August 31, 2025
Miami Marlins outfield prospect
Victor Mesa Jr. was recalled from Triple-A Jacksonville on Sunday, although he is not in the lineup for the team's afternoon contest against the Mets. The Marlins' 23rd-ranked prospect was activated from the injured list at Triple-A on August 17 and had gone 13-for-35 (.371) in the nine games since activation, including one double, two home runs, 11 RBI, and four runs scored during that stretch. Once a top prospect for Miami, there is potential to hit for power, and with a low 16.8 percent strikeout rate this season, he could hit for average, too, but he's fallen off over the last couple of seasons in the stolen base category. The 23-year-old made a brief debut with the Marlins earlier this year, but if he's not going to get regular at-bats, there is little reason to pick him up in season-long leagues.
--Jarod RuppSource: Miami Marlins
August 31, 2025
Miami Marlins rookie starting pitcher
Ryan Gusto (shoulder) was placed on the 15-day injured list on Sunday, retroactive to Aug. 28. Gusto has been terrible lately, allowing 14 earned runs over his last two starts. It's possible that his shoulder issue was part of the reason he was struggling on the mound. He figures to miss a few weeks of action and honestly could be done for the season given there's basically only a month left. In a corresponding move, right-hander
Freddy Tarnok has been recalled from Triple-A Jacksonville. Gusto can safely be dropped in all fantasy leagues.
--Andy WebbSource: Miami Marlins
August 31, 2025
Athletics first baseman
Nick Kurtz (oblique) remains out of the starting lineup ahead of Sunday's game against the Texas Rangers. The A's have decided to hold out Kurtz for the rest of the weekend after he suffered an oblique injury on Friday. The MRI didn't reveal any significant damage, so Kurtz should be considered day-to-day. The A's aren't playing for anything at this point in the season, so they'll give Kurtz as much time as he needs to get healthy. It sounds like he'll avoid a trip to the injured list and hopefully return early next week. In the meantime,
Tyler Soderstrom will cover first base and bat cleanup against right-hander
Jacob deGrom on Sunday.
--Andy WebbSource: mlb.com
August 31, 2025
Boston Red Sox outfielder
Wilyer Abreu (calf) isn't recovering as quickly as expected when he went on the 10-day injured list with a strained right calf on Aug. 21. Manager Alex Cora said Sunday that Abreu has "been able to hit and move around defensively. But he hasn't been able to run. So are we concerned? Yes and no. He'll be back at one point. But I think it's been longer than expected." Abreu is scheduled to run on Monday, so the Red Sox will have a better idea of his status then. The 26-year-old is unlikely to return during their current homestand, which runs through Wednesday. The team will start a six-game road trip on Friday. It's less than ideal for the playoff-contending Red Sox to continue going without Abreu, who has been one of their most productive players this year. He has taken 395 trips to the plate and slashed .253/.325/.486 with 22 homers, 69 RBI, 52 runs scored, and six stolen bases.
--Connor ByrneSource: Christopher Smith - MassLive.com
August 31, 2025
New York Mets right-handed pitching prospect
Jonah Tong will make the second start of his career on Friday against the Cincinnati Reds. Tong earned the victory in his debut this past Friday against the Miami Marlins, whom he held to one earned run on six hits over five innings. The 22-year-old posted six strikeouts against no walks in that game, and he impressed manager
Carlos Mendoza enough to remain part of a six-man rotation. Tong, who ranks as one of the game's top pitching prospects, led all minor leaguers with an eye-popping 179 strikeouts in 113 2/3 frames before the Mets promoted him. His next opponent, Cincinnati, ranks a decent 14th in the majors in runs this season. However, the Reds' offense has sputtered this month. They rank 29th in both runs and wOBA over the past 30 days. That could bode well for Tong.
--Connor ByrneSource: MLB.com
August 31, 2025
Washington Nationals left-hander
Andrew Alvarez will come up from Triple-A Rochester to start against the Miami Marlins on Monday, interim manager Miguel Cairo announced. He'll replace injured southpaw
MacKenzie Gore (shoulder) in the Nationals' rotation for the time being. Alvarez, a 12th-round pick in 2021, will be making his major league debut. The 26-year-old does not rank among the Nationals' top 30 prospects at either MLB Pipeline or Baseball America. Nevertheless, he has pitched to a respectable 4.10 ERA with a 1.35 WHIP, 114 strikeouts, and 52 walks in 123 Triple-A innings this season. On paper, he has a favorable matchup against the Marlins, whose .284 wOBA versus lefties ranks 26th in the majors.
--Connor ByrneSource: Mark Zuckerman - MASNSports.com
August 31, 2025
The Toronto Blue Jays have claimed utility player
Isiah Kiner-Falefa off waivers from the Pittsburgh Pirates, Jeff Passan of ESPN reports. Kiner-Falefa spent the first few months of the 2024 season with Toronto before the team traded him to Pittsburgh in July. The 30-year-old, who has never been an offensive threat, hit .264/.300/.332 with one homer, 35 RBI, 40 runs scored, and 15 stolen bases in 428 plate appearances with the Pirates this season. Thanks to his defensive versatility, Kiner-Falefa is a much more useful player in real life than he is in fantasy. He'll provide the AL East-leading Blue Jays with some quality depth down the stretch.
--Connor ByrneSource: Jeff Passan - ESPN
August 31, 2025
Colorado Rockies rookie first baseman
Warming Bernabel (knee, quad) left a 4-3 loss to the Chicago Cubs early on Saturday with a bruised left knee and quad. He fouled a ball off himself in the second inning and had to exit shortly after that. Bernabel is out of the lineup on Sunday against the Cubs, while
Kyle Farmer will play first and hit sixth in a meeting with left-hander
Matthew Boyd. The Rockies will start a series against the San Francisco Giants on Monday, but it's unclear if Bernabel will return then. Since debuting on July 26, the 23-year-old has slashed .252/.283/.435 with four homers, 13 RBI, and 14 runs scored in 120 plate appearances. He went seven straight games without a hit before singling on Saturday.
--Connor ByrneSource: MLB.com
August 31, 2025
The Kansas City Royals announced that they have reinstated right-hander
Michael Wacha (personal) from the paternity list and optioned righty
Stephen Kolek to Triple-A Omaha. Wacha will start Sunday's game against the division-rival Detroit Tigers. Although Wacha's not a great source of strikeouts, the 34-year-old has nonetheless enjoyed another solid season. He has made 26 starts and gone 8-10 with a 3.39 ERA, a 1.18 WHIP, and 108:38 K:BB in 148 2/3 innings. Wacha has already faced the Tigers three times this year and held his own in each outing. The Royals won two of those meetings, and Wacha combined to allow just five earned runs on 16 hits and post 15 strikeouts against two walks over 18 1/3 frames.
--Connor ByrneSource: Kansas City Royals
August 31, 2025
The Miami Marlins announced that they have placed outfielder
Dane Myers (oblique) on the 10-day injured list with a strained right oblique and recalled outfielder
Victor Mesa Jr. from Triple-A Jacksonville. Myers suffered the injury in an 11-8 win over the New York Mets on Saturday and had to leave early as a result. This is now the second time Myers has gone on the IL with a right-oblique strain this year. The injury shelved him for approximately three weeks in May. Depending on the severity of this strain, it could end Myers' season. The 29-year-old got off to a promising start in 2025 and owned an .862 OPS as late as June 16, but his production has nosedived in the past two and a half months. He's heading back to the IL with a .233/.292/.325 line, six homers, 27 RBI, 28 runs scored, and 17 stolen bases in 318 plate appearances.
--Connor ByrneSource: Miami Marlins
August 31, 2025
Cleveland Guardians infielder
Gabriel Arias (hand) remains out of the starting lineup for Sunday's series finale against the visiting Seattle Mariners at Progressive Field.
Brayan Rocchio will make another start at shortstop and will bat out of the eight-hole against Mariners right-hander
Bryce Miller. A right-hand contusion that Arias suffered on a hit-by-pitch on Friday in the series opener against Seattle will keep him out for the second straight day. X-rays on the 25-year-old's hand came back negative, though, so he could be back in action for Monday's series opener at Fenway Park against the Boston Red Sox. Fantasy managers setting DFS lineups on Sunday should be able to do much better than Rocchio if they're looking for a low-cost sleeper at the position. Rocchio is hitting just .233 (60-for-257) with only three home runs, 34 RBI and six stolen bases. He's hitless in two career at-bats against Miller.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com
August 31, 2025
Toronto Blue Jays infielder
Ernie Clement (finger, shin) is starting at third base and will hit sixth for Sunday's series finale against the visiting Milwaukee Brewers and right-hander
Brandon Woodruff at the Rogers Centre. Clement suffered a hairline fracture in his finger and needed stitches to close a cut on his left shin after a collision at third base earlier this week, but after missing a couple of games, he's back in Toronto's starting nine.
Addison Barger, who had been playing third with Clement sidelined a few games, will shift to right field on Sunday and will hit second. The 29-year-old Clement makes a lot of contact and is hitting a respectable .273 (126-for-461) on the year, but he has minimal power (nine home runs) and speed (four stolen bases), leaving him little fantasy upside. Clement has never faced Woodruff in his career.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com
August 31, 2025
Toronto Blue Jays outfielder
Daulton Varsho (hand) remains out of the starting lineup for Sunday's series finale against the visiting Milwaukee Brewers at the Rogers Centre.
Myles Straw will make another start in center field and will bat ninth against Brewers right-hander
Brandon Woodruff. Varsho will miss his second straight game after being hit by a pitch on his right hand in the series opener on Friday night. X-rays on the 29-year-old's hand came back negative, though, so he's considered day-to-day and could be back on the field for Monday's series opener in Cincinnati against the Reds. Varsho was available off the bench in Saturday's loss, but he didn't get into the ballgame. Straw is a light-hitting bench outfielder who should be avoided as a sleeper for DFS lineups on Sunday. He's hitting .267 (63-for-236) with four homers and 11 steals on the year.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com
August 31, 2025
San Diego Padres right-handed reliever
David Morgan will serve as the team's opener for Sunday's series finale against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field, with left-hander Kyler Hart working as the bulk reliever behind Morgan, per Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune. Although neither Morgan nor Hart will be recommended as fantasy streamers in this one, Hart has slightly more appeal because he should go longer in the series finale. Hart has made a total of 15 starts with the Padres and Triple-A El Paso in 2025, although he's worked exclusively as a reliever in the minors since the All-Star break in mid-July. The former 19th-round pick by the Boston Red Sox in 2016 has a 5.29 ERA (5.78 FIP) and 1.21 WHIP with only 21 strikeouts and seven walks in 32 1/3 innings over his nine outings (six starts) with the Friars this year.
--Keith HernandezSource: The San Diego Union-Tribune - Kevin Acee
August 31, 2025
The Chicago Cubs signed veteran first baseman
Carlos Santana to an undisclosed one-deal deal on Sunday, according to the New York Post's Jon Heyman. Santana is expected to join the Cubs' major-league roster prior to their series opener on Monday against the Atlanta Braves. The 39-year-old heads to the National League after being cut on Thursday by the Cleveland Guardians. The Dominican switch-hitting first baseman slashed .225/.316/.333 with a career-worst .650 OPS, 11 home runs, 52 RBI, 49 runs and seven stolen bases in Cleveland in 116 games before being cut.
Michael Busch is the Cubs' unquestioned starter at first base the rest of the way, but Santana will give the team another option off the bench with experience as an upgrade over veteran
Justin Turner against right-handed arms.
--Keith HernandezSource: New York Post - Jon Heyman
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