Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith is not part of Thursday's lineup versus the Pittsburgh Pirates. It seems to be a day of maintenance for the 28-year-old. Austin Barnes sets up behind the plate to catch Julio Urias and bat ninth for this one. Smith is hitting .272 with 42 runs scored, 12 home runs, 42 RBI, and one stolen base over 224 at-bats this season. Expect the slugging backstop to return to action for a two-game Freeway Series with the Los Angeles Angels starting on Friday.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith will get a breather on Sunday as the team takes on the Kansas City Royals. Smith will get a day off after starting the first two games of the three-game weekend series in Kansas City, and he went 1-for-9 with a triple and a run scored on Friday and Saturday. The 28-year-old All-Star backstop is an elite fantasy catcher with his .276/.396/.495 slash line. He's also sporting an .892 OPS, 12 home runs, nine doubles, a triple, 41 RBI and 39 runs scored in 265 trips to the plate over 61 games. Austin Barnes will do the catching for the Dodgers on Sunday and will hit ninth in the batting order against Royals right-hander Brady Singer. Barnes isn't much of a fantasy option at all while hitting just .101 (9-for-89) on the year with no homers and five RBI.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith will receive the day off on Thursday as the club takes on the Colorado Rockies. Instead, Austin Barnes will do the catching for the Blue on Thursday and hit in the nine-hole against Rockies right-hander Chase Anderson in a great matchup. Smith hasn't had his best month in June, as he's hitting .229 (16-for-70) in 21 games, but he's still managed four home runs, 11 RBI and 10 runs scored in his 87 plate appearances. And overall the 28-year-old All-Star remains one of the best hitting catchers in fantasy with a .283/.404/.502 slash line, a .906 OPS, 12 long balls, nine doubles, 41 RBI and 38 runs scored in 255 trips to the plate over 59 games played. Smith should be back behind the dish on Friday for the start of a weekend series in Kansas City.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith is back in the starting lineup Wednesday afternoon against Washington Nationals left-hander Patrick Corbin. Smith not only got Tuesday's game off but with the Dodgers off on Monday, he is technically on two days' rest entering Wednesday's contest. Smith has been a massive asset for fantasy managers this season as he's hitting .305 with seven home runs and a .930 OPS across 163 trips to the plate. Furthermore, he sports an eye-popping 1.79 BB/K, striking out in just 8.6% of his plate appearances. He will slide back into the three-hole and catch right-hander Noah Syndergaard Wednesday in Los Angeles.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith and outfielder James Outman are not in Sunday's lineup for an early 11:35 am first-pitch time against the Tampa Bay Rays. It's a routine day off for the backstop, Smith, who is exceptionally slashing .315/.418/.535 with seven homers and 28 RBI this season. Expect the 28-year-old to return for Monday's series opener with the Washington Nationals. For the center fielder, Outman, it's not only a matchup-based absence against southpaw Josh Fleming, but perhaps a respite during a trying 0-for-15 skid. Fantasy managers hope that the 26-year-old hurdles the rookie wall soon, but he's still producing a sufficient .240/.330/.485 slash line with nine long balls, 28 RBI, and five stolen bases this season.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith is out of the starting lineup for Saturday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals. This appears to be a routine day off after Smith had caught three straight games for the Dodgers. That being said, Austin Barnes will start behind the plate and bat ninth versus right-hander Miles Mikolas on Saturday. Fantasy managers should adjust their lineups accordingly with Smith out here.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith isn't starting Sunday's contest against Ryan Weathers and the San Diego Padres. The backstop is slashing .322/.417/.598 with six homers, 19 runs, 20 RBI, and a stolen base and continues to provide some of the best numbers from his position. Austin Barnes will be behind the plate in his place, batting ninth. The 33-year-old doesn't have much in his bat and owns a .093 batting average with no home runs so far through 19 games. It's safe to say fantasy managers should leave Barnes on the waiver wire.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith is out of the starting lineup for Monday's game against the Milwaukee Brewers. The 28-year-old will get a much-needed rest day after catching six times and serving as the designated hitter three times since returning from injury on April 29. Smith has been hot at the plate, slashing .306/.411/.556 with four home runs and 16 RBI early in the season. Austin Barnes will be behind the plate and bat ninth versus right-hander Freddy Peralta on Monday.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith (concussion) has been activated from the injured list on Friday and is serving as the designated hitter while batting third in the lineup against the St. Louis Cardinals and right-hander Jack Flaherty. Things were trending this way for the 28-year-old backstop since Thursday, so fantasy managers should have already been ready to get him back into their lineups to kick off the weekend. Smith hasn't played since suffering a head injury on April 12, but the All-Star backstop is good to go and should return to catching duties before long for LA. In his first 11 games before his injury, Smith went 13-for-39 (.333) with three doubles, three home runs and 12 RBI.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith (concussion) will likely return from the injured list on Friday night as the team's designated hitter against the St. Louis Cardinals with J.D. Martinez still dealing with a lower-back issue. As long as Smith comes out of his live batting practice session on Friday without any setbacks, he will be activated from the concussion injured list to return to LA's starting lineup. The 28-year-old backstop has been out since suffering a head injury on April 12, but he's been symptom-free for a while now and is ready to go. Fantasy managers should be ready to get one of the best offensive catchers in baseball back into their starting lineups. Smith is currently hitting .333 (13-for-39) with three doubles, three home runs and 12 RBI in 11 games.

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said "there's a chance" that catcher Will Smith (concussion) could be activated from the injured list to serve as the designated hitter on Friday against the St. Louis Cardinals if he comes out of his simulated-game at-bats on Friday afternoon in good shape. Smith hasn't played since April 12 after suffering a head injury, but his concussion symptoms are gone and he sounds ready to return to action for fantasy managers as one of the most valuable catchers at a weak position. The 28-year-old backstop is currently hitting .333 (13-for-39) with three doubles, three home runs, 12 RBI and nine runs scored in his first 11 games. It's more likely that Smith returns on Saturday, but either way, it's looking like fantasy managers will get him back this weekend.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith (concussion) said he has been without concussion symptoms for five or six days now, and he was able to catch bullpens on Tuesday. Smith took batting practice on Wednesday, but his return date is still to be determined. The 28-year-old backstop said he's unsure if he'll be able to return on Friday to face the St. Louis Cardinals. There's a chance fantasy managers could get one of the most valuable catchers back this weekend, but the Dodgers aren't going to take any chances with Smith. In the meantime, Austin Barnes and Austin Wynns will continue splitting playing time behind the dish. Wynns is starting on Wednesday and hitting ninth against Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Roansy Contreras.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith (concussion) is unlikely to return on the team's current road trip, which ends on Thursday, according to manager Dave Roberts. There is an outside chance that the 28-year-old backstop will need a short rehab assignment before rejoining the team. With all that said, Smith has a chance to return to the Dodgers before next weekend's home series against the Cardinals but the team isn't going to push things. The Dodgers and fantasy managers will need to remain patient.

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said he doesn't expect catcher Will Smith (concussion) to return during this week's four-game series against the Chicago Cubs, but the backstop is improving. The Dodgers were hoping that Smith would be able to return for the first game of the series against Chicago on Thursday, but now they'll give him a little more time to recover from his concussion. The 28-year-old catcher is one of the best hitting catchers in the game and should remain stashed in all fantasy leagues. He's off to a .333 (13-for-39) start at the plate with three doubles, three home runs, 12 RBI and nine runs scored in 11 games. Until Smith is back, Austin Barnes and Austin Wynns will continue to split the playing time behind the dish in LA.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith (concussion) has been placed on the 7-day injured list with a concussion. The 28-year-old backstop was diagnosed with a concussion on Sunday so will get a week off to deal with it. He was slashing .333/.417/.641 with three home runs and 12 RBI over 39 at-bats before getting hurt. Austin Barnes will take over behind the plate as the Dodgers' primary catcher. Austin Wynns just had his contact selected as well so he will back up Barnes while Smith is on the injured list.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith (illness) will remain out of the lineup on Sunday against the Cubs. The 28-year-old will get a chance to return on Monday to begin a three-game series with the Mets. However, it doesn't sound promising, with skipper Dave Roberts indicating Smith will undergo further testing to "pinpoint" what's causing the illness. Austin Barnes will most likely remain behind the dish for the series finale versus Chicago. But Roberts also indicated the Dodgers might need to make a roster move, meaning that could change.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith (illness) is out of the lineup for a second straight day on Saturday. Smith was initially withheld from Friday's game because of an illness and he couldn't recuperate enough to get in there on Saturday. The backstop is off to a hot start and is again among the tops in the game at his position. Austin Barnes will catch and bat ninth for the Dodgers.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith is back in the team's Cactus League lineup on Thursday against right-hander Drey Jameson and the Arizona Diamondbacks after playing for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic. Smith is doing the catching and hitting third in the batting order. The 27-year-old served as J.T. Realmuto's backup for the most part in the WBC, so he'll now get regular at-bats in spring action before Opening Day on March 30. Smith profiles as an elite catching option in fantasy and is currently ranked as RotoBaller's No. 4 catcher behind Realmuto, Daulton Varsho and Salvador Perez.

The offseason is officially no more, but Spring Training is here, and with it comes the daily influx of baseball news that fantasy managers have missed in the last few months. Lineup news, actual games happening, constant waiver wire moves, pitching assignments, and bullpen usage.Baseball is back and so too is fantasy baseball, with drafts either starting in the near or not-too-near future for many. This column aims to cover any and all fantasy baseball news, big or small, and how it pertains to your fantasy team. Spring training or the regular season, it's covered here.Has a player who's usually been hitting in the middle of a lineup suddenly batting eighth or ninth for an extended period? The fantasy implications will be covered here. The same goes for injuries and injured placements and whether or not you should consider picking up a player who was recently called up. Basically, any kernel of fantasy news and its relevance to fantasy managers could be covered here. Today, the news of the day is the fantasy impact of Gavin Lux's ACL injury plus a look at potential rotation options in Tampa Bay in the wake of Tyler Glasnow's oblique injury. 

Fantasy Impact of Gavin Lux's Injury

Lux will reportedly miss the 2023 season with a torn right ACL per a ... [More]

The Los Angeles Dodgers and catcher Will Smith avoided salary arbitration on Friday by agreeing to a one-year, $5.25 million deal, according to sources. Smith had another very strong year as the Dodgers' primary catcher in 2022, slashing .260/.343/.465 with an .807 OPS, 24 home runs, a career-high 87 RBI, 68 runs scored and a stolen base in 578 plate appearances over a career-high 137 games. He now has 49 home runs in the last two years and has become one of the most attractive fantasy backstops in the game in one of the best lineups in baseball.