Patrick Sandoval to start Friday vs. Blue Jays

Matz provides the division-leading Rays with a multi-inning relief option heading into the home stretch after opening the season in the club’s rotation. The 35-year-old wound up being moved to the bullpen in early June following the emergence of both Griffin Jax and Ian Seymour as superior alternatives before hitting the shelf with a sprained ankle a couple weeks later. He can be safely ignored for fantasy purposes in a mop-up role.

Roycroft heads back to the minors with veteran southpaw Steven Matz returning from the injured list. The 29-year-old has allowed 17 runs over 18 1/3 innings between the Rays and Cardinals this season.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan was the first to report the deal. Keuchel hasn’t thrown a pitch in the big leagues since the 2024 campaign. The Athletics are going to give the 38-year-old veteran a late-season opportunity at Triple-A Las Vegas. He won the AL Cy Young Award with the Astros back in 2015 and has made 267 starts in the majors dating back to 2012. He’s a notable addition for the Athletics from a name recognition standpoint, but it would be extremely surprising if he provided any semblance of fantasy value over the final two months.

Haase passed through waivers unclaimed after being designated for assignment last week. The 33-year-old backup catcher hit .162 (12-for-74) across 33 games for San Francisco this season. His experience should enable him to catch on somewhere in the next few weeks, but he’ll likely have to settle for a minor league pact.

Leonard heads out west after slashing .287/.371/.502 with 12 homers and eight steals in 288 plate appearances for Triple-A Nashville in Milwaukee’s system earlier this season. The 25-year-old infielder has yet to reach the majors despite being a noteworthy prospect for the Dodgers and Tigers within the last half-decade. He could get a look with the Giants following their impending fire sale at the upcoming trade deadline.

Thaiss was a first-round pick of the division-rival Angels back in 2016 and never really went on to be a highly impactful contributor at the highest level. The 31-year-old has bounced around between several organizations over the last two years, including a stop with the Red Sox most recently where he hit .201 with three homers in 170 plate appearances at Triple-A Worcester. He’s merely emergency organizational depth at this stage of his career, but he still qualifies as an interesting addition given his former prospect status.

No surprise with rookie southpaw Mitch Bratt toeing the rubber for Arizona to open the contest. It’ll be Andrés Chaparro getting the nod at the cold corner. García has been the subject of trade rumors recently and it wouldn’t be shocking to see him on the move at the trade deadline since he’s set to reach free agency at the conclusion of next season. It also helps his trade value that he’s launched a career-high 21 homers through 96 games so far.

Misner bolsters Philadelphia’s outfield depth at Triple-A Lehigh Valley heading into the home stretch after being jettisoned by the Royals earlier this week. The 28-year-old hit .220 (9-for-41) with three steals in 18 games for Kansas City this season. He got into a career-high 71 contests as a platoon outfielder with the Rays last year.

Berroa loses his spot on Philadelphia’s 40-man roster following the trade acquisition of Kameron Misner from the Royals. The 27-year-old outfielder went 1-for-7 at the dish during six games for the Phillies earlier this season.

Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo is switching things up against lefty Foster Griffin, moving Carroll into the leadoff spot after he had spent most of the season batting third. Ketel Marte drops to the cleanup spot as a result. It’s unclear whether the lineup tweak is a one-game wrinkle or the start of a larger trend against lefties. The 25-year-old franchise cornerstone has been shockingly-good against southpaws this season, hitting .353 (41-for-116) with four homers.