May 4, 2025
Texas Rangers outfielder
Leody Taveras is not in Sunday's lineup when they face the Seattle Mariners. Taveras was also held out of the lineup on Saturday and appears to be losing consistent playing time. As a result,
Josh Smith will get the starting nod in center field. Smith was able to find opportunities at shortstop, but with
Corey Seager back in action, it appears Smith could limit Taveras's opportunities in the outfield now. Through his first 29 games of the season, Taveras has held a modest .241/.259/.342 slash line with just three doubles and one long ball. The 26-year-old has generated a .198 xBA and a .261 xSLG, which suggest he should continue to see regression throughout the season. Fantasy managers in deeper formats should continue to monitor his status as he could be downgraded to a bench bat for the foreseeable future.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
May 3, 2025
Texas Rangers outfielder
Leody Taveras (rest) is out of the starting lineup ahead of Saturday's game against the Seattle Mariners. Taveras will head to the bench after going 1-for-7 over his last three games. As a result,
Dustin Harris will take over in center field and bat ninth versus right-hander
Luis Castillo. The expectation is that Taveras will be back in the lineup on Sunday, but he hasn't done enough with the bat to warrant rostering in most fantasy formats.
--Andy Webb - RotoBallerSource: mlb.com
April 23, 2025
Texas Rangers outfielder
Leody Taveras (rest) is out of the starting lineup ahead of Wednesday's game against the Athletics. Taveras has been off to a slow start this season as he's slashing .197/.210/.246 with six RBI heading into Wednesday's game. That being said, the Rangers have decided to give Taveras the night off against left-hander
JP Sears. During his career, Taveras has struggled against left-handed pitching, so this seems like a good time to give him a rest game. In his absence,
Kevin Pillar will take over in center field and bat leadoff against Sears. Pillar is hitting over .300 in his 23 plate appearances with the Rangers this season. He could offer some deep league appeal in the leadoff spot on Wednesday.
--Andy Webb - RotoBallerSource: mlb.com
March 21, 2025
Texas Rangers outfielders
Evan Carter and
Leody Taveras could start the year in a platoon in center field, according to MLB.com's Kennedi Landry. Neither player has hit lefties well, but Carter has really struggled, hitting .081/.150/.081 with three total hits against lefties in the big leagues since debuting late in the 2023 season. He has five strikeouts in seven at-bats against southpaws in spring training. The 22-year-old just hasn't had much exposure to high-leverage lefties in the big leagues in only 68 regular-season games played. He also played just 45 games in 2024 due to a back injury that the team is still managing. Carter expects to improve against lefties in time, but the Rangers might just continue avoid having him face them. Between recurring back issues and the fact that he won't play regularly, Carter's fantasy upside is limited in 2025.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com - Kennedi Landry
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