20 hours agoAtlanta Braves designated hitter Marcell Ozuna kept crushing it in Friday night's win over the visiting Tampa Bay Rays, crushing his league-leading 19th home run of the season with three RBI. Taking Rays right-hander Zack Littell deep during the opening frame, Ozuna hammered a three-run homer to right field to put the Braves ahead 3-1 early on Friday. The 33-year-old Dominican slugger has been stellar in 2024, slashing .321/.396/.610 with 60 RBI, 15 doubles, and 41 runs scored over 249 at-bats for the Braves as Atlanta's primary No. 3 batter. He's shaping up as one of the best picks out of the middle rounds of fantasy drafts this past spring. Well on his way to Arlington later this summer for the third All-Star nod of his career, Ozuna's .663 xSLG on Baseball Savant is somehow better than what he's actually slugging.Source: MLB.com
20 hours agoMinnesota Twins outfielder Max Kepler enjoyed a special night during Friday's extra-inning victory over the visiting Oakland Athletics, walking it off and also smashing his fifth home run of the season. Before hitting a walk-off single to right field to win the game for the Twins 6-5 in 10 innings, Kepler became Target Field's all-time leader in homers by slugging a three-run game-tying shot off Athletics right-hander Mitch Spence to right-center field to draw the game even at 4-4 in the sixth. The 31-year-old righty masher is Minnesota's primary right fielder against left-handed pitching, limiting his overall fantasy appeal with a .263/.326/.433 triple-slash line alongside 27 RBI, 14 doubles, 21 runs scored, and one stolen bag over 51 appearances (171 at-bats) this season. Despite Friday's heroics, Kepler remains more of an AL-only option.Source: MLB.com
20 hours agoKansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez (knee) left Friday night's game against the hosting Los Angeles Dodgers with discomfort in his right knee. Before the team removed him from the contest, Perez hammered a three-run home run to left field off Dodgers right-hander Gavin Stone to give the Royals a 3-0 lead in the fourth inning of Friday's loss. He'll be further evaluated ahead of Saturday's showdown in LA, and fantasy managers should deem the veteran slugging backstop day-to-day for now. The 34-year-old Perez has been as good as ever in 2024, slashing a robust .297/.375/.490 with 11 homers, 15 doubles, and 45 RBI covering 249 at-bats (66 games) as KC's everyday cleanup hitter. Freddy Fermin would be worth a look in two-catcher formats if Perez needs to miss more action, batting .294 (35-for-119) over 41 outings this season, and corner outfielder MJ Melendez could also see some work behind the plate in this case.Source: Kansas City Royals on X
20 hours agoPittsburgh Pirates catcher Henry Davis (concussion) was removed from Friday night's game against the hosting Colorado Rockies due to concussion-like symptoms. Davis is currently being examined by Pittsburgh's medical staff, and veteran Yasmani Grandal replaced him behind the plate after Davis went 0-for-2 on Friday. The 24-year-old former No. 1 overall just hasn't been able to put it together this season and is watching his stock swiftly decline, slashing a frigid .153/.267/.235 with one home run and five RBI through 102 plate appearances for the Pirates. Consider him day-to-day until more is known ahead of Saturday's clash with Colorado. Grandal would get all the action he could handle as the backstop for any time Davis needs to miss, but the switch-hitter has gone just 14-for-85 (.165) in 27 outings and wouldn't be a viable option in two-catcher leagues.Source: Pittsburgh Pirates on X
20 hours agoNew York Yankees outfielder Alex Verdugo had a nice homecoming in Boston on Friday night where the lefty went 3-for-5 with a two-run home run, four RBI, and a run scored in an 8-1 victory over the Boston Red Sox. Verdugo smacked a two-run home run in his first at-bat in his return to Fenway and followed that with an RBI double in the fifth inning and an RBI single in the ninth inning. Verdugo has been scorching-hot over the last week with four multi-hit games with a .355 batting average while driving in seven runs. Verdugo has been excellent hitting cleanup for the Yankees this season and will look to continue his hot June against the Red Sox the rest of this weekend with the Baltimore Orioles and Atlanta Braves heading to New York next week.Source: MLB.com
20 hours agoBaltimore Orioles starting pitcher Kyle Bradish (elbow) said his elbow was bothering him after the fifth inning of Friday's game against the visiting Philadelphia Phillies. Manager Brandon Hyde said Baltimore will have Bradish undergo further tests to determine what the problem is. Considering Bradish missed the first month of the year with a UCL sprain during spring training, it's not exactly what the O's or fantasy managers want to be hearing. With five strong innings on Friday against the Phillies, the 27-year-old right-hander sports a 2.75 ERA and 1.07 WHIP with 53 punchouts and 15 walks through 39 1/3 innings in 2024. Bradish is tentatively slated to start next Friday's matchup against the Houston Astros, though his test results would need to come back clean for that to happen.Source: Andy Kostka - TheBaltimoreBanner.com
21 hours agoSan Diego Padres starting pitcher Yu Darvish (groin) threw 60 pitches in the bullpen on Friday afternoon ahead of the series opener against the hosting New York Mets, simulating three innings of work. Darvish said earlier in the afternoon that he felt the simulation would be a sufficient ramp-up for him to be ready to have his next step be starting a game, and that return from a strained left groin will likely come during the team's upcoming homestand that begins with Thursday's game against the Milwaukee Brewers. He'll throw a regular between-starts bullpen session before then, and it sounds like Darvish may not need a minor-league rehab assignment before rejoining San Diego's rotation perhaps as early as late next week. The 37-year-old five-time All-Star right-hander owns a solid 3.20 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, and 53:15 K:BB through 56 1/3 innings for the Padres this year, and he should be stashed in all fantasy leagues.Source: Kevin Acee - San Diego Union-Tribune
21 hours agoMiami Marlins starting pitcher Shaun Anderson (0-1) imploded Friday night, giving up seven runs on 10 hits in two innings pitched with no walks while recording just one strikeout in an 8-1 loss against the Washington Nationals. The debut was one to forget for the 29-year-old journeyman, who had started this season with the Rangers in the bullpen before being traded to the Marlins for cash a couple of weeks ago. Anderson may not get another turn in the rotation after this outing, though, despite Edward Cabrera (shoulder), Ryan Weathers (finger), and Sixto Sanchez (shoulder) being out. Anderson had excellent numbers in Triple-A Jacksonville for the Marlins with a 2.51 ERA, but the right-hander should remain a mainstay on your league's waiver wire for the foreseeable future.Source: MLB.com
21 hours agoHouston Astros starting pitcher Hunter Brown (3-5) dominated on the mound Friday night, earning the win after hurling seven shutout innings with nine strikeouts, no walks, and five hits in a 4-0 victory over the Detroit Tigers. It's safe to say Brown is red-hot after having a lackluster first month and a half of the season. He's now logged five straight quality starts dating back to May 22 after only having one total quality start in his first nine outings. Brown's ERA has lowered to 5.00 on the season, but he still has a long way to go to get his ERA back to a respectable level. Look for Brown to get that ERA to continue to trend in the right direction when he faces the Chicago White Sox in his next projected matchup.Source: MLB.com
21 hours agoTampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Zack Littell (2-5) was chased early Friday night after allowing a season-high six runs in two innings on eight hits with one walk and two strikeouts in a 7-3 loss to the Atlanta Braves. The two innings are also a season-low for the right-hander whose ERA now sits at 4.24 after tonight's rough start. The beat-up came after he had logged three straight quality starts one against Oakland and two against Baltimore. Littell is only rostered in 35% of fantasy leagues and is currently a streamer at best due to his lack of wins and average strikeout numbers. It is noteworthy the righty hasn't surpassed three strikeouts in a game in three consecutive starts. Despite that Littell remains an intriguing streaming option next week with a projected matchup with the Minnesota Twins on the books.Source: MLB.com
21 hours agoAtlanta Braves starting pitcher Chris Sale (9-2) picked up his ninth win Friday night, going seven innings while allowing two runs on five hits plus two walks and seven strikeouts in a 7-3 victory versus the Tampa Bay Rays. The only blemishes on the night came from allowing the first three batters to reach in the first and allowing two doubles in the seventh. Other than those instances, the sidewinding lefty was perfect on the evening. That's back-to-back quality starts for Sale after getting lit up by the Oakland Athletics back on June 1. Going for his third quality start in a row will be a tall task for the lefty, though, as the Braves head to New York for a faceoff with the Bronx Bombers.Source: MLB.com
22 hours agoThe Atlanta Braves will place outfielder Michael Harris II (hamstring) on the 10-day injured list and have him undergo an MRI exam on Saturday. Harris tweaked his left hamstring running from first to third in the first inning after singling in his first at-bat in Friday's series opener against the Tampa Bay Rays and left the game with a trainer. It's bad news for the Braves and fantasy managers, who should expect the 23-year-old to miss more than the required 10 days on the IL. Atlanta's outfield has been decimated by injuries of late, with Ronald Acuna Jr. (knee) already out for the season. With Harris now down, both J.P. Martinez and Brian Anderson are in line for more playing time in the outfield. Harris came into Friday's game hitting .247 (64-for-259) with five homers, 20 RBI and eight steals. He deserves to be stashed in all fantasy leagues.Source: The Athletic - David O'Brien
22 hours agoBoston Red Sox right-handed reliever Chris Martin (anxiety) threw a bullpen session on Thursday and will go on a minor-league rehab assignment on Saturday with Triple-A Worcester. Martin is eligible to return on Monday and has been out since last month while dealing with anxiety. The 38-year-old veteran should return to the big-league bullpen next week, but the Red Sox would be wise to ease him back into high-leverage situations in relief initially. Martin went 4-1 with a miniscule 1.05 ERA, a 1.03 WHIP, three saves, 46 strikeouts and only eight walks in 55 relief appearances in Boston last year but had struggled to a 4.22 ERA and 1.08 WHIP in 21 1/3 innings this year before taking time away, although he had struck out 24 and walked only two in 21 appearances out of the bullpen.Source: The Athletic - Jen McCaffrey
22 hours agoWashington Nationals manager Dave Martinez said that first baseman/outfielder Joey Gallo's (hamstring) MRI exam showed a significant hamstring strain, and he'll be on the injured list for a while. Gallo landed on the injured list on Wednesday and is now unlikely to return to the team until some point in the second half of the season. For the foreseeable future with the 30-year-old left-handed slugger sidelined, Joey Meneses should continue to see most of the playing time at first base in D.C. Even in deeper fantasy leagues, we wouldn't blame managers for dumping the declining Gallo, who is currently hitting a measly .164/.285/.321 with five home runs, 11 RBI and 17 runs scored in 46 games. The two-time All-Star still has plenty of pop, but he just swings and misses way too much.Source: MASN Sports - Bobby Blanco
22 hours agoCincinnati Reds left-hander Brandon Williamson (shoulder) is going with the non-surgical route for his left shoulder, according to manager David Bell and will get injections instead and not throw for at least three weeks. While it's good news for Williamson now, it doesn't guarantee that he won't eventually need surgery on his shoulder if he continues to have issues once he resumes throwing in around a month. The 26-year-old southpaw has a lesion on his left shoulder and has yet to throw a pitch for the Reds in 2024. Williamson and the Reds are holding out hope that he can return later this year, but fantasy managers in single-year leagues shouldn't be quite as optimistic. The former second-rounder by the Seattle Mariners in 2019 out of TCU made his big-league debut last year for Cincy and went 5-5 with a 4.46 ERA and 1.28 WHIP with 98 K's and 39 walks in 23 starts.Source: MLB.com - Mark Sheldon