Chicago Cubs top prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong blasted the first home run of his major-league career during Thursday's 3-1 win over the Houston Astros. The 22-year-old came to the plate with a man on in a tie game and smoked a Bryan Abreu offering into the seats. Crow-Armstrong is one of the top outfield prospects in baseball and should see steady playing time with Cody Bellinger (rib) sidelined for a while. Crow-Armstrong was struggling in Triple-A prior to being called up, but his speed and power blend make him worthy of a speculative add in the short-term.

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Houston Astros starter J.P. France was optioned to Triple-A Sugar Land on Thursday evening ahead of the team's trip to Mexico City. France has struggled to the tune of a 7.46 ERA, 1.70 WHIP and 0-3 record so far this season. His demotion opens up a roster spot for Framber Valdez (elbow), who is set to return for Sunday's game against the Colorado Rockies. It is unclear how the rest of the Astros rotation will shake out, but it looks like rookie right-hander Spencer Arrighetti will stick in the majors for the time being. France can be dropped in all formats.

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Cleveland Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez was 3-for-4 with a grand slam, stolen base and two runs scored during Thursday's 6-4 win over the Boston Red Sox. Ramirez smoked a ball to right field in the second inning after battling through a 10-pitch at-bat against Chase Anderson. The five-time All Star is now slashing .260/.271/.471 with five homers, 23 RBI, three stolen bases and 18 runs scored. He has had a more aggressive approach at the plate this season which has resulted in only two walks through 24 games. Despite the lower than normal OBP, Ramirez seems to be recovering nicely from a slower start to the year and remains one of the best third-base options in fantasy.

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Cleveland Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase picked up his eighth save of the year after firing a perfect ninth inning during Thursday's 6-4 win over the Boston Red Sox. Clase entered the game with the top of the Red Sox order due up, but quickly sat them down after 12 pitches. The 26-year-old is enjoying a phenomenal start to the season, as evidenced by his 0.69 ERA, 0.85 WHIP and 14/1 K/BB. Clase struggled a bit last season, but he is back to being one of the top closers in baseball. Fantasy managers can expect him to finish the year near the top of the saves leaderboard.

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Milwaukee Brewers reliever Trevor Megill tossed a scoreless ninth inning to notch the first save of his career during Thursday's 7-5 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. The 30-year-old has been a pleasant surprise out of the bullpen for the Brewers and has been trusted to face the heart of the opponent's order multiple times this season. He has only given up one run in five appearances thus far and has picked up three holds. The Brewers ninth-inning situation has been a bit sporadic with Devin Williams (back) still recovering from injury, but Megill is now in the mix for saves alongside Joel Payamps. Both players deserve to be rostered in deeper leagues, while Megill holds even more value in formats that count holds as a scoring category.

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Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Freddy Peralta surrendered five runs on five hits across 4 2/3 innings of work during Thursday's 7-5 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. He struck out five batters and allowed a season-high five walks in the no-decision. It was not the sharpest outing for the 27-year-old, who saw his season ERA balloon from 1.90 to 3.18 with the performance. Peralta remains one of the premier arms in fantasy baseball and today's outing was merely a blip on the radar. He should still be confidently started in all formats going into his next projected outing against the Tampa Bay Rays.

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The Seattle Mariners transferred right-hander Gregory Santos (lat) to the 60-day injured list on Thursday to open up a roster spot for infielder Leo Rivas, whose contract was selected from Triple-A Tacoma. The 24-year-old Santos has yet to make his debut with the Mariners due to a right-lat strain, although he has started a throwing program. Now that he's officially on the 60-day IL, he won't be able to return to the Mariners bullpen until at least late May. When he's healthy, Santos will be an option as a high-leverage reliever late in games as a bridge to Andres Munoz and Ryne Stanek, and he could even enter the picture for saves. The Dominican reliever had a career-best 3.39 ERA, a 1.29 WHIP, his first five career saves, 17 walks and a career-high 66 K's in 66 1/3 relief innings in 2023 with the White Sox.

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The Texas Rangers activated right-hander Josh Sborz (shoulder) from the 15-day injured list on Thursday and optioned right-hander Grant Anderson from Triple-A Round Rock in a corresponding move. Sborz is returning from a right rotator-cuff strain after making one minor-league rehab appearance for Double-A Frisco on Tuesday. The 30-year-old reliever had 2 2/3 scoreless innings for Texas with no walks and three strikeouts earlier this month before going on the shelf with his right-shoulder injury. Now that he's back, Sborz will return to a high-leverage relief role late in games as a setup man alongside David Robertson and Jose Leclerc ahead of closer Kirby Yates. In 44 relief outings for Texas in the regular season in 2023, Sborz had a 5.50 ERA and 1.15 WHIP with 17 walks and 66 K's in 52 1/3 innings.

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The Oakland Athletics placed second baseman Zack Gelof (oblique) on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to April 24) on Thursday with a strained left oblique and recalled infielder Darell Hernaiz from Triple-A Las Vegas in a corresponding move. Gelof was scratched from the lineup on Wednesday with the oblique injury and will now miss at least the next 10 days. Given the nature of the 24-year-old's injury, fantasy managers should be prepared to be without him for longer than 10 days. Despite playing every day for the A's in 2024 in his second big-league season, Gelof has disappointed to this point, slashing .196/.260/.337 with three home runs, seven RBI and four stolen bases in 92 at-bats. Hernaiz is getting the start at third and batting ninth on Thursday against left-hander Nestor Cortes and the New York Yankees in the Bronx.

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Chicago White Sox right-hander Mike Clevinger is starting for Triple-A Charlotte on Thursday night. This will be Clevinger's first minor-league start after previously pitching in extended spring training to try and get stretched out after re-signing with the club on a one-year deal on April 2. The 33-year-old is scheduled to throw four innings or 60 pitches on Thursday and then move to five innings or 75 pitches in his next minor-league start. If Clevinger looks good after those two outings on the farm, he could be called up to the big-league roster and start make his 2024 debut for the White Sox early in May. The former fourth-round pick by the Los Angeles Angels in 2011 went 9-9 with a 3.77 ERA and 1.23 WHIP while striking out 110 and walking 40 in 24 starts for Chicago last year. He'll be a deep-league streaming option, at best, once he returns to the majors.

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The Kansas City Royals placed right-hander Alec Marsh (elbow) on the 15-day injured list on Thursday with a right-elbow contusion and recalled right-hander Will Klein from Triple-A Omaha in a corresponding move. X-rays came back negative on Marsh's elbow after he was hit by a comebacker on Wednesday and forced to leave his start early against the Toronto Blue Jays, but he's still going to have to miss at least two weeks. It's unclear who will replace the 25-year-old in Kansas City's rotation moving forward. Klein will give the Royals some more depth in the bullpen. Marsh, a former second-round pick in 2019 out of Arizona State, should return to the Royals' rotation when his 15 days are up after going 3-0 with a 2.70 ERA and 1.01 WHIP in his first five starts in 2024.

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The Washington Nationals reinstated catcher Keibert Ruiz (illness) from the 10-day injured list on Thursday and optioned catcher Drew Millas to Triple-A Rochester in a corresponding move, according to president of baseball operations and general manager Mike Rizzo. The 25-year-old Ruiz will return to the Nats after missing 11 games with influenza and he'll be back behind the dish while hitting fifth against Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Ruiz appeared in two minor-league rehab games with Double-A Harrisburg this week. Before going on the injured list, he was hitting just .194 with a home run and three RBI in eight games. Ruiz will return as Washington's primary catcher, but fantasy managers may want to keep him benched until he can get going.

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Washington Nationals third baseman Nick Senzel (illness) has been scratched from Thursday's starting lineup against the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers with a stomach illness. With Senzel not feeling well, Ildemaro Vargas will enter the lineup at third base and will bat eighth against Dodgers right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Senzel is hitting just .200 (5-for-25) in just eight games after beginning the year on the injured list, but he's heating up with two home runs in his last four games. Vargas, a 32-year-old switch-hitting infielder, has gone 11-for-37 (.297) this year in 13 games, but he's yet to go deep and will offer DFS managers very little upside as more of a defensive asset for the Nationals on the infield. He's added four RBI and one stolen base in his 44 plate appearances so far in 2024.

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San Diego Padres rookie outfielder Jackson Merrill (groin) was scratched from Thursday's lineup against the Colorado Rockies in the series finale with right-groin tightness. As a result, Tyler Wade moved to left field while Jose Azocar got the start in center field and Eguy Rosario is playing third base. For now, fantasy managers should consider the 21-year-old youngster as day-to-day and check back on Friday to see if he's able to play in the series opener at Petco Park against the visiting Philadelphia Phillies. Merrill was considered the Padres' shortstop of the future while coming up through the minors, but he's been serving as the club's regular center fielder in his first year in the big leagues. He's handled himself well at the plate so far, hitting .318 (28-for-88) with a homer, 12 RBI, four stolen bases and 12 runs scored in his first 27 games at the big-league level.

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Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Bowden Francis has been placed on the 15-day injured list due to right forearm extensor tendinitis. The club has recalled left-hander Brendon Little from Triple-A Buffalo in a corresponding move. Francis interestingly pitched two scoreless innings out of the bullpen for the Jays in their loss to the Royals on Wednesday but will seemingly miss some time moving forward. The 28-year-old cracked the rotation out of spring training but struggled out of the gate and has recently pitched in a multi-inning bullpen role. He has struggled to an 8.59 ERA across five outings (two starts) while allowing four home runs in 14 2/3 innings, good for a bloated 2.45 HR/9 clip.

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Colorado Rockies outfielder Hunter Goodman is in the starting lineup and will hit eighth while manning right field against the San Diego Padres and right-hander Randy Vasquez. The 24-year-old was called up from Triple-A Albuquerque on Wednesday and went 0-for-2 with a strikeout in a pair of pinch-hitting plate appearances but will get his first start in the big leagues this season on Thursday. Goodman debuted with the Rockies last season but struggled to a .200 average with just one homer and one stolen base across 77 plate appearances. However, he has demolished Triple-A pitching to the tune of a .298 average with seven homers, 22 RBI, and a 1.042 OPS across 20 games so far this season. He is worth a deep-league add given the light-tower power he has displayed throughout his minor-league tenure.

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Colorado Rockies outfielder Nolan Jones (back) is still out of the starting lineup on Thursday against the visiting San Diego Padres and right-hander Randy Vasquez. Jones was lifted from Tuesday's win due to back stiffness and did not appear in Wednesday's 5-2 loss. It's been a disastrous start at the plate for the 25-year-old who is hitting just .148 with one homer, two steals, and a .469 OPS across 96 trips to the plate. Following a 20/20 season that included a .297 batting average and a hefty .931 OPS in 106 games in 2023, Jones' early-season production has been wildly frustrating for fantasy managers who utilized a high pick on the promising youngster. Jake Cave will once again take over in left field while hitting seventh on Thursday afternoon.

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Colorado Rockies outfielder Charlie Blackmon is not in the starting lineup for Thursday's afternoon contest against the visiting San Diego Padres. It's not surprising to see the club give the veteran a spell in an afternoon game following an evening game on Wednesday in which Blackmon led off as the designated hitter and went 0-for-4 with a strikeout in his club's 5-2 loss. The 37-year-old is off to a sluggish start this season, hitting .228 with one homer, one stolen base, and a .659 OPS across 86 trips to the plate. At this point, Blackmon's power and speed just aren't there and he should be left on the waiver wire in all fantasy formats, including NL-only leagues.

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New York Yankees utility man Oswald Peraza (shoulder) is "deep into his throwing program" and is hitting at the team's spring complex in Tampa, FLA, according to manager Aaron Boone. However, Boone also noted that the 23-year-old remains weeks away from playing in minor-league games. Peraza bounced between the Yankees and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre last season, scuffling to a .191 average with two homers and a .539 OPS in 52 games with the Yankees while improving to a .268 average with 14 homers, 16 steals, and an .836 OPS at the Triple-A level. With third baseman DJ LeMahieu leaving his minor-league rehab game with continued foot pain, Peraza could see reps at the hot corner upon his return depending on the severity of LeMahieu's ailment.

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Los Angeles Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy is not in the starting lineup for Thursday's afternoon tilt against the Washington Nationals and left-hander MacKenzie Gore. Kike Hernandez will take over at the hot corner and hit fifth on Thursday. It's been another excellent season at the plate for the veteran who is hitting .241 with four homers, 15 RBI, a 14.7% BB%, and an .811 OPS across 102 trips to the plate, production that grades out 25% above the league average, as per his 125 wRC+. His season has contained some swing-and-miss with a bloated 32.4% K% on the season but fantasy managers can expect that mark to drop considering his 24.8% career mark.

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