MLB Player News

Borucki made four scoreless relief appearances for the Blue Jays after latching on with the club in late August following his release from the Pirates. The 31-year-old southpaw stuck around through the conclusion of the club’s World Series run and will now test the open market. He should be able to latch on somewhere as organizational left-handed depth.

Helsley will have to check a couple additional boxes, including progressing to throwing bullpen sessions and facing hitters in live batting practice, before he’s cleared to head out on a minor league rehab assignment. That ramp-up process figures to take a couple weeks, which pushes his likely return back into early-to-mid June. The hard-throwing 31-year-old stopper has been working his way back from elbow inflammation since late April. It’ll be Rico Garcia handling the closing duties for the Orioles for at least another couple weeks.

According to The Athletic’s Zack Meisel, Kwan has been dropped from Cleveland’s leadoff spot for the first time since June 18, 2022. The 28-year-old outfielder has been scuffling this season as a massive decline in average exit velocity has led to a disastrous .201/.308/.258 slash line with one homer and two steals in 187 plate appearances through 42 games. He went 0-for-4 during Friday’s series opener. It’ll be Daniel Schneemann taking over atop manager Stephen Vogt’s lineup card. The hope for fantasy managers is that the move sparks something and Kwan is able to revert to form. His lengthy track record suggests that he’ll turn things around, but the underlying batted ball metrics are alarming so far.

Rodríguez receives another opportunity in the big leagues with Yankees ace Max Fried landing on the injured list with a bone bruise in his elbow. The 22-year-old top pitching prospect allowed five runs with a 5/8 K/BB ratio across 8 2/3 innings during a pair of starts in his first taste of the majors a couple weeks ago. He’s talented enough to be fantasy-relevant, but he’s likely to wind up back in the minors once Gerrit Cole (elbow) is ready to make his season debut in late May or early June.

The move is now official. The Yankees haven’t provided a definitive return timeline but fantasy managers should anticipate Fried missing at least a couple weeks. The encouraging news is that an MRI and CT scan didn’t reveal any structural damage in his elbow. The 32-year-old fantasy ace hits the shelf after exiting Wednesday’s start against the Orioles after just 61 pitches. He’s posted a strong 3.21 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 50/19 K/BB ratio across 61 2/3 innings this season. It’ll be rookie Elmer Rodríguez taking his spot in New York’s rotation until Gerrit Cole (elbow) is ready to make his season debut in late May or early June.

Williams heads to West Sacramento as a stopgap option for the Athletics after losing Jacob Wilson to a shoulder injury earlier this week. He’ll most likely function in a bench role behind Darell Hernaiz. The 27-year-old defensive specialist hit .202/.257/.271 with zero homers and one steal in 208 plate appearances over 83 games for the Pirates from 2023-2024. He’s a solid depth addition for the Athletics, but Williams can be safely ignored in all fantasy formats.

Robinson was an 11th-round pick in the 2024 MLB Draft and has pitched just 51 innings above High-A over the last two years. The 22-year-old righty holds a pedestrian 3.62 ERA and 19/13 K/BB ratio across 27 1/3 innings for High-A Midland this season. He’s merely organizational fodder for Pittsburgh.

Stefanic loses his spot on the Athletics’ roster with Alika Williams coming over from the Pirates in a trade. The 30-year-old went 2-for-5 in a pair of games after being called up from Triple-A Las Vegas earlier this week following Jacob Wilson’s shoulder injury.

No surprise here after Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy revealed that Story has been playing through a lingering groin issue pretty much all season. The 33-year-old shortstop has struggled to an abysmal .206/.244/.303 triple-slash line with three homers and four steals through 41 games. It’ll be Nick Sogard coming up from Triple-A Worcester to fill his roster spot. Putting former top prospect Marcelo Mayer at shortstop would make sense, but it was Andruw Monasterio at shortstop during Friday’s series opener in Atlanta.

Wetherholt receives his second day off this season with Royals lefty Noah Cameron on the mound during Saturday afternoon’s matchup after going 0-for-5 during Friday’s extra-inning marathon. The 23-year-old rookie sensation has been outstanding in his Cardinals debut, hitting .237/.358/.408 with 33 runs scored, eight homers, 22 RBI and five steals across 204 plate appearances in 44 games. It’ll be Thomas Saggese at second base in his place on Saturday afternoon.

Thompson will make his first start after coming off the bench during Friday’s series opener. The 24-year-old outfielder earned his first shot with the Rockies after hitting .344/.491/.496 with four homers and eight steals in 161 plate appearances over 36 games at Triple-A this season. He’s an interesting prospect but Colorado has a ton of corner outfielder options that he could be limited to a short-side platoon role initially, which limits his fantasy appeal to NL-only formats.