Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Kevin Gausman will make his third start of the season against the Colorado Rockies at the Rogers Centre this evening. The ace pitcher was dealing with shoulder fatigue earlier in the offseason, which prevented him from seeing time in Spring Training and delayed his season debut. He threw four one-run innings against the Tampa Bay Rays in his first start but struggled mightily in his second against the New York Yankees, where he allowed five earned runs. Gausman's velocity dipped in that start but did not express much concern. The 33-year-old should have an excellent opportunity to deliver a quality start against a Rockies team that has the sixth most total strikeouts, making him a fantastic option in DFS.

The Tampa Bay Rays granted right-hander Jake Odorizzi (hamstring, shoulder) his release on Thursday. The veteran of 11 major-league seasons signed a minor-league deal with the Rays in mid-March and made two rehab starts with Triple-A Durham in hopes of getting back to the big leagues. Odorizzi missed all of the 2023 season while recovering from shoulder surgery and will now be looking for another opportunity with another organization in 2024. In his two minor-league starts with Durham, the 34-year-old didn't look good, giving up seven runs while walking five and striking out only two in 5 1/3 innings while being bothered by a hamstring injury. Even if he's healthy and gets a shot elsewhere, it's looking like an uphill battle for Odorizzi to get back to the majors this year.

Houston Astros first baseman Jose Abreu and outfielders Chas McCormick and Jake Meyers are all sitting out on Thursday against the Kansas City Royals in the series finale. Jon Singleton is at first base and batting sixth, Mauricio Dubon is in center field and batting ninth, and Yainer Diaz is serving as the designated hitter and hitting fifth in the order versus Royals right-hander Brady Singer. Just like last year, the 37-year-old Abreu has been ice-cold offensively in the early going for the 'Stros, going 3-for-37 (.081) with no home runs, one RBI and 13 strikeouts in his first 41 plate appearances. He could use a day off. If the veteran first baseman continues to struggle, Houston could give him more frequent days on the bench. None of Singleton, Dubon or Diaz have ever faced Singer in their careers.

Robbie Grossman will be leading off and playing right field for the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday in Chicago's road game against the Cleveland Guardians. Grossman has struggled this season as he has yet to record a hit in 11 at-bats while striking out three times but has walked twice. Grossman signed a minor-league deal with the White Sox and had his contract selected after hitting .400 with two home runs and five RBI in Triple-A.

Pittsburgh Pirates catcher/outfielder Henry Davis and outfielder Michael Taylor will start on the bench on Monday for the series opener against the visiting Detroit Tigers. Joey Bart will do the catching for the Bucs and will hit ninth, while Jack Suwinski is in center field and batting cleanup against Tigers right-hander Reese Olson. This will be Bart's second start in the last three games, and he could see more time behind the plate with Davis starting off his second MLB season just 4-for-30 at the plate. It helps Bart's cause that both Yasmani Grandal (foot) and Jason Delay (knee) are currently on the injured list. This will be Taylor's third straight game starting on the bench. Suwinski is just 6-for-34 (.176) in the early going but will have elevated DFS sleeper appeal in the cleanup spot on Monday.

Fantasy managers might be worried about right-hander Kevin Gausman after his disastrous first start of the season against the New York Yankees on Saturday in which he allowed six runs (five earned) in just 1 1/3 innings, but Gausman isn't too worried after the velocity on all of his pitches was down three to five mph. The 33-year-old All-Star blamed it more on the cold weather in the Bronx more than anything, and fantasy managers must remember that Gausman got a late start to the 2024 season due to right-shoulder fatigue that he dealt with in spring training. "It's just about locating a little bit better," said manager John Schneider. Gausman's velocity was down early in the year in 2023, too, so this shouldn't be a sign of bad things to come in 2024 for Toronto's ace.

Chicago White Sox outfielder Robbie Grossman will get a chance to serve as the team's leadoff hitter with both Luis Robert Jr. (hip) and Eloy Jimenez (groin) on the injured list. The White Sox brought Grossman up from Triple-A Charlotte on Friday, and he's started two of the three games since. The 34-year-old veteran switch-hitter went 0-for-5 in the leadoff spot on Sunday in the loss to the Kansas City Royals, but manager Pedro Grifol said that Grossman will get more opportunities there. Andrew Benintendi will be the biggest loser fantasy-wise after being dropped to the fifth spot in the order on Sunday. Grossman can be a decent source of runs and on-base percentage now that he'll be hitting leadoff and playing often with Robert and Jimenez sidelined, making him worth a pickup at least in AL-only fantasy leagues.

Kansas City Royals left-handed reliever William Smith was brought in for the ninth inning on Friday night with the club holding a 2-1 lead over the visiting Chicago White Sox, but the veteran southpaw was pulled after allowing a hit and walking one in favor of James McArthur, who ended up picking up his first save. Smith did pick up a strikeout and the hold, but it's not a good sign that manager Matt Quatraro gave him the quick hook after he allowed a double and a walk after his strikeout. The 34-year-old wasn't a high-end fantasy baseball closer to begin with, but Smith might already be losing his hold on the closer gig in Kansas City after the first week. Smith already has allowed six earned runs in three innings with a blown save and two losses, so fantasy managers scrounging for saves in the early going should consider picking McArthur up off the waiver wire.

Texas Rangers second baseman Marcus Semien had himself a day in Friday's 10-2 blowout win over the division-rival Houston Astros, getting a hit in all three of his at-bats and bashing a three-run home run during the sixth inning. Semien smacked one 395 feet to deep left center to make the score 10-0 and get the rout fully underway. It was the first homer of the campaign for the 33-year-old fantasy stalwart, who is now slashing .333/.471/.481 with eight RBI and six runs scored across 27 ABs thus far in 2024. Hitting atop one of the most dynamic offenses in baseball, Semien has led MLB in plate appearances in three of the past four years and should serve as head-to-head gem in all fantasy formats. Dating back to 2023, Semien is batting .393 with four bombs, nine RBI, and 14 runs scored in his last 14 games against the Astros and gets Houston three more times this series.

Houston Astros first baseman Jose Abreu has been dropped down in the lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Texas Rangers. The 37-year-old is regressing rapidly as he is having a horrible start to the season. So far, Abreu is slashing .105/.190/.105 with zero RBI and a 6/1 K/BB ratio in 21 plate appearances. On Friday, Abreu will fall to the seventh spot in the batting order against left-hander Cody Bradford. Fantasy managers should expect Abreu to pick it up somewhat, but it's unlikely that he holds steady fantasy value.

Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Kevin Kiermaier (back) was scratched from Friday's lineup against the New York Yankees with lower-back tightness. With Kiermaier now out, Daulton Varsho is moving to center field and will bat eighth, while Davis Schneider moves to left field and will hit fifth against Yankees right-hander Marcus Stroman. Cavan Biggio enters the lineup at second base and will hit sixth. The 33-year-old Kiermaier should be considered day-to-day for now, but fantasy managers shouldn't be surprised if the veteran outfielder misses more than just one day with this injury. On top of now being hurt, he has just one hit in his first 20 plate appearances in 2024 over six games with an RBI, stolen base and six strikeouts for Toronto.

Chicago White Sox outfielder Robbie Grossman could join the major-league roster within the next week, according to general manager Chris Getz. The White Sox don't expect Eloy Jimenez (groin) to land on the injured list, but he is missing his fourth straight game on Thursday, while Grossman is 3-for-7 with two home runs and five RBI in his first two games down on the farm at Triple-A Charlotte. The 34-year-old veteran switch-hitter has the ability to play multiple outfield positions, which will give the White Sox more versatility. Grossman doesn't provide much fantasy upside in deeper leagues, though, if he's back in the big leagues. He's hit over 20 homers just once in his 11 big-league seasons and slashed .238/.340/.394 with 10 homer and 49 RBI in 115 games in 2023 for the Texas Rangers.

Texas Rangers second baseman Marcus Semien collected two hits, both singles, and an RBI in Wednesday's 4-1 win over the Rays. It was Semien's third multi-hit performance in six games, however, he went hitless in the other three games. The 33-year-old is now 6-for-24 (.250) on the young season, with five RBI, three runs scored, and a 5:3 BB:K. The 2x All-Star is still searching for his first home run of the season, but he does have one extra-base hit (a double) so far. It's still very early, but for what it's worth, Semien has an xBA of .318. Look for him to have fewer hitless performances in the future, and surely that first long ball is not far behind.

Cleveland Guardians designated hitter Jose Ramirez went 2-for-4 with two RBI, two runs scored, and a walk on Wednesday in an 8-0 win over the Mariners. Ramirez now has three multi-hit games in his first seven, hitting .273 (9-for-33) with six RBI and eight runs scored. Fantasy managers who invested in him as the first third baseman off the board are expecting 20-plus stolen bases from the veteran, however, and he's yet to record one so far in 2024. It's still early of course, and the Guardians are one of the few teams active Thursday, so we'll see if he gets on the board. He'll face the Twins' Pablo Lopez whom he's seen 13 times before, going 4-for-13 (.308) with a triple and no strikeouts in his career against the righty.

Chicago White Sox catcher Max Stassi (hip) is starting his minor-league rehab assignment with Triple-A Charlotte on Tuesday night. Stassi is working his way back from a hip ailment that landed him on the injured to begin the 2024 regular season, but he could make his debut with the White Sox as early as this weekend if he looks good in the minors. The 33-year-old backstop missed all of last year due to a hip injury and a personal issue and was traded in the offseason from the Los Angeles Angels to the White Sox. When healthy, he'll serve as the team's backup to Martin Maldonado. Currently, Korey Lee is serving as Chicago's No. 2 to begin the year with Stassi on the IL. Unless Maldonado misses time with injury in 2024, Stassi is off the fantasy radar outside of two-catcher, AL-only leagues.

Los Angeles Dodgers relief pitcher Ryan Brasier will take the ball as the opener for Tuesday's game against the San Francisco Giants. The right-hander will get the starting nod in what appears to be a bullpen game for the Dodgers. The expectation is that Brasier will pitch one or two innings before handing it off to the rest of the pen. Ryan Yarbrough and Michael Grove figure to pitch the bulk of the innings on Tuesday. This is a situation to be avoided by fantasy managers.

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher James Paxton faced off against the San Francisco Giants for his first start as a Dodger on Monday. Paxton threw five scoreless innings, giving up four hits while showing spotty control with five walks in addition to five strikeouts. Despite his spotty control, he kept the Giants off the board while also earning himself the win as the Dodgers scored nine runs in the game. Paxton should have another start this week against the Chicago Cubs. Paxton is worth starting in all leagues, as he plays for a stacked Dodgers team and should pick up a lot of wins for fantasy squads on the cheap.

Houston Astros first baseman Jose Abreu (hand) is back in the starting lineup on Monday to take on right-hander Bowden Francis and the Toronto Blue Jays. The veteran missed Sunday's series finale against the New York Yankees with hand soreness after being plunked on the hand by a pitch on Saturday. It was a rough first series at the plate for the 37-year-old, as Abreu went hitless with one walk and three strikeouts across 13 plate appearances against the Yankees. It's a disappointing start after Abreu endured the worst season of his career at the plate in 2023, hitting just .237 with 18 home runs, albeit with 90 RBI, across 141 appearances in his first season with the Astros. His fantasy stock has plummeted, and age could be rearing its ugly head for the former White Sox star.

Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Kevin Gausman allowed one run on two hits across 4 1/3 innings of work during Sunday's 9-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. The right-hander struck out six batters without issuing a walk. Gausman was on a strict workload limit for this one, exiting the game after tossing 69 pitches. Despite that, the 33-year-old looked like his dominant self in his season debut. Gausman should be able to go deeper into the game during his next start against the New York Yankees. He remains a high-end fantasy starter for the rest of the season.

Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Kevin Kiermaier is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Tampa Bay Rays. The 33-year-old started the first three games of the season for Toronto, going 1-for-10 with one RBI and a walk. Kiermaier was battling a knee injury during Spring Training, but he seemed no worse for wear throughout the weekend. Daulton Varsho will slide over to centerfield in his absence while Davis Schneider will start in left. Kiermaier remains nothing more than a depth option in AL-Only or deep league formats.