MLB Player News

Cousins entered camp with a good shot at a reserve job but batted just .147/.237/.206 with 15 strikeouts over 34 at-bats. He’ll be up at some point this season.

Freeman returns to Los Angeles’ lineup for Tuesday’s contest against the Giants after being away from the club on paternity leave for the last two games. The 36-year-old veteran fantasy stalwart has been his usual productive self, slashing .296/.360/.519 with three homers and 14 RBI through 20 games this season.

Ward’s first opportunity with the Dodgers lasted only a couple days while Freddie Freeman was away from the club on paternity leave. He went 2-for-6 with an RBI in a pair of contests. The 28-year-old has nothing left to prove at the Triple-A level, but his path to at-bats in the majors remains blocked at the moment. He would likely be the first call for Los Angeles if they needed to bring someone up this summer.

Wheeler makes his return to Philadelphia’s rotation after undergoing surgery to address thoracic outlet syndrome last August. The 35-year-old former fantasy ace’s velocity has been down consistently during a handful of recent minor league rehab outings, which makes it challenging to forecast how he’ll fare from a fantasy perspective. It’s impossible to dismiss Wheeler entirely based on his lengthy track record of success, but a wait-and-see approach seems like the best idea given his extended layoff and how he’s looked in minor league games recently.

Verlander remains without a definitive return timetable after hitting the injured list earlier this month with hip inflammation. Tigers manager A.J. Hinch told reporters last week that the 43-year-old veteran would need a minor league rehab start before rejoining Detroit’s rotation.

Hoppe will get his first taste of the majors after reeling off eight scoreless innings with a 12/3 K/BB ratio over eight appearances for Triple-A Tacoma this season. The 27-year-old came over from the Red Sox in an offseason trade. He’ll operate in middle relief out of Seattle’s bullpen for now.

Legumina has been booted from Seattle’s relief mix after posting a pedestrian 4.63 ERA and 9/3 K/BB ratio over 11 2/3 innings across eight appearances this season. The 28-year-old should attract some interest on waivers as quality middle relief depth. He’s made 73 career appearances in the majors between the Mariners and Reds since 2023.

Rodón will need a couple rehab outings to build up his pitch count and stamina, but he appears on track to make it back to New York’s rotation at some point in May. The 33-year-old underwent offseason elbow surgery after finishing last year with a strong 3.09 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 203/73 K/BB ratio over a career-high 195 1/3 innings.

Cole looked extremely sharp in his rehab debut last Friday, throwing 44 pitches over 4 1/3 innings for Double-A Somerset. It’s notable that he’ll make his second rehab outing in another lower minors ballpark without any public Statcast data. The 35-year-old’s velocity was fine in spring training, but all reports are that it was down slightly in the longer outing. It’s a variable to monitor as he continues to make his way towards rejoining New York’s rotation sometime next month.

It’s an encouraging update after Atlanta’s closer hit the injured list earlier on Tuesday with shoulder inflammation. It appears that Iglesias isn’t dealing with any structural issues that would’ve require a lengthy absence and possibly even surgery. The Braves are optimistic he’ll be cleared to resume throwing once the swelling subsides and there should be a clear return timetable once he resumes facing hitters. It’ll be hard-throwing veteran Robert Suarez handling the closing duties in his absence. He should be rostered in all fantasy formats until Iglesias returns.

Samuel Basallo heads to the bench with Rutschman back for his first game since April 10 after missing just over one week with an ankle injury. The 28-year-old backstop was hitting .294.385/.471 with three RBI in 10 games prior to hitting the shelf.