Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia hit two singles, drew a walk, drove in two runs and scored a run in the Royals' 8-0 win on Friday. Garcia now has multiple hits in four of his last seven games, a good sign after going through a bit of a slump over the past couple weeks. The 24-year-old is now hitting for a .651 OPS and has 18 RBI on the season. If Garcia is able to avoid another major slump, then he may be someone fantasy managers want to keep on their radar as an option to stash on their bench. Garcia will get matchups against Casey Mize on Saturday and Tigers ace Tarik Skubal on Sunday.

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Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. notched three RBI in the Royals 8-0 win over the Detroit Tigers on Friday afternoon. Witt Jr. went 1-4 with a two RBI triple and an RBI sacrifice fly. He also scored a run in the Royals' seven-run ninth. The 23-year-old now has 14 RBI on the season with a .915 OPS and leads the league in triples with four. As a top option in fantasy baseball, Witt Jr. is delivering for fantasy managers who took him in the first round. Witt Jr. faces Casey Mize on Saturday and will have a tough matchup against Tigers ace Tarik Skubal on Sunday.

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Toronto Blue Jays right-handed reliever Chad Green (shoulder) is rehabbing for three to seven more days, at which point the team is hopeful that he can resume throwing. Green is recovering from a teres major strain in his right shoulder after landing on the injured list. The 32-year-old veteran hurler is probably at least several weeks away from being able to return to Toronto's bullpen. Green opened the 2024 season with increased fantasy importance because of injuries to both Jordan Romano and Erik Swanson. He took advantage of the short-term opportunity for save chances in Toronto, recording two saves with a 2.35 ERA and 1.04 WHIP while walking two and striking out seven in 7 2/3 frames. When Green returns from the IL, he'll return to a late-inning setup role in front of Romano.

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Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Alek Manoah (shoulder) will make another minor-league rehab start for Triple-A Buffalo next Tuesday. Not only is Manoah rehabbing from a right-shoulder injury, but he hasn't been good in three of his four rehab starts to this point. In his last outing with Buffalo on Wednesday, the 26-year-old allowed six runs on seven hits while walking four in just three innings of work. Even if Manoah is getting healthier, his performances don't exactly endorse him for a big-league call-up to enter Toronto's starting rotation. Hi rehab assignment will be up on May 6, but it wouldn't be a surprise to see him activated from the injured list and optioned back to Buffalo. Manoah's 2023 nightmare season has so far carried over to 2024.

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Los Angeles Angels third baseman Anthony Rendon (hamstring) said he has a high-grade partial tear of his left hamstring and doesn't have a timetable to return. The Angels placed Rendon on the 10-day injured list on Sunday, but the 33-year-old is certainly going to be out for an extended amount of time. Ever since signing a seven-year deal with the Halos, Rendon has mostly been in the trainer's room and has been one of the biggest disappointments in baseball after recording a league-high 126 RBI and a career-high 34 home runs in his final year with the Nationals in 2019. Before the injury, he was hitting .267 (20-for-75) with no homers, three RBI and three steals. We wouldn't blame you for dumping Rendon to the waiver wire at this point. Miguel Sano has been playing third since Rendon went down, but Brandon Drury could also see time there moving forward.

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Boston Red Sox middle infielder Vaughn Grissom (hamstring) will play back-to-back minor-league rehab games with Triple-A Worcester on Saturday and Sunday and has at least a chance to be activated from the injured list for the start of a series against the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday. So far on his rehab assignment, the 23-year-old has gone 5-for-22 with two doubles and two stolen bases. Before hurting his hamstring, Grissom was projected to be Boston's regular second baseman. That should still be the case once he's finally able to return from the IL at some point next week, especially given all of the Red Sox's injury woes so far in 2024. With 15/15 potential at the plate, Grissom is a must-add off the waiver wire if he's available in your fantasy league.

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New York Yankees outfielder Giancarlo Stanton (rest) is out of the starting lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Milwaukee Brewers. This appears to be a routine rest day for the veteran slugger. Stanton has started in five straight games, so the team has decided to give the 34-year-old the night off. In the meantime, Aaron Judge will serve as the designated hitter while Trent Grisham will cover center field versus right-hander Colin Rea.

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Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Seth Lugo continued his stellar work on the mound during Friday's game against the Detroit Tigers. The right-hander threw seven shutout innings while striking out nine batters in the win. Lugo only gave up three singles during this game and a pair of walks. He holds a 1.66 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, and a 23/9 K/BB ratio across six starts. He'll look to continue his strong campaign against the Toronto Blue Jays next week.

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San Diego Padres outfielder Jackson Merrill (groin) remains out of the starting lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Philadelphia Phillies. The 21-year-old was held out of Thursday's game as well due to a lingering groin issue. The organization is hopeful that Merrill will be able to avoid the injured list. For now, Jose Azocar will cover center field and bat ninth versus right-hander Aaron Nola.

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Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Josh Lowe (oblique) reportedly is feeling great during his minor-league rehab assignment. The 26-year-old says he's ready to return whenever the teams feels like bringing him back. In six games, Lowe is slashing .227/.346/.364 with a homer, and five RBI during his rehab stint. It sounds like Lowe is ready to return and could be activated off the injured list any day now.

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San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado has been activated off the paternity leave list on Friday. That is great news after Machado missed a few games earlier in the week due to a personal matter. He's batting fourth and covering third base during Friday's game against the Philadelphia Phillies. In a corresponding move, infielder Matthew Batten has been optioned to the minors. Fantasy managers should make sure to get Machado back in their lineups.

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Tampa Bay Rays relief pitcher Colin Poche (back) has been placed on the 15-day injured list on Friday. The move is retroactive to April 24th with Poche dealing with back tightness. The organization has not given a timetable for how long Poche will be sidelined. This is a hit to the Rays bullpen with Pete Fairbanks already sidelined as well. The loss of these two pitchers should mean increased save chances for Jason Adam and Garrett Cleavinger.

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Seattle Mariners catching prospect Harry Ford was off to a slow start but has recently begun to find his stride. The 21-year-old has tallied at least a hit in four consecutive games, including his first home run on Tuesday. Ford moved through the Seattle system fairly slowly, spending the entirety of the previous two seasons at Single and High-A. As a result, the number two prospect in the Seattle system and number four overall catching prospect should be expected to remain at Double-A throughout the summer but could push for a late-summer promotion to Triple-A. Ford is a must-roster player in dynasty and keeper leagues but will not be viable in redraft formats until next season.

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Texas Rangers starting pitcher Cody Bradford (ribs) doesn't appear any closer to getting back on the mound. On Friday, Rangers' manager Bruce Bochy said Bradford is dealing with a stress fracture in his rib. The 26-year-old was originally placed on the injured list with back soreness, but it appears to be his rib instead. The organization says Bradford is likely to miss at least a month of action. It's uncertain if there will still be a spot in the rotation available once Bradford is ready to pitch again.

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Colorado Rockies outfield prospect Jordan Beck has been swinging a hot bat this week, as he has tallied multiple hits in three consecutive games. During this stretch, Beck has totaled eight hits, six RBI, and two walks and has struck out only twice. The fourth overall prospect in the Colorado system has been off to a great start at Triple-A and has posted a .315/.406/.629 line in his first 22 games of the season. The 23-year-old has also launched five home runs and 16 extra-base hits. Beck should be rostered in dynasty leagues and could even become a name to monitor in redraft leagues as he could make a case for a late-season promotion if he continues this success at Triple-A.

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New York Yankees shortstop prospect Roderick Arias posted his first three-hit game on Wednesday. The 19-year-old has posted three two-hit games in his first taste of professional ball, but Wednesday was the first time he had surpassed the three-hit feat. Arias is currently riding a solid .221/.338/.382 line in his first 17 games at Single-A. Arias, who is considered the third-best prospect in the Yankee system and 78th overall prospect on MLB Pipeline, is many years away from making his major league debut. However, dynasty managers should keep an eye on his production as he has the potential to become one of the best prospects in the sport.

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Toronto Blue Jays left-handed pitching prospect Ricky Tiedemann (elbow) has been diagnosed with left ulnar nerve inflammation, and the team is hopeful that he can resume throwing in seven to 10 days. For now, the Blue Jays' top pitching prospect will avoid going under the knife, which would have no doubt ended his 2024 season. The club will be extremely cautious with the 21-year-old southpaw, though, especially after he got off to a slow start for Triple-A Buffalo by pitching to a 5.63 ERA and 2.00 WHIP with 10 strikeouts and nine walks in eight innings pitched. Tiedemann is still one of the very best pitching prospects in the game, but given his latest injury (he also dealt with an arm injury last year), it's probably unlikely that we'll see him in the big leagues in 2024.

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Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that right-hander Walker Buehler (elbow) will make another minor-league rehab start with Triple-A Oklahoma City next Tuesday. If all goes well, Buehler will then be activated to make his 2024 debut with the Dodgers. The 29-year-old hasn't pitched in a major-league game since 2022, but he got up to 86 pitches in 4 1/4 innings in his latest rehab start on Wednesday at Oklahoma City despite giving up five runs (three earned). His numbers on his rehab start have been nothing to write home about -- a 4.86 ERA, 1.68 WHIP, 16 strikeouts and nine walks in 16 2/3 innings -- but the most important thing is that he's healthy. Buehler could have some ups and downs early on with LA, but if he can show any of his pre-injury form in 2024, he has the potential to be a huge fantasy asset down the stretch.

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Chicago White Sox general manager Chris Getz said that outfielder Luis Robert Jr. (hip) should be back soon, perhaps by mid-May. Until that day comes, the White Sox plan to have a platoon in center field between Tommy Pham and Rafael Ortega. Robert is rehabbing from a Grade 2 right hip-flexor strain and was given a timetable of six weeks when he was put on the injured list back on April 6. The oft-injured 26-year-old Cuban outfielder needs to remain stashed in an IL spot in all fantasy leagues, though, after making the All-Star team in 2023 and clubbing a career-high 38 home runs, driving in 80 and stealing 20 bases in 145 games. Pham, 36, went 5-for-17 with two stolen bases for Triple-A Charlotte and is worthy of a waiver-wire pickup in deep-mixed leagues for his modest power and stolen base contributions.

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Los Angeles Angels infielder Brandon Drury (knee) is back in the starting lineup on Friday against the visiting Minnesota Twins and right-hander Bailey Ober, serving as the designated hitter and batting fifth. Miguel Sano is at third base for the Halos and is hitting cleanup. Drury didn't start at all during the recent three-game series against the Baltimore Orioles due to a knee injury but appeared on Wednesday late in the game and struck out in his only plate appearance. Fantasy managers in deeper leagues will be hoping that Drury can show some signs of life at the plate this weekend, as he's started the 2024 season with a weak .194/.270/.269 slash line with a home run and four RBI in 74 plate appearances. He's never faced Ober in his career.

From RotoBaller