April 5, 2026
Houston Astros starting pitcher
Hunter Brown (right shoulder) initially felt something in his shoulder on Friday, manager Joe Espada told Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. He had some imaging done in Sacramento before flying back to Houston to be evaluated by team doctors. After being evaluated, Brown was placed on the 15-day injured list with a right shoulder strain, retroactive to April 2. It's a crushing loss for the Astros. Brown is their ace and had been off to a 1-0 start with a 0.84 ERA through two starts. Across 10.2 innings of work, he has allowed five hits and six walks while striking out 17 batters. The team hasn't provided a timeline for his return, nor have they clarified who will take his spot in the rotation.
Christian Roa was called up to fill his void on the 26-man roster, but he hasn't started a game since 2024 in the minors.
--Andersen PickardSource: Brian McTaggart
April 5, 2026
New York Mets first baseman
Brett Baty (thumb) was a late scratch after initially appearing in the starting lineup for Sunday's game against the San Francisco Giants. Manager
Carlos Mendoza told Andrew Tredinnick of USA Today that Baty is dealing with a sore left thumb after jamming it on a slide on Saturday. The injury is not believed to be serious, and there's a strong chance that the 26-year-old will get back into the lineup on Tuesday. Baty is off to a slow start at the plate, slashing .242/.242/.364 with zero home runs, zero walks, and a 30.3% strikeout rate so far. He has primarily played first base but also has three appearances at designated hitter and two in right field.
Mark Vientos will start at first base in his absence on Sunday, and
Jorge Polanco (Achilles) is back in the lineup as the designated hitter.
--Andersen PickardSource: Andrew Tredinnick
April 5, 2026
Miami Marlins right-handed pitcher
Pete Fairbanks will serve as the opener for Sunday's game against the New York Yankees. After the game, he will be placed on the paternity list. Fairbanks has been excellent, as per usual, in his role as the Marlins' closer early this season. Through three relief appearances, he has a 0.00 ERA, -0.15 FIP, five strikeouts, one hit, zero walks, and two saves. He won't be up for a save opportunity on Sunday, but rather will be tasked with setting an early tone against the top half of the Yankees' lineup. Marlins fans will have to be patient, though, as the start of Sunday's game has been delayed due to rain. As it stands, Fairbanks ranks as the #13 reliever in RotoBaller's latest fantasy baseball rankings for 2026.
--Andersen PickardSource: Isaac Azout
April 5, 2026
The Los Angeles Angels have selected the contract of right-handed pitching prospect
George Klassen. He will be the Halos' starting pitcher on Sunday, making his MLB debut against the Seattle Mariners. Klassen was the Phillies' sixth-round pick in 2023, but he made his way to the Angels organization via trade in 2024. He posted an impressive 3.29 FIP and 11.05 K/9 at Double-A last year, but he did have an issue with walks. He was roughed up with a 7.94 FIP over 14 innings in spring training, but he posted a solid 4.2-inning start in Triple-A last week. He'll start for the Angels on Sunday after
Ryan Johnson (illness) was scratched. Klassen throws an upper-90s fastball and puts effective break behind both his slider and cutter. It will be interesting to watch how his stuff plays against a star-studded Seattle lineup featuring
Julio Rodriguez and
Cal Raleigh.
--Andersen PickardSource: Los Angeles Angels
April 5, 2026
New York Mets outfielder
Juan Soto (right calf strain) remains absent from the lineup for Sunday's game against the San Francisco Giants. Soto suffered the injury on Friday and has been sidelined throughout the weekend. He's not expected to land on the injured list, but there hasn't been an exact timetable for his return. Soto is one of the best hitters in baseball, so the Mets would love to get him back in the lineup, but they also won't rush him back before he's ready. Through eight games this year, the 27-year-old owns a .355/.412/.516 slash line with one home run, five RBI, and 165 wRC+.
Jared Young has taken over as the Mets' left fielder in Soto's absence.
--Andersen PickardSource: MLB.com
April 5, 2026
The Houston Astros have placed right-handed pitcher
Hunter Brown (shoulder) on the 15-day injured list with a right-shoulder strain. According to Matt Kawahara of The Houston Chronicle, this transition is retroactive to April 2. In a corresponding move, the Astros promoted
Christian Roa from Triple-A Sugar Land. Brown made his last outing on March 31 against the Boston Red Sox. In this start, the ace looked like his dominant self, logging six innings of one-run ball with just one hit and two walks. He struck out eight hitters. In his season debut, Brown tossed 4 2/3 innings with four hits, four walks, no runs, and nine punchouts. While Brown remains on the shelf, the Astros could turn to right-hander
Spencer Arrighetti, who was unable to crack the team's Opening Day roster.
--Andy SmithSource: Matt Kawahara
April 5, 2026
Philadelphia Phillies left-hander
Jesus Luzardo was dominant on Saturday in his first win of the 2026 season against the Colorado Rockies, allowing just one earned run on five hits while walking none and striking out 11 in 6 2/3 innings of work at Coors Field in Denver. It was a nice bounce-back outing early on for the 28-year-old southpaw, as he was greeted harshly in his season debut last week by the Texas Rangers, allowing six runs in six innings. Fantasy managers should have had Luzardo in their starting lineups on Saturday against the Rockies despite his rough opening start. In his dominant outing, he generated 23 swinging strikes. The former third-round pick by the Washington Nationals in 2016 is a high-upside strikeout arm on one of the best teams in baseball, giving him plenty of fantasy appeal in his third year in Philly. Fantasy managers will want to keep him active in his next scheduled outing against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com
April 5, 2026
Minnesota Twins outfielder
Byron Buxton (forearm) is back in Sunday's lineup against the visiting Tampa Bay Rays and right-hander
Nick Martinez, according to MLB.com. Buxton will serve as the designated hitter and will bat second for the Twins. The 32-year-old oft-injured veteran was removed from Friday's game against Tampa after being hit in the forearm by a pitch, and he was held from the lineup on Saturday as a precaution. Buxton thankfully avoided any structural damage in his arm and will return to action for the series finale. He will most likely return to outfield duties early next week. Fantasy managers may want to keep Buxton on their benches on Sunday, though, given his slow start at the plate in 2026. He's hitting just .154/.207/.269 with an RBI, one walk, and nine strikeouts in a small sample size of seven games. The good news is Buxton has a good history against Martinez, as he's hit .400 against him with two home runs and three RBI in 10 career at-bats.
--Keith HernandezSource: MLB.com
April 5, 2026
Seattle Mariners infielder
Brendan Donovan (groin) is dealing with some soreness in his groin area and underwent imaging on Saturday, according to Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times. The Mariners hope to have a better idea on his situation when the medical staff examines the results of his tests. For now, he's being considered day-to-day after leaving Friday's game early against the Los Angeles Angels. The 29-year-old did not play in Saturday's game against the Angels and will most likely be held out of the series finale on Sunday, too, but this doesn't appear to be a serious injury for the Mariners' new infielder. In his first eight games with Seattle this year, Donovan has gone 10-for-27 (.370) with two home runs, two doubles, four RBI, four runs scored, a stolen base, four walks, and six strikeouts in 33 plate appearances. Donovan doesn't have a ton of power for fantasy managers, but he can be useful in points leagues as a counting-stat aggregator as an everyday player in the Mariners' strong lineup.
--Keith HernandezSource: The Seattle Times - Ryan Divish
April 5, 2026
Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that shortstop
Mookie Betts's (oblique) MRI exam showed a right-oblique strain after he was pulled from Saturday's game early against the Washington Nationals, according to Jack Harris of The California Post. Roberts thinks the injury occurred on a check swing during his at-bat on Saturday. Betts will go on the 10-day injured list, and infielder
Hyeseong Kim will replace him on the active MLB roster. It's unclear when the 33-year-old former MVP will be able to return from the Dodgers, but fantasy managers shouldn't expect him to be back at the end of his 10-day IL stint. Oblique injuries can be tricky to recover from and often take around a month. With Betts out, veteran
Miguel Rojas is expected to see most of the playing time at the 6, although he offers very little fantasy baseball appeal offensively. Betts has gotten off to another slow start in 2026 in his first eight games, batting .179 (5-for-28), although he does have two home runs and seven RBI in 32 plate appearances.
--Keith HernandezSource: The California Post - Jack Harris
April 5, 2026
The Chicago Cubs placed right-hander
Cade Horton (forearm) on the 15-day injured list (retroactive to April 4) with a right-forearm strain on Sunday, according to Taylor McGregor of Watch Marquee Sports. In a corresponding move, the team recalled left-hander
Riley Martin from Triple-A Iowa. Horton suffered a forearm strain in his outing on Friday against the Cleveland Guardians. It's unclear if the 24-year-old will be ready to return from the IL when he's eligible on April 19. It's a tough break for the former seventh overall pick in 2022 out of Oklahoma early on in 2026. In his two starts before his arm injury, Horton had allowed two earned runs on four hits (one homer) while walking two and striking out four in 7 1/3 innings pitched. Hopefully, he'll be back in Chicago's starting rotation before the end of April. In the meantime, either
Colin Rea or
Javier Assad will take Horton's spot in the Cubbies' rotation.
--Keith HernandezSource: Watch Marquee - Taylor McGregor
April 5, 2026
Seattle Mariners starting pitcher
Emerson Hancock was excellent once again on the mound during Friday's outing against the Los Angeles Angels. Hancock tossed six scoreless innings with nine strikeouts in his season debut. He carried over that success into Friday's outing versus the Angels. Hancock tossed 6.2 innings, allowing one run while striking out six in the loss. It has been an outstanding beginning to the season for Hancock. The right-hander is only in the rotation because
Bryce Miller (oblique) is currently on the 15-day Injured List. It's going to be difficult for the Mariners to pull Hancock out of the rotation with the way he's pitching right now. He's lined up to pitch against the Houston Astros on Friday. Hancock should be rostered in most 12-team formats ahead of that matchup.
--Andy WebbSource: Baseball Reference
April 5, 2026
Tampa Bay Rays relief pitcher
Edwin Uceta (shoulder) was able to throw a live batting practice session on Friday. The right-hander is currently working his way back from right shoulder soreness. He's expected to throw again on Tuesday before hopefully starting a minor league rehab assignment. Once he's healthy, Uceta could immediately slide into the closer role for the Rays.
Griffin Jax has already blown two saves and could be on a short leash if he continues to struggle. Uceta could be worth stashing for fantasy managers searching for saves. The hope is that Uceta will be able to make his season debut in late April.
--Andy WebbSource: Baseball Reference
April 5, 2026
Arizona Diamondbacks relief pitcher
Paul Sewald notched his third save of the season versus the Atlanta Braves on Saturday. Sewald needed 21 pitches to work a scoreless ninth, which included two strikeouts. The veteran right-hander is now 3-for-3 in save situations with four scoreless innings over five total appearances. It seems likely that the D-Backs stick with Sewald as the closer going forward. The 35-year-old is an experienced option with 89 career saves and appears to be the most trustworthy option at the moment. Fantasy managers in need of saves or a reliever should consider adding Sewald.
--Andy WebbSource: Baseball Reference
April 5, 2026
Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher
Zack Wheeler (shoulder) is slated to make two more minor-league rehab starts, according to Phillies manager Rob Thompson. The plan is for Wheeler to start on Wednesday with Triple-A Lehigh Valley and make another start after that. The veteran right-hander is currently working his way back from thoracic outlet syndrome surgery. He was hit around for five runs during his second rehab start on Friday. The overall results don't matter as much as Wheeler building up his stamina. Barring any setbacks, Wheeler should be able to rejoin the Phillies rotation in late April. Fantasy managers better make sure to stash Wheeler on their IL if he's available in your league.
--Andy WebbSource: Matt Gelb
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