1 week agoMinnesota Twins third baseman Jose Miranda (back) was scratched from Thursday's lineup due to lower back tightness, according to Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com. He was replaced by Austin Martin. Fantasy managers should pay close attention to the Minnesota starting nine in their final series against the Baltimore Orioles over the weekend, as Miranda may remain sidelined. After posting a disappointing .211 AVG last season, the 26-year-old enjoyed an excellent bounce-back campaign this summer as he sits with a solid .284/.322/.441 slash line. Miranda was one of the best hitters in the sport during June and July, as he boasted a stellar .367/.415/.578 line. If Miranda remains out, fantasy managers should expect Brooks Lee to see an increase in opportunities at the hot corner.Source: Do-Hyoung Park
1 week agoLos Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw (toe) will not be available for at least "a couple of weeks," according to Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic. Kershaw logged a successful bullpen session last week and looked poised to return for the playoffs but now faces a setback. Kershaw was already ruled out for the remainder of the regular season but could be in danger of missing the entire postseason depending on how far the Dodgers go. The southpaw was diagnosed with a bone spur in his toe on August 31 and was placed on the 15-day IL. The three-time Cy Young winner underwent offseason shoulder surgery, which delayed his 2024 debut until July 25. Through his 30 innings of work this summer, Kershaw posted a 4.50 ERA and 1.50 WHIP. Fantasy managers participating in postseason competitions should not consider selecting Kershaw as he faces an uphill battle to return to the mound.Source: Fabian Ardaya
1 week agoLos Angeles Dodgers catcher Austin Barnes (toe) was activated off the 10-day injured list on Thursday afternoon. In a corresponding move, the Dodgers optioned backstop Hunter Feduccia to Triple-A Oklahoma. Feduccia made only two starts over the past two weeks and went 2-for-10. Barnes was sidelined since September 15 with a toe fracture. Before the injury, the veteran catcher held a .261/.327/.306 line with three doubles, one home run, and 11 RBI. Fantasy managers should expect Barnes to remain as the backup catcher over the final weekend of the regular season and during the postseason, while Will Smith sees the vast majority of starts behind the plate.Source: Los Angeles Dodgers
1 week agoMiami Marlins rookie outfielder Griffin Conine is on the bench to start Thursday's contest against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. The Marlins are playing youngsters down the stretch in a lost season, but Conine has seen sporadic playing time in the outfield. The 27-year-old has had 67 at-bats over his first 26 big-league games and has gone 16-for-67 (.239) with two home runs, three doubles, a triple, six RBI, six walks and 24 strikeouts in 74 plate appearances. Derek Hill is starting in center field and batting seventh, and Jesus Sanchez is in right field and batting cleanup for the Fish against Twins right-hander David Festa. In his last five games, Conine has begun to heat up, going 4-for-13 with a homer, double, two RBI, a walk and a run scored.Source: Miami Marlins
1 week agoBaltimore Orioles first baseman Ryan Mountcastle is not in the team's starting lineup for Thursday's series finale at Yankee Stadium against the New York Yankees. With Mountcastle starting on the bench, the left-handed-hitting Ryan O'Hearn will play first base and bat sixth against Yankees right-hander Gerrit Cole. Mountcastle just returned from the injured list on Tuesday due to a wrist injury and has gone 2-for-7 with an RBI and two strikeouts in his first two games back. The Orioles are easing him in ahead of the postseason and will give him a day off against one of the most dominant pitchers in the game. O'Hearn won't be too popular in DFS against Cole. In his 17 career at-bats against him, O'Hearn has hit .118 with a .471 OPS, one home run and two RBI. O'Hearn has been hot of late, going 8-for-21 (.381) with three doubles and two RBI since Sept. 17.Source: Baltimore Orioles
1 week agoThe San Francisco Giants announced on Thursday that left-handed prospect Reggie Crawford (shoulder) had surgery on Thursday to fix the labrum in his left shoulder. The surgery was performed in Los Angeles by Dr. Neal ElAttrache. The estimated recovery time for Crawford is 10-12 months, so he is not going to be able to pitch in 2025. The Giants' first-round pick in 2022 will enter spring training in 2026 having thrown a total of 37 1/3 professional innings. Crawford, 23, was previously recovering from Tommy John surgery, so this will be the second major surgery the youngster has had early in his career. MLB Pipeline lists Crawford as the team's No. 9 prospect The Giants moved Crawford to a relief role in 2024 at Double-A Richmond and Triple-A Sacramento and had a 2.95 ERA and 1.09 WHIP with 30 strikeouts in 18 1/3 frames over 14 outings (one start).Source: The Athletic - Andrew Baggarly
1 week agoMLB.com's Mark Bowman writes that Atlanta Braves left-hander Chris Sale will make his next start whenever the Braves are facing elimination. Left-hander Max Fried will start the series opener against the Kansas City Royals because he's more of a creature of habit who doesn't like too many extra days of rest. Right-hander Reynaldo Lopez (shoulder), who remains on the injured list, will be a wild card who could be used at any point between Saturday and the team's doubleheader against the division-rival New York Mets on Monday. Atlanta's final two games against the Mets were postponed on Wednesday and Thursday due to inclement weather. The 35-year-old Sale, who is a front-runner for the National League Cy Young award, could very well be held back until one of Monday's games. He's been one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball in 2024 with a league-best 2.38 ERA and 225 K's in 29 starts.Source: MLB.com - Mark Bowman
1
week
agoLos
Angeles
Angels
shortstop
Zach
Neto
(shoulder)
left
Thursday's
series
finale
against
the
Chicago
White
Sox
at
Guaranteed
Rate
Field
after
injuring
his
right
shoulder
on
a
slide
into
second
base.
Neto
stayed
down
on
the
ground
for
a
while
and
appeared
toread more...
1 week agoTexas Rangers catcher Jonah Heim will retreat to the bench for Thursday's series finale against the division-rival Oakland Athletics in the final game at the Oakland Coliseum. Carson Kelly will do the catching for rookie right-hander Kumar Rocker and will bat eighth against A's right-hander J.T. Ginn. The 29-year-old's day off comes after he homered in each of the first two games of the series. Heim made his first All-Star team in 2023 before eventually helping lead the Rangers to their first World Series title. He hasn't been nearly as good in 2024, though, batting .219 (98-for-448) with 13 home runs and 57 RBI in 480 plate appearances. Since joining the Rangers in the middle of the season via trade, Kelly has slashed .233/.296/.311 with a .607 OPS, one homer and seven RBI in 28 games for the Rangers as the No. 2 backstop behind Heim.Source: MLB.com
1 week agoLos Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that the hope is that shortstop Miguel Rojas (groin) will be able to play in the regular-season finale this Sunday at Coors Field against the division-rival Colorado Rockies. Rojas is undergoing an MRI exam and receiving a cortisone injection on Thursday after tweaking his groin in Wednesday night's win over the division-rival San Diego Padres. He said he's been dealing with a groin injury in his leg the last few weeks. "We figure that with the playoff schedule, you never play more than three days in a row," Rojas said. "Hopefully my ability to stay on top of it, plus the injection helps." The Dodgers are playing it safe with their primary shortstop ahead of the postseason in October. With the defensive whiz out for the next couple of games, expect Tommy Edman to move to the 6 with Andy Pages perhaps making some appearances in center field for the Blue.Source: SB Nation - Eric Stephen
1 week agoThe New York Yankees placed right-hander Mark Leiter Jr. on the paternity list on Thursday and recalled right-hander Scott Effross from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in a corresponding move before their contest at Yankee Stadium against the division-rival Baltimore Orioles. Leiter will most likely be away from the Yankees for the next three games, meaning he'll likely be back for the regular-series finale on Sunday at home in the Bronx against the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates. The 33-year-old veteran began the year with the Chicago Cubs before joining the Yankees at the trade deadline in late July. In 20 relief appearances out of the Yankees' bullpen since the trade, Leiter has gone 2-1 with a 5.23 ERA (5.34 FIP), a 1.64 WHIP, 30 strikeouts and seven walks in 20 2/3 innings, so he hasn't really been on the fantasy radar in pinstripes.Source: Yankees PR Department
1 week agoKansas City Royals first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino (thumb) took batting practice at Nationals Park on Thursday before the team's series finale against the Washington Nationals. It's another step in Pasquantino's recovery after suffering a right-thumb injury that will keep him out through the end of the regular season this Sunday. The 26-year-old left-handed slugger needed surgery to fix a fractured right thumb, but it's good to see that he's already swinging a bat over three weeks removed from going under the knife. The Royals must first clinch a wild-card spot in the American League before the Royals will begin discussing whether Pasquantino has a shot to join them if they make a deep playoff run in October. Catcher Salvador Perez has seen more time at first base for KC since Pasquantino's injury, with Freddy Fermin filling in behind the dish.Source: The Kansas City Star - Jaylon T. Thompson
1
week
agoSt.
Louis
Cardinals
outfielders
Alec
Burleson
and
Michael
Siani
are
both
out
of
the
lineup
for
Thursday's
series
finale
at
Coors
Field
against
the
Colorado
Rockies
and
left-hander
Kyle
Freeland.
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1 week agoSt. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado and infielder/outfielder Brendan Donovan will both retreat to the bench for Thursday's series finale at Coors Field against the Colorado Rockies. Jose Fermin is handling the hot corner and batting eighth, while rookie Thomas Saggese starts at second base and is hitting sixth against Rockies left-hander Kyle Freeland. Neither Fermin nor Saggese have ever faced Freeland in their careers. Donovan will get the day off after starting in each of the team's last 12 games. Fermin has done little at the plate in 63 at-bats this year, going 9-for-63 (.143) with no homers, three RBI and two stolen bases. Saggese, meanwhile, was recently called up for the first time and has gone 8-for-38 (.211) with a homer, two doubles and four RBI in his first 14 major-league games for the Red Birds.Source: MLB.com
1 week agoColorado Rockies second baseman Brendan Rodgers (hamstring) remains sidelined for Thursday's series finale against the St. Louis Cardinals at Coors Field. Rodgers will be missing his third straight game this week due to tightness in his left hamstring. The 28-year-old should be considered day-to-day heading into the final series of the regular season, which begins on Friday at Coors Field against the division-rival Los Angeles Dodgers. With Rodgers out again, rookie Aaron Schunk is making the start at second base and will hit in the nine-hole against Cardinals right-hander Kyle Gibson. Schunk has never faced Gibson in his career and is a DFS option to avoid at the bottom of the Rockies' batting order. The 27-year-old is in his first year in the majors in 2024 and has hit .244 (20-for-82) with two homers, three doubles, six RBI and 26 strikeouts in 86 trips to the plate.Source: MLB.com