MLB Player News

The former starter had a solid year out of the bullpen in Kansas City, pitching to a 3.06 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, and 45/25 K/BB ratio in 67 2/3 innings. The command will need to get better if Lynch is going to repeat that in 2026, but there is some upside with the 29-year-old in the bullpen.

Smith is finally back from his neck injury after going 4-for-14 with two doubles and a homer in five minor league games. The Dodgers will probably use him fairly carefully this month, but it should be safe to get him back into fantasy lineups.

Rushing’s sudden return after a month-long absence due to a UCL tear is quite a surprise. He didn’t play in any rehab games, and since his elbow remains an issue, it’s unclear if he’ll be doing any catching this month. One imagines he’ll primary be a left-handed pinch-hitter for now.

Wrobleski, an All-Star starter this year, is expected to spend the rest of the season in the pen after missing the last two weeks with forearm inflammation. He allowed one run in 1 1/3 innings in his only rehab appearance for Triple-A Oklahoma City.

It looks like Tommy Edman is going to see more time in center field with Alek Thomas being demoted, so Freeland could play a fair amount of second base. He’s hit .231/.309/.313 in 223 plate appearances for the Dodgers this season. He wasn’t great in Triple-A of late, either, batting .248/.350/.347 for Oklahoma City in August.

Thomas had been the Dodgers’ center fielder against righties since Andy Pages went down, but it seems the team will go with Tommy Edman and Kiké Hernádez out there now. Thomas went 4-for-19 with three RBI in 10 days with the club.

Rortvedt, who was picked up from the Mets at the trade deadline, went 5-for-27 while helping to fill in for Will Smith and Dalton Rushing last month.

Suarez is at least a couple weeks away from returning to Atlanta’s relief mix. He’s been on the injured list with a forearm strain since late June. The hope is that he’ll be ready for the postseason.

Greene is back in left field and hitting cleanup following a three-week absence due to a hamstring strain. The timing was extremely unfortunate for Detroit since they went into a tailspin without their primary middle-of-the-order threat for a couple weeks. His return is a nice bonus for fantasy managers heading into the playoffs, especially since he gets to fae Minnesota and Cleveland right out of the gate.

De León was one of the better starting pitching prospects in Baltimore’s system before making the transition to relief a couple weeks ago to be utilized as a weapon out of the bullpen. The 23-year-old has the stuff to be an impactful contributor for the Orioles, but he’s not going to generate enough volume to matter for fantasy purposes over the final month of the season. Still, he’s an interesting arm that fantasy managers need to know moving forward.

No surprise here after Suárez re-signed with the club last week. The well-traveled 36-year-old has posted a respectable 3.93 ERA across 55 innings of work for the Orioles this season.