1 day 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.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com - Mark Bowman
1
day
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
to
read more...
1 day 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.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
1 day 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.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: SB Nation - Eric Stephen
1 day 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.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Yankees PR Department
1 day 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.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: The Kansas City Star - Jaylon T. Thompson
1
day
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.
read more...
1 day 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.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
1 day 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.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
1 day agoAfter returning to the lineup on Tuesday after missing the weekend series against the division-rival Los Angeles Dodgers due to a knee issue, Colorado Rockies outfielder
Brenton Doyle will get a day to rest for Thursday's series finale at Coors Field versus the St. Louis Cardinals.
Sam Hilliard is getting the starting nod in center field and is batting sixth for the Rockies against Cardinals right-hander
Kyle Gibson. The 26-year-old Doyle has been the most relevant fantasy player in the thin air of Colorado this year with a .262/.318/.450 slash line, .768 OPS, 23 home runs, 72 RBI, 29 stolen bases and 82 runs scored in 538 total at-bats. He should be back in there on Friday for the series opener versus the Dodgers at Coors Field. Hilliard has never faced Gibson in his career and enters the contest with nine long balls, 26 RBI and five stolen bases in his 130 at-bats in 2024.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
1
day
agoChicago
White
Sox
outfielders
Gavin
Sheets
and
Andrew
Benintendi,
infielder
Nicky
Lopez
and
catcher
Korey
Lee
are
all
sitting
for
Thursday's
series
finale
at
Guaranteed
Rate
Field
versus
read more...
1 day agoLos Angeles Angels first baseman
Nolan Schanuel (leg) and outfielder
Jordyn Adams (knee) are both out of the lineup on Thursday for the series finale against the Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field. Schanuel fouled a ball of his right lower leg in Wednesday's loss to the White Sox and will miss at least one day of action as a result. The 22-year-old is considered day-to-day for now and will be hoping to play at some point in the final weekend series of the year against the division-rival Texas Rangers. Adams, meanwhile, has been out for a whole week with soreness in his right knee. At this point with just three games remaining, we may not see the 24-year-old again in 2024.
Brandon Drury is at first base and batting cleanup, while Gustavo Camero is in right field and is batting seventh for the Halos on Thursday against White Sox right-hander
Chris Flexen.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
1 day agoDetroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said on Thursday that it's "unlikely" that left-hander
Tarik Skubal would pitch in the season finale on Sunday versus the division-rival Chicago White Sox if the Tigers have already clinched a postseason berth but are still playing for seeding. Skubal is the front-runner for the Cy Young award in the American League this year, but the Tigers would rather save him for the first game of the wild-card series next week if they punch their ticket to the playoffs before Skubal's next turn in the rotation on Sunday. The 27-year-old southpaw has been an absolute beast on the mound this year for Detroit, leading the league in wins (18), win percentage (.818), ERA (2.39), strikeouts (228), ERA+ (170) and FIP (2.49) in 192 innings over 31 starts. Whichever team lines up to face the red-hot Tigers is going to find it difficult to produce offense against Skubal in Game 1 if the Tigers make the playoffs.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: The Athletic - Cody Stavenhagen
1 day agoDetroit Tigers outfielder
Kerry Carpenter will start on the bench for Thursday's series finale against the Tampa Bay Rays at Comerica Park with a left-hander on the mound.
Matt Vierling is in left field and will bat cleanup, while
Andy Ibanez draws into the lineup at third base and will hit leadoff against Rays left-hander
Tyler Alexander. In just 84 games in his third big-league season, Carpenter has 17 home runs and is only four homers shy of setting a new career-high. However, he's really struggled against southpaws in 2024 in a small sample size, going 3-for-28 (.107) with one of his 17 home runs and 10 strikeouts in 32 plate appearances. Ibanez is in a nice lineup spot for DFS but still brings minimal upside with only five home runs and two steals in 216 at-bats this year. Vierling has hit .269 against lefties but with only three of his 16 long balls.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Detroit Tigers
1
day
agoTampa
Bay
Rays
infielders
Yandy
Diaz
and
Jose
Caballero
and
outfielder
Jonny
DeLuca
are
all
out
of
the
lineup
for
Thursday's
series
finale
against
the
Detroit
Tigers
at
Comerica
Park.
Diaz
is
on
read more...
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