MLB Player News

The veteran Haase is competing with Rule 5 pick Daniel Susac and fellow prospect Jesus Rodriguez for the backup catching gig in San Francisco. As such, the A’s probably didn’t mind giving up his grand slam today; if Haase beats out Susac, it becomes a lot more likely that the A’s will be able to reclaim their former first-round pick.

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.

It’s the highest Ewing has hit for New York since being called up back on May 12. The 21-year-old speedster leapfrogs veteran second baseman Marcus Semien after hitting .281/.425/.438 with one homer and two steals in 11 games to open his career.

Pintaro, who made one relief appearance for the Mets last year, earns another look after posting a solid 2.81 ERA and 32/12 K/BB ratio across 25 2/3 innings for Triple-A Syracuse this season. He’ll operate in low-leverage spots for the Mets.

All signs point to Jonah Tong sticking around for another turn in New York’s rotation after tossing three scoreless frames in his season debut on Friday night. Thornton heads back to the minors after allowing four runs over 4 1/3 innings against the Nationals in his big-league debut earlier this week. The unheralded 24-year-old control artist figures to get another chance when injuries or ineffectiveness create an opportunity later this season.

Okamoto won’t have to face Pirates ace Paul Skenes as he gets a breather following five consecutive starts at the hot corner. It’ll be Ernie Clement taking over with Lenyn Sosa at second base. The 29-year-old could use a break since he’s been mired in a slump for a couple weeks, hitting .161 (9-for-56) with one homer and 24 strikeouts over his last 15 games.

It continues to be a completely bizarre season for Yoshida as he’s basically been eclipsed by unheralded reserve Mickey Gasper and utilityman Andruw Monasterio for at-bats against right-handed pitching since Roman Anthony hit the injured list earlier this month. He can be safely ignored in all fantasy formats until that equation changes.

Thomas remains on the bench for the third consecutive game due to an ongoing minor hamstring issue. The 30-year-old came off the bench during Wednesday’s series finale against the Red Sox, so it appears he’s healthy enough to play, if needed. The Royals are probably going to stay away from him as much as possible this weekend to give him extra time off to rest and recover.