MLB Player News

The second spot in the Cincinnati lineup just seems cursed this season; all five Reds to make more than a few starts there have considerably worse numbers batting second than they do hitting elsewhere (the other four being Matt McLain, Gavin Lux, Spencer Steer and Santiago Espinal). Marte is hitting .233 with 33 strikeouts in 24 games batting second and .286 with 44 strikeouts in his remaining 61 games. For the season, Reds No. 2 hitters have a .612 OPS, compared to .729 for their No. 9 hitters.

It’ll be Crochet’s first time facing hitters since landing on the injured list with a shoulder issue back on April 29. The 26-year-old fantasy ace will need at least one minor league rehab outing before he’s ready to return to Boston’s rotation at some point in early June.

It’s finally happening, weather permitting. Bazzana moves atop Cleveland’s lineup after hitting .273/.391/.364 with two homers, nine RBI and seven steals in 22 games since arriving in the majors last month. The 23-year-old former second-overall pick represents Cleveland’s best option as a top-of-the-order table-setter moving forward with Steven Kwan struggling at the outset of the year.

Kelenic is back in right field and hitting seventh after being scratched from Friday’s lineup with a lower back contusion. The 26-year-old former top prospect is hitting a pedestrian .224/.309/.306 with one homer and four RBI in 55 plate appearances over 17 games for the White Sox this season.

Loperfido is finally ready to jump back into game action for the first time since hitting the shelf back with a right quad strain back in mid-April. The 27-year-old will need a couple games to get back up to speed before he’s an option for Houston’s outfield mix again.

Scherzer continues building up his pitch count and stamina in advance of a minor league rehab assignment. He’ll either need another bullpen session or progress to facing hitters next week. The 41-year-old veteran is working his way back from forearm and ankle issues that put him on the injured list back in late April.

It’s nice to see Eldridge finally getting consistent opportunities for San Francisco, but he’s off to a brutal .139 (5-for-36) start with just one homer and two RBI across 11 games since returning to the big leagues earlier this month. The 21-year-old top prospect isn’t striking out a ton, which is a positive sign, but he’s simply not making enough hard contact to matter for fantasy purposes right now. His future remains extremely bright, but it could take him a while to figure things out in the majors.

Emerson is hitting .143 (2-for-14) with one homer and three RBI across five games since being promoted to the big leagues last weekend. The 20-year-old top prospect figures to split time between shortstop and the hot corner along with veteran J.P. Crawford for the rest of the season. He’s one of the most exciting young middle infielders in the game, but he’s probably not ready at this stage of his development to be an impactful fantasy contributor. With that caveat out of the way, he’s the type of elite talent that could make a leap rather quickly once he finds his footing at the highest level.

The clubs ultimately decided there wasn’t enough of a window in the forecast at Camden Yards that it made sense to try to start this contest. It’ll be made up as a split doubleheader on Sunday instead. Fantasy managers should anticipate Saturday’s original starters — Framber Valdez and Brandon Young — taking the ball at some point during the twin bill.

Leasure returns to Chicago’s relief corps with Jordan Hicks landing on the shelf with a lat strain. The 27-year-old has struggled to an underwhelming 6.06 ERA across 16 1/3 innings at the highest level this season. He’ll operate in low-leverage spots for the White Sox until he turns things around.

Hicks has been marginally better this season, posting a 5.60 ERA across 17 2/3 innings after logging an abysmal 6.95 ERA over 67 1/3 innings between the Red Sox and Giants last year.