16 mins agoThe Boston Red Sox on Thursday placed outfielder Tyler O'Neill (head) on the seven-day injured list (retroactive to April 16) and reinstated outfielder Rob Refsnyder (toe) from the 10-day injured list in a corresponding move. O'Neill had cleared the league's concussion protocol after colliding with third baseman Rafael Devers in the outfield on Monday, but he hadn't played since and required eight stitches to close up a cut on his forehead. It's a bummer for O'Neill's fantasy managers that he wasn't able to return this weekend, but based on the fact that he had cleared concussion protocols this week, his stay on the seven-day IL should be a short one. Keep him stashed everywhere after his hot start to the year. Refsnyder isn't on the fantasy radar in mixed leagues and will serve as outfield depth behind Jarren Duran, Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu.Source: MassLive.com - Chris Cotillo
29 mins agoThe Pittsburgh Pirates currently have a hole in their starting rotation with lefty Marco Gonzales (forearm) on the injured list, but MLB Pipeline's No. 3 prospect, right-hander Paul Skenes, isn't getting called up because he needs to continue to build up for his first full professional season. Skenes has yet to allow a run with Triple-A Indianapolis through his first three outings, striking out 19 with just six baserunners allowed over 9 1/3 innings. However, he was capped at just three innings in his first two outings and has had his pitch count purposefully limited early on. "We don't want to go from zero to 100 right away. Paul's so important to us long term, so we want to be really thoughtful about that," general manager Ben Cherington said. The 21-year-old will almost certainly be with Pittsburgh this year, but fantasy managers in all formats are going to need to be patient.Source: MLB.com - Alex Stumpf
50 mins agoCincinnati Reds first baseman Christian Encarnacion-Strand (illness) was scratched from the team's lineup on Wednesday against the Seattle Mariners due to an illness. He was the second Reds starter in as many days to be held out of the lineup with an illness, as Jeimer Candelario was scratched on Tuesday with flu-like symptoms. Candelario was also out on Wednesday, so it appears there's a bug going around Cincy's clubhouse right now. The good news is that the Reds are off on Thursday, so hopefully Candelario, Encarnacion-Strand and anyone else not feeling well will be feeling good enough on Friday to play against the visiting Los Angeles Angels. CES has two home runs and 12 RBI so far this year, but he's off to a slow start, hitting .192 (14-for-73) in his first 17 games played.Source: MLB.com
55 mins agoTexas Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said that there isn't a firm number of rehab at-bats that first baseman Nathaniel Lowe (hamstring) needs, but said it could be "about 30, could be more." As of right now, Lowe has only had 16 at-bats on his minor-league rehab assignment for Double-A Frisco and Triple-A Round Rock, so the 28-year-old left-handed slugger may not necessarily be ready to return from the 10-day injured list to make his 2024 debut with the Rangers this weekend. Barring a setback, though, Lowe should be able to make his season debut with Texas at some point next week. When he returns, Lowe will be the team's regular first baseman, pushing Jared Walsh to a bench role. If he isn't already, Lowe should be rostered in all fantasy formats.Source: Dallas Morning News - Shawn McFarland
1 hour agoBoston Red Sox infielder Romy Gonzalez's (wrist) MRI exam came back clean, according to manager Alex Cora. The Red Sox sent Gonzalez for testing after he felt pain in his left wrist when swinging the bat on Wednesday, but the 27-year-old has dodged a bullet in terms of structural damage in his wrist. He's still on the 10-day injured list, though, and probably isn't going to be ready to return to the big-league club when he's eligible to return. Gonzalez went 1-for-4 with a walk and a strikeout in his two games played with the BoSox this year before getting hurt. When healthy, he'll serve as middle-infield depth (mainly at second base) and isn't much of a fantasy asset.Source: Boston Herald - Gabrielle Starr
1 hour agoBoston Red Sox right-hander Nick Pivetta (elbow) is throwing at 120 feet on Thursday and Friday and is scheduled to throw a bullpen session on Saturday. Pivetta is on the 15-day injured list due to a right-elbow sprain, and while he's making progress in his throwing program, he still has a ways to go and will eventually need to go on a minor-league rehab assignment before returning to Boston's starting rotation. Fantasy managers definitely shouldn't expect the 31-year-old to make it back before the calendar flips to May, but Pivetta should be stashed after looking excellent in his first two starts of 2024. He allowed just one earned run on eight hits (one home run) while walking one and striking out 13 in 11 innings pitched for a 0.82 ERA.Source: The Athletic - Jen McCaffrey
1 hour agoBoston Red Sox outfielder Tyler O'Neill (head) remains out of the lineup on Thursday in the series finale against the Cleveland Guardians. O'Neill has passed the league's concussion protocols after colliding with third baseman Rafael Devers in the outfield on Monday but needed stitches for a cut on his head and hasn't played since. The 28-year-old should be able to avoid going on the seven-day concussion list and he could even return to the lineup as early as Friday against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Jarren Duran is starting in left field again and batting leadoff, while Wilyer Abreu is in right and hitting third against Guardians right-hander Carlos Carrasco. Fantasy managers are hoping O'Neill can return as soon as possible, as so far he's hitting .313 (15-for-48) with seven home runs, eight RBI and one stolen base.Source: MLB.com - Ian Browne
1 hour agoLos Angeles Angels catcher Logan O'Hoppe and outfielder Aaron Hicks will both start on the bench for Thursday's series finale against the Tampa Bay Rays. It's not surprise that O'Hoppe is out for the day game following a night game. Matt Thaiss is doing the catching and batting fifth, while Mickey Moniak is in right field and batting sixth against Rays right-hander Ryan Pepiot. Neither Thaiss nor Moniak have faced Pepiot in their careers. O'Hoppe has been very hot to start the year, going 18-for-53 (.340) with two home runs and seven RBI in his first 16 games, while Hicks has been the opposite, going 7-for-44 (.159) with a homer and four RBI in his first 13 games with the Halos. Hicks has started just one of the team's last four games and is losing fantasy value quickly in AL-only leagues.Source: Orange County Register - Jeff Fletcher
1 hour agoTampa Bay Rays outfielder Randy Arozarena is not in the team's starting lineup on Thursday for the series finale against the visiting Los Angeles Angels. With Arozarena starting on the bench, Harold Ramirez will start in left field for the Rays and will hit cleanup against Angels right-hander Griffin Canning. Arozarena could use a day off, as he's hitting just .174 (12-for-69) with two homers, six RBI, four steals and 19 strikeouts in his first 18 games, and he's currently in a 2-for-23 slump. Hopefully, the day off helps the 29-year-old get right heading into this weekend. Ramirez has gone 18-for-71 (.254) in the early going with a homer, eight RBI and a stolen base. He has never faced Canning in his career but could be a nice producer at a low cost in DFS on Thursday out of the cleanup spot for Tampa.Source: MLB.com
2 hours agoBoston Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers will undergo an MRI on his left knee after he felt discomfort. Devers was pulled from the game on Tuesday but gave it a go as designated hitter on Wednesday. Manager Alex Cora states that the MRI is precautionary in nature to make sure the knee is structurally sound. Devers is not in the lineup Thursday, so we'll await to see the results of the MRI to get a better understanding of the injury and whether or not he'll be able to play this weekend. The 2x All-Star is off to a slow start at the plate, hitting just .188 with two home runs, five RBI, and five runs scored through 13 games. On the bright side he's got a 9:10 BB:K, with three of those strikeouts coming on Wednesday alone.Source: The Springfield Republican - Christopher Smith
2 hours agoNew York Yankees closer Clay Holmes notched his seventh save of the season in Wednesday's 6-4 win over the Blue Jays, tying him for the league lead in all of baseball. Holmes allowed one hit but did not allow a run, a feat he's managed in all of his appearances so far this season, resulting in a perfect 0.00 ERA. The 31-year-old also has a 1.11 WHIP, although he isn't striking out many batters at just 15.4%. As long as he's locking down saves though, fantasy managers won't mind. After two straight 20+ save campaigns with New York, Holmes appears well on his way to 20+ again and is a top option at closer.Source: ESPN
2 hours agoTampa Bay Rays closer Pete Fairbanks blew the save in Wednesday's 5-4 loss to the Angels. Fairbanks came on in the ninth with a 4-3 lead and recorded an out to the first batter he faced, then the wheels came off. The 30-year-old proceeded to allow three singles and two walks (one was an IBB to Mike Trout) which resulted in two runs coming across the plate and a blown save. It was only his first blown save of the season, but he's been up and down so far to start the year. Over eight appearances (seven IP) the righty has allowed seven earned runs on eight hits with a BB:K of 8:10. Fairbanks does have three saves to his name thus far and his job doesn't seem to be in jeopardy, but a couple more outings like this and fantasy managers might consider picking up Jason Adam as insurance.Source: ESPN
3 hours agoThe long-awaited arrival of Houston Astros pitching prospect Forrest Whitley was short-lived. Houston's 2016 first-round draft pick and former top pitching prospect has battled injuries over the years but finally got the call, only to face five batters in Tuesday's 6-2 loss to the Braves before being sent back down to Triple-A Sugar Land. The righty allowed a double, a walk, and hit a batter, but was able to record two outs in the inning. Even when healthy, Whitley hasn't been very effective, so we'll see where he goes from here. He's still just 26 years old, so perhaps a change of scenery would serve him well. For fantasy, however, he remains irrelevant.Source: The Athletic - Chandler Rome
3 hours agoArizona Diamondbacks designated hitter Joc Pederson homered for the second straight game in Wednesday's 5-3 loss to the Cubs. Pederson came on to pinch hit in the sixth for Blaze Alexander, lining out to first in his initial at-bat before homering in the next at-bat in the bottom of the ninth off of lefty Drew Smyly. Pederson is off to a solid start this season, hitting .333 (11-for-33) with two doubles, two home runs, five RBI, and seven runs scored. Last season, Pederson saw an increase in his BB% by 3.7% over the prior year, up to 13.4%, and it appears he's brought the keen eye into 2024, having walked nine times while striking out just once. The result is a superb .467 OBP thus far.Source: ESPN
6 hours agoChicago Cubs outfield prospect Kevin Alcantara went 2-for-4 with a home run on Wednesday for Double-A Tennessee. The home run would be the first of the year for the 21-year-old. Alcantara has been off to a very slow start this year, hitting just .086 with a stolen base and hopefully Wednesday round-tripper will get him going. It is only nine games in, so there is no concern for the talented outfielder. Alcantara offers loads of potential and the power should continue to blossom as his body fills out, but he needs to become more disciplined at the dish to reach his full potential. The Cubs have plenty of outfield depth throughout their system, but Alcantara has arguably the most upside. If he can improve his vision at the plate, Alcantara could be a star at the next level. Dynasty managers should consider Alcantara moving forward.Source: Milb.com