Cole Carrigg on the bench Monday vs. Nationals

Ohtani continues due deal with soreness in his biceps and his knee, and while it’s not enough to shut him down for the season, it sounds like the Dodgers are going to more careful with him and give him plenty of rest days down the stretch to ensure that he’s ready to go for the postseason. Alex Call will function as the Dodgers’ designated hitter on Thursday and will bat eighth against Quinn Mathews and the Cardinals.

It appears to be just a routine night off for the Rays’ shortstop. Jorge Mateo is set to start in his place and could wind up running wild against Rangers’ right-hander Cal Quantrill given his struggles to hold baserunners.

He’ll oppose Tigers’ right-hander Keider Montero in that one. That leaves Foster Griffin to take on Andrew Sears in the nightcap in Cleveland on Friday. Allen has pitched decently in his limited action with the big league club this season, posting a 3.77 ERA, 1.47 WHIP and a 15/4 K/BB ratio over 14 1/3 innings in six appearances (one start). He’s not a recommended streaming option for fantasy purposes.

Altuve got the Astros on the board first in this one, crushing an 0-1 fastball from Luis Castillo for a 353-foot (93.9-mph EV) two-run shot into the Crawford boxes in left field in the opening frame. That would be his only hit in four at-bats on the day which included a pair of strikeouts. The 36-year-old infielder is slashing a middling .244/.309/.397 with 15 homers, 43 RBI and just four stolen bases (in seven attempts) on the season.

The 35-year-old slugger capped off the scoring in the ballgame with an RBI single off of Luis Castillo in the third inning that increased the Astros’ lead to 6-2. With his two-hit attack, Walker is now slashing .228/.302/.426 to go along with 24 homers and 77 RBI on the year.

Varsho turned a 3-2 advantage into a 5-2 ballgame with his two-run three-bagger off of Luis Castillo in the third inning. He then scored on an RBI single off the bat of Christian Walker. It has been a rough go for Varsho at the dish since joining the Astros, slashing a meager .180/.248/.320 with three homers, 12 RBI and a 24/9 K/BB ratio over his first 109 plate appearances.

Brown racked up seven strikeouts on the afternoon while allowing two free passes. All of the damage done against him came in the second inning as the White Sox put together four singles to scratch out two runs. The 28-year-old hurler generated 14 swings and misses on 101 pitches on the day, posting a strong CSW of 36 percent. Now 5-3 on the season, he’ll carry a 3.31 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and a 93/46 K/BB ratio (87 innings) into Wednesday’s battle against the Phillies in Philadelphia.

Vargas singled off of Hunter Brown with two outs in the opening inning and swiped second base to get himself in scoring position, but the White Sox couldn’t cash him in. He then singled to start the third inning, advanced to second on a walk and swiped third but was left stranded there. He’s having a strong all-around season for fantasy purposes, slashing .251/.363/.484 with 29 homers, 76 RBI and 15 stolen bases in 609 plate appearances.

Castillo also walked a pair of batters on the afternoon while striking out three. Jose Altuve tagged him for a two-run blast in the opening inning, then the Astros broke the game open with four more against him in the third. The 33-year-old right-hander got five whiffs on 78 offerings on the day, registering a CSW of only 22 percent. He’ll attempt to bounce back as he carries a 4-11 record, 5.57 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP into Wednesday’s matchup against the Pirates.

The 28-year-old infielder had been designated for assignment by the Red Sox on Tuesday as they faced a 40-man roster crunch. Harris has done a nice job at the Triple-A level this season, slashing a healthy 293/.405/.459 with eight homers and five stolen bases across 71 games. He’ll add extra infield depth for the Giants.