Detroit Tigers catcher Eric Haase is on the bench for Friday's matchup with the Tampa Bay Rays and left-hander Ryan Yarbrough. Haase has started regularly at catcher with Jake Rogers on the injured list and figures to do so for the rest of the season for Detroit. However, he'll get the day off on Saturday. The 28-year-old is batting .230 with a .284 on-base percentage, 21 home runs, and two stolen bases in 335 plate appearances this season. Instead, it'll be Dustin Garneau getting the start behind the plate in place of Haase. Garneau could be a quality streaming option for fantasy managers in deeper leagues. The 33-year-old has logged just 41 plate appearances for the Tigers this season but has already hit four home runs. He's hitting seventh on Saturday.

Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Kevin Kiermaier was placed on the COVID-19 injured list Saturday. He experienced general illness/symptoms and was placed on the COVID-19 injured list. It's unclear if he tested positive or came into close contact, but he could be out up to 10 days. The 31-year-old slashed .247/.310/.369 with four home runs, 33 RBI, and eight stolen bases over 110 games in 2021. Fantasy managers can move on from Kiermaier if they him rostered. Right-hander Joey Krehbiel was recalled from Triple-A Durham in a corresponding move.

Tampa Bay Rays designated hitter Nelson Cruz (forearm) is out of the lineup for Saturday's game against the Detroit Tigers. He exited Thursday's game early after being hit in the forearm by a pitch. The 41-year-old's x-rays came back negative, and he's considered day-to-day. According to manager Keith Cash, Cruz will be available off the bench. Jordan Luplow will handle designated hitter duties and is batting fifth in Saturday's game. He can be avoided being used as a streamer against southpaw Tarik Skubal after hitting .155 with four home runs, eight RBI, and a .637 OPS over 102 plate appearances against left-handers in 2021.

Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Ian Kennedy retired all four batters he faced on Friday night to earn his 23rd save of the season. Kennedy was summoned in the eighth inning and struck out James McCann, who represented the go-ahead run. Kennedy was sent back out for the ninth and retired the side in order. Drama-free outings haven't been normal for Kennedy who has pitched to a 5.82 ERA since being acquired by the Phillies at the trade deadline. There was speculation Hector Neris (1.42 ERA since August 1) could find himself back in the closer role, but this game should ensure Kennedy keeps the job for now. Fantasy managers desperate for saves can deploy Kennedy as a low-end RP option, but Neris does have appeal in deeper leagues.

Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Zack Wheeler allowed one run across five innings at the Mets on Friday to pick up his 14th victory of the season. Wheeler didn't pitch deep into this one, but he did rack up six strikeouts and the bullpen held on for the win. With this start, Wheeler has thrown 200 1/3 innings this season, the first time in his career he's hit the 200 inning plateau. Most of those innings have been brilliant as Wheeler is firmly in the NL Cy Young race with a 2.83 ERA, a 1.02 WHIP, and 231 strikeouts thanks to a career-best 29% K-rate. He'll look to pad those impressive numbers with a start versus the lowly Orioles next time out.

Minnesota Twins second baseman/shortstop Jorge Polanco went 3-for-5 with a two-run homer in Friday's win over the Indians. Polanco was one of three Twins to homer in the third inning, as he sent a ball 425 feet into the seats at 104.1 MPH. The 28-year-old is having a career year for Minnesota- and has been one of the best draft values relative to ADP. The surging Polanco is a must-start right now, as he's batting .297 with seven homers in September.

Atlanta Braves outfielder Adam Duvall has quietly been putting together a respectable season at the plate. On Friday, he went 2-for-4 with a double and 2 RBI in the 6-5 loss to the San Francisco Giants. It was a wild game throughout, but the Braves weren't able to capitalize at the end. Duvall will take a .231 average with 35 home runs and 103 RBI into his next game. He is certainly worth rostering due to his above average ability to drive in runs.

Atlanta Braves catcher Travis d'Arnaud looked like he was going to be the hero during Friday's game against the San Francisco Giants. He blasted a three-run go-ahead home run in the ninth inning off righty Tyler Rogers. It was his lone hit of the game, but obviously an important one. He finished the day 1-for-4 and the Braves ended up dropping the game 6-5. Nonetheless, d'Arnaud will take a .228/.290/.413 slash line with seven homers and 25 RBI into his next contest. He isn't a great fantasy option right now and probably shouldn't be trusted on a daily basis.

Minnesota Twins third baseman Josh Donaldson went 2-for-5 with a double and a home run in Friday's win over the Blue Jays. Donaldson contributed to a five-run third inning, sending a ball 382 feet into the seats at 101.5 MPH. It's his 23rd homer of the year. Donaldson has been a frustrating fantasy asset, as his .813 OPS and expected statistics point to a productive player, though he's had trouble staying healthy once again. Hopefully, this game is the start of a good stretch for the slumping Donaldson.

Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Michael Pineda picked up his seventh win of the season Friday against the Blue Jays. Pineda pitched 5 2/3 innings, allowing three runs, one earned, on three hits while walking a pair. The right-hander only struck out two batters but managed to generate nine whiffs, six of them on his heater. Pineda has been an up-and-down fantasy asset this season, though he is having an excellent September, pitching to a 3-0 record with a 1.32 ERA in 13 2/3 innings. He'll be tough to trust in a rematch with the Blue Jays his next time out, even with such success.

New York Yankees outfielder/designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton went 1-for-4 with a solo homer in Friday's win over the Indians. Stanton clubbed one of five Yankee homers, sending a ball 407 feet into the outfield seats at 106 MPH. The veteran slugger has come back down to earth after an otherworldly August but has still posted solid numbers in September, as he owns a .853 OPS with four homers and eight RBI 57 at-bats. Stanton has been a steady, four-category producer for fantasy managers this year, as well as a great value at his ADP.

New York Mets outfielder Brandon Nimmo (hamstring) returned from the injured list on Friday and went 1-for-5 with a run scored in the Mets 4-3 loss to the Phillies. Nimmo had last played on September 4, so his stint on the IL was relatively short. Nimmo has been one of the few consistent hitters for the Mets in 2021, slashing .300/.417/.411 with five home runs, 23 RBI, 43 runs scored, 15 doubles, and five stolen bases over 78 games. Nimmo remains valuable in all formats, particularly in leagues that have on-base percentage as a scoring category, for his solid help with ratios, as well as runs scored.

New York Yankees outfielder Joey Gallo went 3-for-4 with three runs scored, two homers, and a pair of RBI in Friday's win over the Indians. Gallo gave New York a 1-0 lead with a solo shot in the second, then tacked on an insurance run with another blast in the eighth inning. The slugger mostly slumped through his first month as a Yankee but is officially on fire, having homered six times in his last eight games. Gallo has an incredible 43.8 percent barrel rate, 95.8 MPH average exit velocity, and 56.3 percent hard-hit rate during this hot stretch and should be a staple in all fantasy lineups moving forward.

New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor went 2-for-4 with a double and run scored in the Mets 4-3 loss to the Phillies on Friday. Lindor is now hitting .346/.485/.846 with four homers, six RBI, and eight runs scored over his last seven games. While it took a majority of the season for Lindor to find his way with his new ballclub, it appears he has finally broken out of his season-long funk with consistency, exemplified by a 1.038 OPS in September. Lindor has been able to raise his average to .231 on the season, to go with a .327 on-base percentage, 17 homers, and 52 RBI. While these are not eye-popping totals, Lindor lines up as a potential bounce-back candidate in 2022. Fantasy managers in redraft formats should keep him active over the final weeks of the season. Those managers in dynasty formats may want to target him in a trade while his value remains somewhat low, ahead of the 2022 campaign.

New York Yankees starting pitcher Corey Kluber delivered his best outing since returning from the injured list in a win over the Indians Friday. Pitching against his former team, Kluber tossed six shutout innings, allowing four hits and walking two while fanning four batters. The veteran righty had the swing-and-miss stuff working, as he induced 15 whiffs, 14 of them on his cutter and curveball. While fantasy managers would like to see more strikeouts, this was still a very encouraging outing by the Alabama native, who lowered his season ERA and WHIP to 3.68 and 1.28. He'll take on the Rangers next, who were no-hit by Kluber earlier this year.

New York Mets starting pitcher Taijuan Walker allowed two earned runs on three hits, including a home run, over five innings pitched in the Mets 4-3 loss to the Phillies on Friday. Walker did not allow a walk and struck out three in the outing. While he did not pitch poorly, he once again failed to post a quality start and still has not picked up a win since the All-Star break. It has truly been a tale of two seasons for Walker. In the first half of the season, Walker went 7-3 with a 2.66 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, and a 95:30 K:BB ratio over 94 2/3 innings pitched in 16 starts. By contrast, in the second half, Walker has gone 0-7 with a brutal 7.04 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, and a 45:20 K:BB ratio over 55 IP. While this huge difference can potentially be chalked up to fatigue, it is of no consequence to those fantasy managers who were relying on Walker in the second half of the season. At this point, Walker is nothing more than a streamer based on matchup. Walker next lines up to face the Brewers in Milwaukee next Friday where he should likely be faded.

Kansas City Royals third baseman/outfielder Hunter Dozier went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in the team's 6-2 loss to the Seattle Mariners on Friday. The 30-year-old has had a rough season overall, but he's put together a nice string of games lately. Over his last four games, he's hit two home runs and two doubles. He's slashing .267/.358/.578 over the month of September as a whole. Dozier has eligibility at first base, third base and outfield in most fantasy leagues, which gives some additional appeal. If he can continue to build off this recent streak, he could be worth a waiver add in AL-only leagues and deep leagues.

Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Andrew Kittredge struck out one over a perfect inning to earn the win during Friday's 7-4 victory over the Detroit Tigers. He entered the game in the 10th inning and retired all three batters he faced to preserve a 4-4 tie. Rays outfielder Brett Phillips blasted a three-run walk-off shot in the bottom of the 10th inning to give Tampa Bay the victory. Kittredge owns a (9-3) record along with a 1.55 ERA, 0.90 WHIP and 74 strikeouts over 69 2/3 innings in 2021. The 31-year-old is 7-for-8 in save opportunities to go along with six holds. Kittredge is the Rays top reliever and should continue to handle ninth-inning duties despite the return of relievers Nick Anderson (elbow) and Pete Fairbanks (shoulder).

Boston Red Sox outfielder Hunter Renfroe drove in three runs against the Baltimore Orioles Friday, going 1-for-4 with a double, a walk, and a run scored. Renfroe has just three hits in 27 at-bats over his last seven games, but he's been a consistent power threat all season with 28 homers and a .500 slugging percentage. Regularly slotting into the top half of the Boston batting order, he should be in fantasy lineups for the stretch run.

Boston Red Sox relief pitcher Matt Barnes was reinstated from the COVID list prior to Friday night's game against the Baltimore Orioles. He pitched the eighth inning, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out two batters in a scoreless inning. Barnes was removed from the closer role before testing positive for COVID, so fantasy managers should not expect him to receive save changes right away. He does not need to be held on rosters for the time being, but with the bullpen roles in flux, Barnes is worth keeping an eye on as he was extremely effective for the first half of the year.