MLB Player News

Vilade’s roster spot might have been in jeopardy earlier this season if not for the Rays’ injuries, but he’s now up to .299/.361/.477 with a rather incredible 25 RBI while starting mostly against lefties. He’s fourth on the Rays in RBI and 11th with his 123 plate appearances.

Yesavage, who threw a 34-pitch bullpen session in Florida on Monday, figures to make it back to Toronto’s pitching equation before the regular season concludes, but he’s at least a few steps away based on his throwing progression. The 23-year-old starter underwent left knee meniscus surgery back in early August. It sounds like he’s going to need at least one minor league rehab start next week before he’s an option for the Blue Jays again.

The forgotten man in Toronto, Santander has played just 54 games over the last two seasons combined due to shoulder issues. The 31-year-old slugger is unlikely to make much of a fantasy impact over the final few weeks of the season considering how much time he’s missed. He’ll need at least a handful of rehab games before he’s ready to return to the majors.

Start spreading the news. Judge is back. The 34-year-old generational talent returns for Tuesday’s series opener against the Rockies in New York following a three-month absence recovering from a rib fracture. His return should obviously have a massive impact for the Yankees, and fantasy managers as well, over the final three weeks of the regular season.

Hampton was one of New York’s brightest pitching prospect before an avalanche of elbow injuries derailed his trajectory. The 25-year-old has struggled to a disastrous 9.59 ERA across 11 starts for Double-A Somerset this season. Hampton is young enough that there could be another organization out there willing to roll the dice on him as a reclamation project.

Merrill supplied a pair of key run-scoring hits for San Diego with two outs in the first and third innings, respectively, which made the difference in a low-scoring affair at Petco Park. The 23-year-old has put together a nice stretch at the plate recently, hitting .263 (15-for-57) with three homers, nine RBI and one steal over his last 15 games. He’s on pace to establish career-high marks in both the home run and stolen base departments after injuries limited him to just 115 games last year following his impressive rookie campaign.

Crews was responsible for nearly half of Washington’s five hits during a low-scoring series opener out in San Diego. The 24-year-old former top prospect took lefty reliever Kyle Hart deep in the sixth inning for his 11th big fly of the season. He also singled against Padres elite closer Mason Miller to put the potential game-tying run on-base in the final frame. He hasn’t offered much from a batting average standpoint, but Crews continues to show a little bit of the power/speed combo skillset that made him such a coveted fantasy prospect just a few years ago.

It’s not hyperbolic to suggest that Tatis has been one of the more impactful hitters in the fantasy landscape during the second half, batting .296 (55-for-186) with 15 home runs and nine steals in 47 games since the All-Star break. The dynamic 27-year-old outfielder has already notched his fourth 20-homer, 20-steal campaign in the last five seasons and will establish a new career-high mark in the stolen base department on his next theft.

Miller came on to preserve a one-run lead in the final frame and managed to work around a one-out single from Dylan Crews by striking out CJ Abrams before getting Brady House to ground out to end it. He’s converted 34 of 36 save opportunities and has 113 strikeouts across 61 1/3 innings. He’s the best closer in the fantasy landscape and it might be a while before anyone else even enters the conversation.

Irvin gave up eight hits, including a pair of run-scoring singles by Jackson Merrill, to wind up on the hook for his ninth loss of the year. He struck out three and only issued two walks. The 29-year-old is not a recommended fantasy option when he takes the ball against the Angels to wrap up a two-start week on Sunday.

Pivetta recorded two strikeouts and allowed just two baserunners, requiring an economical 63 pitches (39) strikes to cruise through five frames in his first start back in the majors since April 12. He gave up some loud contact, including six batted balls with exit velocities over 99 mph, but they didn’t come back to burn him. It was completely justifiable to question whether the 33-year-old veteran starter would make any sort of fantasy impact down the home stretch after such a lengthy layoff, but he seems to have answered those concerns with a strong effort right out of the gate. He’s in line for an extremely favorable matchup against the rebuilding Giants to wrap up a two-start week on Sunday.