 3 2/3 innings in his third minor-league rehab start with Triple-A Las Vegas on Tuesday, throwing 44 of his 72 pitches for strikes. Medina's fastball averaged 97 mph and topped out at 100.2 mph. He rejoined the big-league club on Thursday and made it through a bullpen session prior to the series finale against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Medina could now be activated from the injured list during this weekend's series against the Braves in Atlanta. The hard-throwing 25-year-old appears to have recovered from his Grade 2 MCL sprain, but it remains to be seen if the A's will use him as a starter or reliever when he's back. Medina has intriguing pure stuff, but his lack of control is pretty concerning.Source: MLB.com
11 hours agoSt. Louis Cardinals starting pitching prospect Quinn Mathews bounced back on Thursday with six shutout innings and allowed just three scattered hits with no free passes. He struck out six. In his previous start, he allowed a season-high five earned runs and five hits. Overall, the 23-year-old has looked quite strong in his first look at High-A with a 2.84 ERA, 0.68 WHIP, and 3:24 BB:K ratio. Mathews opened the season with Single-A but only needed to log 30 ⅔ innings to the tune of a 1.47 ERA and 0.82 WHIP to prove he was ready for High-A. MLB Pipeline projects the Stanford product to reach the majors next season. The southpaw is worth following closely in dynasty leagues as he has yet to hit a significant roadblock through his first season of professional ball and is showing that he can round back into form following a disappointing start.Source: MiLB.com
11 hours agoOakland Athletics right-hander Paul Blackburn (foot) was still in a walking boot as of Tuesday. Manager Mark Kotsay said that Blackburn will probably be re-evaluated when the team returns to Oakland to open its next homestand on June 4 against the division-rival Seattle Mariners. Blackburn was placed on the injured list with a right-foot stress reaction and doesn't appear to be very close to a return. The 30-year-old's IL stint is retroactive to May 11, but as of right now, it looks like he won't return to the A's until the middle of June. At best, Blackburn will be deep-league streaming option when the matchups are right when he's healthy. Before injuring his foot, he went 3-2 with a 4.11 ERA (4.16 FIP) and 1.15 WHIP with 36 strikeouts and 13 walks in 46 innings over his eight starts.Source: MLB.com
11 hours agoOakland Athletics right-hander Joe Boyle (back) allowed four runs on four hits while walking four and striking out three in 2 1/3 innings in his second minor-league rehab start for Triple-A Las Vegas on Wednesday. He threw 25 of his 43 pitches for strikes and averaged 100.1 mph with his four-seam fastball, which he threw 28 times. Manager Mark Kotsay said that Boyle feels like he has "turned a corner" with his back injury, which put him on the 15-day injured list on May 6. The 24-year-old didn't even record an out in his first rehab start last week, so Wednesday's outing was definitely an improvement. The A's are probably going to have Boyle make another rehab start or two, but the hard-throwing right-hander is nearing a return. Boyle had struggled in seven starts before his back injury cropped up, posting a 7.16 ERA and 1.73 WHIP with 29 K's and 23 walks in 27 2/3 innings for the A's.Source: MLB.com
12 hours agoCleveland Guardians outfielder Steven Kwan (hamstring) appears to be on the verge of being reinstated from the 10-day injured list. The 26-year-old outfielder went 1-for-2 with an RBI, three runs scored, a stolen base and two walks in a minor-league rehab game with Triple-A Columbus on Thursday. Kwan played in two games for High-A Lake County before moving his rehab assignment to Columbus. If the Guardians have seen enough from Kwan in the minors, they could certainly activate him from the injured list in time to return to the starting lineup for Friday's series opener against the Washington Nationals. Once he's back, Kwan will be a must-start in all fantasy formats. The former fifth-rounder in 2018 out of Oregon State uses a contact-based approach at the plate and is currently slashing an exceptional .353/.407/.496 with a .903 OPS in 133 at-bats in 2024.Source: Milb.com
12 hours agoNew York Yankees right-hander Cody Poteet (finger) will make the start on Saturday against the San Francisco Giants after the Yankees placed right-hander Clarke Schmidt (lat) on the 15-day injured list on Thursday. Poteet had been dealing with a blister on his finger at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, but manager Aaron Boone said he's good to go for this weekend. The 29-year-old had a quality start and a win in his lone start in the big leagues for the Yankees this year, allowing one earned run while walking none and striking out four in six innings against the Cleveland Guardians on April 13. At Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, he's gone 3-0 with a 4.05 ERA and 1.11 WHIP with a 38:11 K:BB in 33 1/3 innings over seven starts. Poteet should be sufficiently stretched out and will only be worth a look as a fantasy streamer in much deeper leagues.Source: New York Post - Greg Joyce
12 hours agoSt. Louis Cardinals right-hander Giovanny Gallegos (shoulder) will start a minor-league rehab assignment on Friday with Triple-A Memphis. Gallegos is nearing a return to St. Louis' big-league bullpen after being put on the injured list in early May due to a right-shoulder impingement. If the 32-year-old Mexican reliever can avoid any setbacks on his rehab assignment this weekend, he could return to the Cardinals' bullpen early next week. Gallegos will be hoping to be more effective as a late-inning setup man in front of closer Ryan Helsley when he returns, as he had surrendered 12 earned runs on 14 hits (five home runs) while walking seven and striking out 13 in just nine relief innings for the Red Birds before landing on the shelf. The Cardinals aren't going to rush him back until he's ready.Source: St. Louis Cardinals
12 hours agoThe St. Louis Cardinals placed outfielder Lars Nootbaar (oblique) on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to May 30) with a left-oblique strain on Friday and recalled infielder Jose Fermin from Triple-A Memphis in a corresponding move. Nootbaar is most likely going to miss more than 10 days after injuring himself on a check swing during the win over the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday. The oft-injured 26-year-old opened the year on the IL as well due to fractured ribs and has been very frustrating to roster in fantasy. He's still worth holding onto if you have the room in deeper leagues, though, as he was hitting a strong .313/.418/.552 with four home runs in his last 79 plate appearances. Nootbaar's injury will mean more consistent playing time for Alec Burleson and Dylan Carlson, as well as veteran Matt Carpenter.Source: St. Louis Cardinals
12 hours agoChicago Cubs first baseman Michael Busch will not be in the starting lineup for Friday's matinee affair against the visiting division-rival Cincinnati Reds. Cody Bellinger is making the start at first base and will bat third, while rookie Pete-Crow Armstrong is in center field and is hitting in the eight-hole against Reds right-hander Graham Ashcraft. Bellinger is swinging a hot bat right now for fantasy managers and has a solo home run in two career at-bats against Ashcraft. The Cubs recalled Crow-Armstrong from the minors on Thursday, which means the 26-year-old Busch could see more frequent time on the bench if the team is adamant about getting Crow-Armstrong consistent playing time. Outside of homering in five straight games early in the season, Busch has disappointed in the month of May and is hitting .208 (15-for-72) with two homers, six RBI and 32 K's in 85 plate appearances.Source: MLB.com
12 hours agoThe New York Mets acquired catcher Luis Torrens from the New York Yankees on Friday in exchange for cash considerations and designated catcher Omar Narvaez in a corresponding move, according to sources. Narvaez was hitting just .154 this year with five RBI in 28 games, while Torrens has spent the 2024 campaign so far with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, hitting .279/.339/.469 with an .807 OPS, five home runs and 19 RBI in 30 games played. The Mets are just trying to get by right now at the catcher position with Francisco Alvarez (thumb) still on the injured list. The 28-year-old Torrens will now serve as the direct backup to Tomas Nido with Narvaez out of the picture. Torrens can be ignored in fantasy leagues with a .227 career batting average and 19 home runs in six big-league seasons with three different teams.Source: ESPN.com - Jeff Passan