MLB Player News

After serving up six runs over four innings last Friday in relief against the Rays, Ortiz rebounded in this one by authored a brilliant performance against the division-rival Reds. He generated an eye-popping 19 swinging strikes, with seven of those coming on his slide alone, and finished with a robust 34 percent CSW. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen flashes of potential from the hard-throwing 25-year-old former top prospect, but he’s worth monitoring moving forward in the event that Pittsburgh starts to lean on him more as a traditional starter. The addition of a cutter to his arsenal this season has made him less reliant on his four-seam fastball/slider combo, especially against southpaws.

Bruján was scratched in order to get Jesús Sánchez back into Miami’s lineup at designated hitter after he got the go-ahead from the club’s training staff following a pregame check.

It’ll be veteran Adam Duvall getting a chance to face Pirates rookie sensation Paul Skenes on Saturday afternoon with Laureano absent from the lineup for a second straight day due to back soreness.

Brown has resumed throwing just a couple weeks after landing on the shelf with a neck strain. The 24-year-old righty appeared to be putting it all together this season with a pristine 3.58 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 64/19 K/BB ratio across 55 1/3 innings (15 appearances, eight starts) before hitting the injured list. He’s worth stashing in deeper mixed leagues until he’s ready to return in a couple weeks.

Despite the presence of lefty Max Fried on the mound for Atlanta in this one, this might be a mental break more than anything for Cruz, who is batting .143 (4-for-28) with two homers and one steal over his last seven games. He’s been mired in an extended funk the past few weeks, hitting .195 (23-for-118) with just four homers and two steals over his last 30 contests.

Burdi has been out since late May recovering from right hip inflammation. It seems likely he’ll be ready to return at some point after the All-Star break.

Gallen finds himself the recipient of a tasty matchup on Saturday afternoon against the rebuilding Athletics following a one-month absence due to a Grade 1 right hamstring strain. The 28-year-old upper-echelon fantasy contributor holds a strong 3.12 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 60/15 K/BB ratio across 57 2/3 innings (11 starts) this season.

Hughes holds an astronomical 10.29 ERA, 2.14 WHIP and 18/7 K/BB ratio across 14 innings (12 appearances) this season in the big leagues. He’s headed back to the minors this weekend to make room for Diamondbacks ace Zac Gallen to return from the injured list.

It appears to be a routine off day for Carroll with lefty Hogan Harris drawing the starting assignment on Saturday afternoon for Oakland. The 23-year-old’s sophomore campaign hasn’t gone as planned, but he’s shown some signs of life over the last few weeks, batting .253 (22-for-87) with eight extra-base hits (zero homers) and five steals since June 1. The complete lack of over-the-fence pop at the moment remains a massive concern for fantasy managers moving forward.

Ortiz is back at the hot corner and leading off on Saturday after sitting out Friday’s contest due to neck tightness. The 25-year-old rookie infielder has been phenomenal this season in his Brewers debut with an .835 OPS to go along with seven homers and five steals over 251 plate appearances in 72 games.

Iglesias is becoming a bit of a cult hero in New York at the moment, and his on-field performance hasn’t been too shabby either. The 34-year-old journeyman infielder is batting .406 (13-for-32) since June 1. He’s pretty irrelevant for fantasy purposes, but his presence has injected some badly-needed life into the Mets clubhouse.