MLB Player News

Stewart’s calling card is his power. There’s plus power in his right-handed bat; the type you see in hitters who hit 30-plus homers. While the power is legit, the swing suggests hitting for average might be tough, and he’s a below-average defender with well below-average speed. He could be a middle-of-the-order hitter if the power maxes out, but there’s a lot of possible outcomes with this kind of profile.

López is eligible to return on Thursday when the Twins face off against the White Sox, which would be Chris Paddack’s spot in the rotation. Nothing official from Minnesota yet, but all signs point to López returning later this week, which is a much-needed boost for fantasy managers.

Not good. There’s always a possibility Puk checks out completely fine, but it’s usually a major warning sign when a pitcher is seeking multiple opinions. We’re not going to speculate until there is a definitive diagnosis, but fantasy managers should prepare for the possibility of an extended absence. It’ll likely be Justin Martinez handling the closing duties for Arizona until further notice.

Simpson finds himself in the leadoff spot for the second time in three starts since being called up last week from Triple-A Durham. The 24-year-old speedster has gone 2-for-8 with a double, one RBI and one steal in two games. He figures to continue leading off against right-handed pitchers and should be rostered in all fantasy formats thanks to his game-changing stolen base potential.

As expected, Kurtz is not in Tuesday’s lineup. He’s already joined the Athletics at Sutter Health Park for Tuesday’s series opener against the Rangers, but won’t be officially promoted until Wednesday’s contest since veteran lefty Patrick Corbin is on the mound for Texas. Athletics general manager David Forst told reporters that Tyler Soderstrom will see time in left field and at DH when Kurtz is at first base. The 22-year-old top prospect projects as an immediate four-category impact fantasy contributor and should be rostered in all formats.

This qualifies as a significant shakeup. Semien, who is hitting .141 (11-for-78) with two extra-base hits through 21 games this season, is batting lower than third for the first time since signing with the Rangers back in 2022. Meanwhile, Corey Seager isn’t hitting second for the first time in Bruce Bochy’s tenure at the helm. He’s been moved to the third spot. Texas has scored the fewest runs in baseball to this point in the year so they’re going to try a different approach to see if it helps wake up their talented core. It’ll be Josh Smith leading off and Wyatt Langford batting second on Tuesday night at hitter-friendly Sutter Health Park in Sacramento.

Zach Dezenzo jammed his right thumb on a slide during Monday’s series opener against the Blue Jays when he finished 2-for-3 with an RBI. It’ll be veteran Christian Walker back at first base on Tuesday night. Fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day for now. He’s slated to undergo imaging that will determine the severity of the issue.

Snell should progress to facing hitters either later this week or early next week. The 32-year-old southpaw figures to be ready to rejoin Los Angeles’ rotation at some point in early May.

WooSox manager Chad Tracy told reporters Anthony, who hasn’t played the field since April 10, will return to the outfield on Wednesday. He also emphatically put to bed the idea of Anthony potentially moving to first base. There’s been rumblings on social media and local talk radio about the idea of moving Anthony to first base, but the Red Sox clearly have no plans to do that. The 20-year-old prodigy has put up stratospheric exit velocities and a surreal 31.9 percent barrel rate this season at the Triple-A level. His time is coming. He should arrive at Fenway Park in the coming weeks.

It qualifies as a surprise to see Rengifo absent from the lineup with lefty Bailey Falter toeing the rubber for Pittsburgh. It’s possible he’s dealing with some sort of physical issue, but that remains to be seen. It’ll be veteran Kevin Newman at the hot corner on Tuesday night against his former team.

It appears to be a routine off day for Santander, who has split time between DH and the corner outfield spots in his Blue Jays debut. He’s off to a slow start at the plate this season, hitting .196 (18-for-92) with two homers and only eight RBI through 23 games.