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New York Mets designated hitter J.D. Martinez had a very productive day at the plate on Friday, smacking a three-run homer and adding an RBI single in the Mets' 11-1 win over the Chicago Cubs. The four RBI are a season high for Martinez, and his home run was his ninth on the season. The 36-year-old has been having a fantastic season, hitting for a .370 wOBA with a .391 xwOBA, the latter ranking in the 97th percentile of the league. Fantasy managers looking for a DH should snatch up Martinez immediately if he's available. He will look to continue his hot June on Saturday against Cubs starter Jameson Taillon, who he is 5-for-21 against in his career with a double and a homer.

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Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Jack Flaherty was stellar on Friday night, pitching 5 2/3 innings and striking out eight in the Tigers' 2-1 win over the Chicago White Sox. Flaherty picked up the win and improved his record to 5-4 on the season. The 28-year-old also threw 98 pitches, negating any potential concerns about the back spasms that forced him to be removed in his start against the Texas Rangers earlier this month. With an xERA of 2.66, Flaherty should continue to be dominant whenever he takes the hill for the Tigers. His next start will be a tough test when the Philadelphia Phillies come into Detroit on Wednesday.

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Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Shota Imanaga had his worst outing in the majors on Friday afternoon, giving up 10 runs on 11 hits in three innings in the Cubs' 11-1 loss to the New York Mets. After being credited with the loss Imanaga's record is now 7-2. The lefty allowed three homers to J.D. Martinez, Francisco Alvarez and Brandon Nimmo. Imanaga's ERA rose a full run from 1.90 to 2.96 after the dredging. "Sometimes, when I give my 100% that's not enough. So, I need to figure out unique ways to be better," the Japanese rookie stated after the loss. Imanaga had been due for negative regression with a 3.05 xERA prior to today and he's clearly needing to find new ways to counter batters now that the league has a bit of a book on him. He'll get his next shot to get back on track on Wednesday night in San Francisco against the Giants.

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Texas Rangers third baseman Josh Jung (wrist) was pulled off his minor-league rehab assignment and is returning to Arlington, Texas, to be examined this weekend, and the Rangers will then make a decision on whether his rehab assignment will continue or if he'll be activated from the injured list to rejoin the big-league roster. If the team's doctors and decision-makers like what they see, the 26-year-old right-handed slugger could be back in the lineup later this weekend against the visiting Kansas City Royals. He has gone 4-for-17 in four rehab games with Triple-A Round Rock as he recovers from a fractured wrist that he suffered way back on April 1. When he returns, Jung will be the team's starting third baseman and should be rostered in all fantasy leagues. Both Josh Smith and Ezequiel Duran will lose out on playing time at the hot corner when Jung is activated.

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Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Clayton Kershaw (shoulder) will make his second minor-league rehab start on Tuesday with Triple-A Oklahoma City. Kershaw looked sharp in his first rehab start with Single-A Rancho Cucamonga on Wednesday, giving up just one run on two hits while walking one and striking out five in three innings of work. The 36-year-old veteran southpaw got his fastball up to 90 mph and continues to build up his arm after having offseason surgery on his left shoulder. The three-time Cy Young winner and future Hall of Famer has a ways to go in his rehab assignment and probably isn't going to be ready to make his 2024 debut for the Dodgers until after the All-Star break in mid-July. Kershaw is no longer a fantasy ace and has had his fair share of injuries in recent years, but he can still be effective in all fantasy formats if he can stay healthy in the second half.

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Updating a previous report, Los Angeles Angels infielder Brandon Drury (illness) was scratched from the lineup for the second straight game on Friday against the Los Angeles Dodgers due to an illness. Drury was also scratched from Wednesday's lineup and had Thursday's off day to rest up, but apparently he's still under the weather after initially being included in the lineup for the series opener at Dodger Stadium. Luis Rengifo is at the hot corner and batting second, while Michael Stefanic will draw into the Angels' lineup at the keystone and bat eighth against Dodgers rookie right-hander Landon Knack. The 31-year-old Drury is a regular on the infield for the Halos when healthy, but he's missed time due to injury in 2024 and hasn't been much of a fantasy contributor in mixed leagues with a .173/.233/.236 slash line and just one home run in his 110 at-bats.

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The Colorado Rockies placed rookie infielder Adael Amador on the 10-day injured list on Friday with a right-oblique strain and activated second baseman Brendan Rodgers (hamstring) from the injured list in a corresponding move. The Rockies expect Amador to have a quick recovery, although when he's all healed up, he seems likely to head back to the minors to continue his development. Colorado called up their top prospect to handle second-base duties with Rodgers on the shelf, but he looked overmatched in his first taste of big-league pitching and went 6-for-35 (.171) with a double, stolen base, one walk and six strikeouts in 10 games played. The 21-year-old suffered a similar oblique injury earlier this year while playing for Double-A Hartford, although it doesn't look like he's going to be out long.

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Los Angeles Angels infielder Brandon Drury (illness) is feeling better on Friday and is starting at second base and batting sixth for the Angels in the series opener at Dodger Stadium against the Los Angeles Dodgers and right-handed rookie Landon Knack. Drury was scratched from Wednesday's lineup due to an illness but had a day off to recover on Thursday and is now good to go for the Freeway Series. The 31-year-old veteran returned from the injured list on Monday and is 1-for-6 this week since returning. Drury has battled injuries this year and hasn't been able to get into a groove at the plate, as he comes into Friday's contest with a .173/.233/.236 slash line with only a homer and six RBI in 110 at-bats. As long as he stays healthy, though, he should be a lineup regular for the Halos, making him useful in much deeper fantasy leagues.

From RotoBaller

The Colorado Rockies activated second baseman Brendan Rodgers (hamstring) from the injured list on Friday and placed infield prospect Adael Amador (oblique) on the injured list in a corresponding move with a right-oblique strain. Rodgers isn't in the team's starting lineup on Friday against the visiting Washington Nationals, but he should return to regular duties at the keystone moving forward now that he's past his hamstring issue. The former first-round pick in 2015 has mostly been a bust for the Rockies since making his big-league debut in 2019, but he's actually having one of his best seasons in 2024, hitting .275/.309/.390 with three home runs, 22 RBI, the first stolen base of his career and 24 runs scored in 59 games played. Rodgers has never had more than 15 homers in his career, though, so he comes with a low ceiling and floor.

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Oakland Athletics infielder Abraham Toro (shoulder) is back at third base and is batting in his customary leadoff spot on Friday in Minnesota against the Twins and right-hander Chris Paddack. Toro is going to give it a go for the A's after missing the last three games with shoulder soreness, but he did serve as a pinch-hitter in Thursday's loss to the Kansas City Royals. The 27-year-old switch-hitter has earned regular playing time for Oakland and a spot atop the batting order by hitting .259/.300/.387 with six home runs, 24 RBI, three stolen bases and 31 runs scored in 274 at-bats. The playing time is useful for those in deeper fantasy leagues, but he has a low ceiling for counting stats with the A's and is hitting just .161 (10-for-62) with a homer, two doubles, four RBI and 13 strikeouts in 16 games in the month of June. Toro is hitless in two career at-bats versus Paddack.

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After 15 seasons in Major League Baseball, left-hander Cole Hamels has decided to officially retire. The 40-year-old hasn't pitched in a MLB game since the 2020 season with the Atlanta Braves. Hamels made one appearance with Atlanta before suffering an injury that forced him to miss the rest of the season. He was a four-time All-Star and the 2008 World Series MVP. It was an incredible season for Hamels who spent most of his career with the Philadelphia Phillies. That being said, the organization has decided to honor Hamels ahead of Friday's game.

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San Diego Padres catcher Luis Campusano has been scratched from the starting lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Milwaukee Brewers. There is no word yet on why Campusano was pulled from the lineup. The Padres should give an update on his status shortly. In his place, Kyle Higashioka will cover behind the plate and bat ninth versus right-hander Colin Rea. Fantasy managers who have Campusano rostered should adjust their lineups ahead of first pitch.

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Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith is out of the starting lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Los Angeles Angels. It's a bit odd to see Smith taking a seat against a left-handed starting pitcher. There was no reported injury and Smith did start in three of the four games of their series against the Colorado Rockies. This appears to be a routine rest day for the 29-year-old catcher. Austin Barnes will do the catching and bat ninth versus left-hander Patrick Sandoval.

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Texas Rangers starting pitcher Max Scherzer (back, thumb) won't make his season debut on Saturday against the Kansas City Royals. There was speculation that Scherzer would be getting the ball this upcoming weekend. Instead, right-hander Jon Gray will get the starting nod against the Royals on Saturday. Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said Scherzer hasn't suffered a setback and could possibly start on Sunday. Fantasy managers will have to stay tuned for more updates.

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Washington Nationals shortstop CJ Abrams (wrist) is back in the starting lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Colorado Rockies. The 23-year-old is back on the field after missing each of the last two games due to a wrist issue. He was dealing with a cyst near his wrist but it feels good enough for him to play on Friday. He'll return to the leadoff spot and serve as the shortstop against right-hander Dakota Hudson. Fantasy managers should adjust their lineups accordingly.

From RotoBaller

Colorado Rockies outfielder Charlie Blackmon (hamstring) has been placed on the 10-day injured list on Friday. The veteran outfielder will miss some time after battling a lingering hamstring issue over the last week. This is bad timing with Blackmon hitting over .300 in the last two weeks. In a corresponding move, outfielder Sam Hilliard has been recalled from Triple-A. The Rockies will likely use a committee approach to fill the void. Sean Bouchard will cover right field and bat seventh on Friday.

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Detroit Tigers infielder Jace Jung (wrist) has been placed on the 7-day injured list on Friday. This comes a day after Jung was scratched from Thursday's game due to wrist soreness. There was some speculation that Jung was getting called up, but in fact it was injury related. The 23-year-old will remain in Triple-A, but it shouldn't be long before he's back on the big league roster. The organization hasn't given a timetable for his return but hopefully it won't be much longer than a week.

From RotoBaller

Colorado Rockies outfielder Nolan Jones (illness) is back in the team's starting lineup on Friday against the visiting Washington Nationals and rookie left-hander DJ Herz, playing left field and batting sixth in the order. Fantasy managers will now have Jones back after he missed the last two games due to an illness. The 26-year-old left-handed hitter broke out with a 20-20 campaign in 2023 in his first year in Colorado, but this year couldn't have started any worse for Jones. Not only has he missed significant time due to injury, but he hasn't swung the bat well at all when he's been on the field. Jones is currently hitting .194 (21-for-108) with a homer, five doubles, nine RBI, three steals and 39 strikeouts in 126 plate appearances. On the bright side for Friday's matchup is the fact that Jones has looked slightly better against lefties this year.

From RotoBaller

Colorado Rockies outfielder Charlie Blackmon (hamstring) remains out of the starting lineup on Friday against the visiting Washington Nationals. Sean Bouchard will make another start in right field and will hit sixth against Nationals rookie left-hander DJ Herz. Blackmon will be out of the lineup for the third straight game due to right-hamstring tightness. If he is unable to make an appearance in the weekend series against the Nats, there's a good chance Blackmon will need to go on the injured list. The veteran outfielder has lost a lot of his power and only has three home runs on the year while batting .266 (59-for-222) with 26 RBI, five stolen bases and 34 runs scored. Bouchard will be a deep DFS sleeper at the bottom of the Rockies' lineup. In 81 at-bats, he has 16 hits for an average under the Mendoza Line with one dinger, seven RBI and four thefts.

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Miami Marlins left-hander Jesus Luzardo (back) will not end up making his next scheduled start on Saturday against the visiting Seattle Mariners, according to sources. Luzardo dealt with back tightness in his last start against the Washington Nationals on June 16, when he allowed two earned runs on five hits (two homers) while walking three and striking out two in a loss in five innings pitched. The 26-year-old showed diminished velocity due to the injury and threw only 77 pitches. If Luzardo isn't able to pitch in a series against the Philadelphia Phillies next week, he'll be a strong candidate to land on the injured list. The Peruvian left-hander has gone 3-6 on the year with an uneven 5.00 ERA and 1.24 WHIP while also recording a career-low 21.2% strikeout rate in 66 2/3 innings over his 12 starts for the Marlins.

From RotoBaller