MLB Player News

Suzuki added that Kikuchi has opted for the rest and rehabilitation route instead of undergoing shoulder surgery, which likely would’ve been season-ending. The 34-year-old southpaw, who hit the injured list with shoulder inflammation over the weekend, will need to build up his stamina and workload from the ground floor once he’s cleared to resume throwing in a couple weeks. It’s relatively safe to assume he won’t return until sometime around the All-Star break in July. It’ll be Sam Aldegheri getting the first opportunity to replace Kikuchi in Los Angeles’ rotation when he takes the ball against the White Sox on Tuesday night.

Pham fortifies Baltimore’s outfield depth at Triple-A Norfolk after going 0-for-13 in nine games for the Mets last month. The 38-year-old veteran hit .245/.330/.370 with 10 homers and five steals in 120 games for the Pirates last year. He can be safely ignored for fantasy purposes at this advanced stage of his career.

Larnach has missed three straight games with the lingering issue. Twins manager Derek Shelton told reporters Larnach has resumed baseball activities and should be available this weekend. It sounds like he’s trending in the right direction and fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day.

Waldschmidt capped off Arizona’s six-run explosion in the first inning with a two-run, opposite-field single with the bases loaded. He proceeded to swipe second base moments later to record his first career steal, but was left stranded in scoring position. The 23-year-old top prospect’s immediate fantasy appeal is capped by his perch at the bottom of Arizona’s lineup, but he’s off to a decent start overall, hitting .273 (6-for-22) with five RBI and one steal through seven games since being called up from Triple-A Reno last week.

Caglianone reached base in two of his three plate appearances before being lifted for a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning when Kansas City turned to Lane Thomas to face Guardians lefty reliever Daniel Lynch IV. The 23-year-old was a trendy preseason breakout pick and simply hasn’t produced a ton of over-the-fence pop this season, mustering only four homers through 41 games. The immense talent means holding on and waiting is probably the correct move in deeper fantasy formats, but there’s an argument for moving on from Caglianone in shallow mixers.

Chisholm played a key role in New York’s Subway Series-opening win by lining a two-run single to right field in the third inning as part of a three-hit performance that matched a season high. The 28-year-old infielder also picked up his 12th stolen base of the year in this one. It’s nice to see some consistent contact after a couple weeks where he struck out more than 30 percent of the time to open the year.

Baldwin clobbered a majestic 407-foot blast to straightaway center field off Red Sox lefty Connelly Early in the opening frame. The 25-year-old slugging backstop has homered three times in his last five games and is up to 12 round-trippers through 45 games after last year’s 19-homer rookie campaign. He’s been a certifiable middle-of-the-order force for Atlanta this season and a key reason why they hold the best record in baseball after seven weeks. He’s been a first-round fantasy asset this season, firmly cementing himself as the top young catcher in the league.

At some point, the Twins are going to have to give intriguing infield prospect Kaelen Culpepper, who is tearing the cover off the ball at Triple-A St. Paul recently, a look at the highest level. The obvious move would be to jettison Royce Lewis from third base, especially since he’s hitting .165 overall this season. However, it’s worth noting that Keaschall is hitting just .224/.306/.292 with one homer and 10 steals through 44 games. The 23-year-old former top prospect hit at every rung of the minor-league ladder and looked impressive during last year’s injury-shortened rookie campaign.

Marsee’s abysmal start to the year caused some fantasy managers to jump ship, but he’s shown some signs of life at the dish recently with a pair of homers and three steals in his last six games. The 24-year-old speedster has 13 thefts through 44 games and should finish among the National League’s leaders this year.

Mullins put together his strongest all-around performance of an otherwise lackluster Rays debut, notching a season-high four hits, including his third round-tripper of the season. The 31-year-old center fielder also picked up his ninth stolen base of the season in this one. He’s been a complete non-factor fantasy-wise this year, but he’s putting up some impressive numbers recently, hitting .306 (11-for-36) with one homer and three steals in 11 games since the start of May.

Bleday’s latest multi-hit performance pushes his triple-slash line to a surreal .345/.465/.776 with six homers, 19 RBI and one steal in 17 games since coming up from Triple-A Louisville last month. The 28-year-old has done a remarkable job making hard contact at much more frequent rates than previously in his career with his average exit velocity and hard-hit rate skyrocketing to near-elite levels. He’s also pulling the ball in the air 39.5 percent of the time this season, per Statcast, which has enabled him to hit for much more power. He’s also chasing out of the zone less frequently and striking out less than ever before. Simply put, there’s a lot to like here. He was probably scooped up off waivers a couple weeks ago, but Bleday should be rostered in all fantasy leagues.