MLB Player News

The hope for the Royals, and fantasy managers, is that the reset enables Estévez to find the fastball velocity that’s been missing since the outset of spring training. The 33-year-old stopper, who recorded a career-high 42 saves last year, was torched for six runs while recording just one out in an ugly blown save last Saturday against the Braves. He was also struck by a comebacker during that disastrous outing, which led to Lucas Erceg handling closing duties in Sunday’s series finale. It remains unclear whether Estévez will reclaim the closing role once he’s ready to rejoin Kansas City’s high-leverage mix, which provides Erceg with an extended opportunity to establish himself as the club’s primary ninth-inning option.

Brewers skipper Pat Murphy told reporters Yelich, who returned from the injured list during Tuesday’s series opener, is dealing with a little back soreness and they didn’t want to take any chances given his injury history. It sounds like a precautionary move to give him some extra time off and prevent the issue from growing into a larger concern. Fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day heading into Thursday’s series finale.

As expected, Fairbanks returns to anchor Miami’s bullpen ahead of Wednesday’s game against the Twins following a minimum stay on the injured list due to nerve irritation in his pitching hand. The 32-year-old closer converted five of six save opportunities and allowed 10 runs over nine innings prior to hitting the shelf on April 28. He should be rostered in all fantasy formats, despite holding a cringe-inducing 10.00 ERA this season.

It’s an absolute bombshell development after Snelling made his highly-anticipated major-league debut last Friday against the Nationals, allowing three runs over five innings. The 22-year-old top pitching prospect was slated to start Thursday’s series finale against the Twins. There’s no word yet regarding how much time the 22-year-old top prospect will miss, but elbow injuries tend to lead to significant absences, especially when UCL damage is involved. There should be some clarity on his status at some point in the coming days. Marlins manager Clayton McCullough told reporters it’ll be veteran lefty Braxton Garrett, who has been outstanding at Triple-A Jacksonville this season, coming up to fill Snelling’s rotation spot.

Caissie will patrol right field and bat eighth in his return to Miami’s lineup following a brief two-game absence due to left triceps discomfort. The 23-year-old former top prospect is hitting just .198/.254/.317 with two homers, 17 RBI and two steals in 114 plate appearances over 35 games in his Marlins debut.

Weiss noted that Acuña is making progress, and was able to run at roughly 50 percent prior to Wednesday’s game, but he won’t return during the club’s current homestand, which wraps up this weekend. The 28-year-old fantasy superstar is making steady progress towards returning from a hamstring strain, but it sounds like he won’t make it back until some point next week.

It’s hardly set in stone, but Eovaldi expressed confidence to reporters afterwards that he’ll be ready to take the ball this weekend against the Astros, most likely during Sunday’s series finale. It’s an extremely encouraging sign that he was able to resume throwing without any issues after being scratched from Monday’s start against the Diamondbacks with left side discomfort. There should be a more definitive update on his status point prior to the weekend.

Simpson returns to left field and hitting leadoff as Tampa Bay’s table-setter after missing one game with a left leg cramp. The 25-year-old speedster’s batting average and stolen base combo has made him one of the most impactful outfielders in the fantasy landscape this season as he’s hitting .314/.339/.359 with 22 runs scored, zero homers, 12 RBI and 14 steals through 40 games.

It doesn’t technically qualify as a setback, but Stanton won’t be returning to New York’s lineup as quickly as initially envisioned. The 36-year-old designated hitter remains in a holding pattern until his calf strain shows enough healing that he’s cleared to resume running. His ongoing absence means strikeout-prone prospect Spencer Jones will get a longer opportunity to show something at the highest level than originally thought.

Waldrep continues working his way back from surgery to remove loose bodies from his elbow back in February. The 24-year-old former top prospect will progress to facing hitters in live batting practice before he’s cleared to head out on a minor league rehab assignment. It seems likely he’ll be on the shelf until around midseason before he’s ready to rejoin Atlanta’s rotation.

Horwitz has been tearing the cover off the ball recently, hitting .364 (8-for-22) with six RBI and more walks (five) than strikeouts (three) over his last seven games. The 28-year-old lacks the requisite power production to be a viable mixed-league fantasy starter, but he’s doing enough from a batting average standpoint to be a corner infield option in deeper leagues. It’ll be Jared Triolo at the cold corner on Wednesday night in his place.