San Francisco Giants right-hander Alex Cobb (hip, shoulder) was moved to the 60-day injured list on April 20, so he won't be eligible to return until May 27. Cobb was progressing well in his rehab from offseason hip surgery, but he hit another minor setback when he felt mild shoulder irritation before throwing a bullpen session on April 16. He "felt OK" when he resumed throwing but saw team orthopedist Dr. Ken Akizuki as a precaution on April 18, according to manager Bob Melvin. Cobb said the imaging on his shoulder came back clean, and he's currently throwing out to 75 feet on flat ground. The 36-year-old also had a "baby setback" when he was briefly shut down with a mild flexor strain in his right elbow. Cobb should have a rotation spot waiting for him when he's healthy, but he can stay on the waiver wire for now in most mixed leagues.

The Kansas City Royals placed right-hander Jordan Lyles (personal) on the inactive list on Saturday, and the team is not disclosing the reason for his absence other than describing it as a "personal matter." There's no timeline for his return, but because of the type of inactive list Lyles was placed on, it opened a 40-man roster spot for the Royals to call up veteran right-handed reliever Tyler Duffey. Lyles has thrown five scoreless innings with three strikeouts in five appearances out of KC's bullpen during the 2024 regular season, but he hasn't pitched since April 12. With no defined role and most of his work coming in mop-up duty this year, however, the 33-year-old journeyman belongs on fantasy waiver wires while he's unavailable. There's no clear-cut fantasy beneficiary of his absence, either.

New York Mets designated hitter J.D. Martinez (back) will move his rehab to Triple-A Syracuse this week, and "it's possible" the team could activate him when they get home on Friday for the start of a three-game series with the St. Louis Cardinals, per manager Carlos Mendoza. After receiving a cortisone shot due to lower back tightness, Martinez returned to a minor-league rehab assignment on Sunday and is on track to make his 2024 regular-season debut in Queens in Week 4 of fantasy baseball. With the Mets struggling to find consistency in the heart of their batting order, the 36-year-old All-Star slugger figures to slot right in as the No. 5 hitter in the lineup immediately upon his move to New York's active roster. After slashing .271/.321/.572 with 33 home runs, 27 doubles, and 103 RBI across 432 at-bats (113 games) with the Los Angeles Dodgers last year, Martinez should be rostered for those in need of power numbers.

San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado has been placed on the paternity list on Monday. The superstar infielder will be away from the team for one to three days due to personal matters. In a corresponding move, infielder Matthew Batten has been recalled from Triple-A El Paso. Batten will take over the active spot on the roster and figures to play in a few games until Machado returns. Eguy Rosario is starting at third base and is hitting seventh on Monday against the Colorado Rockies and left-hander Austin Gomber.

Cleveland Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez is out of the team's starting lineup on Sunday as they take on the visiting Oakland Athletics. In Ramirez's absence, Gabriel Arias will start at the hot corner and bat eighth in the batting order against A's right-hander Ross Stripling. Ramirez, a five-time All-Star, has gotten off to a bit of a slow start by his standards this year, going 22-for-92 (.239) with three home runs, 18 RBI, one stolen base and 15 runs scored in his first 21 games played and 95 trips to the plate. Fantasy managers shouldn't be too worried, though, and he should be back in action on Tuesday against the Boston Red Sox after a scheduled off day on Monday. Arias is hitting .302 (13-for-43) with a homer, seven RBI and a steal in the early going, but he's never faced Stripling in his career.

Houston Astros starting pitcher Justin Verlander went six innings in his season debut on Friday and picked up the win in a 5-3 victory over the Nationals. The veteran hurler allowed two earned runs on four hits (one HR) and didn't walk a batter while striking out four. It looks like the 41-year-old won't miss a beat despite missing the first few weeks of the season. Even though his K% has gone down in three consecutive seasons and Contact% has gone up in each of those seasons, the 3x Cy Young winner has remained effective, going 13-8 last season with a 3.22 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, and 14.8% K-BB%. His next start lines up with the Cubs next Thursday in Chicago.

Texas Rangers starting pitcher Max Scherzer (back) is slated for a rehab start on Wednesday. Scherzer recovered well from his live batting practice session and the team feels comfortable enough to move him forward in his recovery process. The expectation is that Scherzer may be ready to return to the Rangers' rotation in early May. The 39-year-old was solid in the regular season with the Rangers in 2023, posting up a 3.20 ERA in eight starts. Scherzer did show some cracks late in the season, though, and expectations for the veteran right-hander may need to be tempered by fantasy managers who are used to Scherzer's gaudy numbers. When he joins the AL West leading Rangers, his value may be best in DFS formats

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith is not in the starting lineup Saturday against the New York Mets and right-hander Jose Butto. It's a predictable absence as the Dodgers and Mets played a night game on Friday but will get together for an afternoon clash on Saturday. Smith went 2-for-4 with a walk, a double, and a run scored on Friday but the Dodgers took a 9-4 loss despite his efforts. The 29-year-old has come out of the gate hot this season, hitting .356 with a homer, five doubles, and an .861 OPS across 81 plate appearances, good for fourth-most among big-league backstops. The Dodgers have surprisingly dropped four of their last five entering Saturday's contest.

The Tampa Bay Rays selected the contract of right-hander Erasmo Ramirez from Triple-A Durham on Saturday and optioned left-hander Jacob Lopez to Durham in a corresponding move. The Rays also moved infielder Taylor Walls (hip) to the 60-day injured list. Ramirez will join Tampa's bullpen for the first time in 2024 after giving up two earned runs while striking out 13 in 8 1/3 innings pitched for the Bulls on the farm. The 33-year-old is unlikely to be a fantasy asset after posting a 6.41 ERA (5.05 FIP) and 1.57 WHIP with 13 walks and 43 strikeouts in 60 1/3 innings over 38 appearances (two starts) for the Rays and Washington Nationals. Ramirez has only struck out 6.8 batters per nine innings in his 12-year MLB career.

Philadelphia Phillies manager Rob Thomson said that right-hander Taijuan Walker (shoulder) will make a third minor-league rehab start on Sunday for Triple-A Lehigh Valley. If Walker comes out of that outing without any setbacks, he's expected to rejoin the Phillies' starting rotation after that to make his 2024 debut. The Phillies aren't going to rush the 31-year-old veteran back into the fold, especially with Spencer Turnbull pitching well right now as he fills in for Walker. Fantasy baseball managers looking for extra rotation depth in deeper mixed leagues may want to consider picking Walker up now and stashing him. Walker's 4.83 xFIP last year shows he was pretty lucky to come away with a 4.38 ERA in his 31 starts in 2023. He'll be a matchup-based streamer once he returns to the majors.

Atlanta Braves left-hander Chris Sale will be looking to bounce back from a rough outing when he takes on the visiting Texas Rangers on Friday. The veteran was touched up for five earned runs on six hits, including a homer, while walking three against seven strikeouts across seven innings in a loss to the Marlins his last time out. Despite the tough outing, Sale has been quit good early on in his Braves tenure. While his ERA has risen to 4.58, he also sports a 2.91 xFIP, 3.09 SIERA, and a healthy 21.1% K-BB% through his first three starts with Atlanta. He remains a quality fantasy asset whose injury woes are seemingly behind him.

Chicago Cubs first baseman Michael Busch and catcher Yan Gomes are not in the starting lineup on Friday against the visiting Miami Marlins and left-hander A.J. Puk. Garrett Cooper is playing first base and batting seventh in the lineup, while Miguel Amaya is doing the catching and batting in the nine-hole against Puk. Busch had a streak of five straight games with a home run come to an end this week and he's hitting a strong .317 (19-for-60) overall with six total long balls, 13 RBI and 10 runs scored to start his first year in Chicago. He's hit just .167 (4-for-24) and has yet to homer against a left-hander in his career, though, so he'll likely occasionally be rested against lefties this year. Cooper has never faced Puk in his career, while Amaya has a hit and RBI in his only career at-bat against the southpaw.

Texas Rangers second baseman Marcus Semien had a great day at the dish on Thursday, leading the team to a 9-7 win over the Detroit Tigers. Semien went 3-for-6 with a homer and a double while scoring a pair of runs and knocking in one. With the big performance, the 33-year-old bumps up his slash line to .286/.355/.464 on the season. He also has 16 runs scored, three homers, 17 RBI, and a stolen base. While the counting numbers are great, his power and speed have left a little to be desired so far, but those should pick up as the season goes on.

San Francisco Giants right-hander Alex Cobb (shoulder, elbow, hip) said after the game on Thursday night that he had an MRI exam come back clean and that he will throw on flat ground on Friday. The news comes after it was reported earlier on Thursday that Cobb developed "mild shoulder inflammation" in his right arm two days after his latest bullpen session. The 36-year-old veteran has now dealt with elbow and shoulder issues while initially rehabbing from offseason hip surgery. It's good news that his shoulder injury isn't anything serious, but he's going to need at least several weeks to ramp his arm back up before he becomes a realistic option for the Giants' starting rotation in 2024. Injury issues aside, there's not a ton of fantasy upside with Cobb at this point in his career.

The Texas Rangers are now hoping that right-hander Max Scherzer (back) can return from the injured list in early May after originally believed to be out until maybe late June. Scherzer threw 25 pitches during a live batting practice session on Monday and is expected to throw 40 pitches in a another live BP session on Friday. If he comes out of Friday's session all good, he could embark on a minor-league rehab assignment after that. Scherzer said he's still a bit cautious about his return from surgery to fix a herniated disc in his back, but this is still a very positive development for the Rangers and fantasy managers that have been stashing Scherzer since the regular season started. Don't expect ace-like numbers from the 39-year-old at this point in his career, but when healthy, Scherzer can still act as a solid mid-rotation fantasy starter.

The San Francisco Giants announced on Thursday that starting pitcher Alex Cobb (hip, shoulder) is now dealing with mild shoulder irritation amid his recovery from offseason surgery on his left hip. Cobb says his arm is just still a little "cranky" as he ramps back up, but he doesn't believe his timetable has changed much. It's still yet another minor setback for Cobb, who just resumed throwing on Monday following a brief shutdown due to a mild flexor strain in his right elbow. The 36-year-old right-hander was an All-Star in 2023 and should still be able to return at some point in the month of May. Until Cobb is ready to re-enter San Fran's rotation, swingman Jordan Hicks should remain locked in as a starter for the Giants. Hicks features a 1.57 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, and 18:6 K:BB through 23 innings (four starts) and is a must-roster fantasy player ahead of Sunday's scheduled start versus the division-rival Arizona Diamondbacks.

Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout went hitless in three at-bats with a strikeout in Thursday's 2-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays, he still managed to do some damage on the basepaths with a walk, a run scored and two stolen bases. Trout is already up to five stolen bases on the season, which ties the amount of steals he had in the previous three seasons combined. This was also his first multi-steal game since May of 2018. As long as he stays healthy, the three-time MVP could once again be a big threat in the stolen-base department for fantasy managers. In addition to his five stolen bases, Trout is now hitting .270 with a 1.019 OPS, a league-leading eight home runs, 11 RBI and 13 runs scored. The 32-year-old appears to be back after a frustrating injury-riddled season in 2023.

Los Angeles Angels catcher Logan O'Hoppe and outfielder Aaron Hicks will both start on the bench for Thursday's series finale against the Tampa Bay Rays. It's not surprise that O'Hoppe is out for the day game following a night game. Matt Thaiss is doing the catching and batting fifth, while Mickey Moniak is in right field and batting sixth against Rays right-hander Ryan Pepiot. Neither Thaiss nor Moniak have faced Pepiot in their careers. O'Hoppe has been very hot to start the year, going 18-for-53 (.340) with two home runs and seven RBI in his first 16 games, while Hicks has been the opposite, going 7-for-44 (.159) with a homer and four RBI in his first 13 games with the Halos. Hicks has started just one of the team's last four games and is losing fantasy value quickly in AL-only leagues.

Los Angeles Angels outfielder Mike Trout continued his strong start to the 2024 campaign with a solo home run in Wednesday's 5-4 win over the Tampa Bay Rays, also drawing an intentional walk in the ninth inning. Trout homered to deep right center in the first inning to get the Halos into the scoring column, which was already his eighth round-tripper of the young season. The 32-year-old perennial All-Star has been excellent so far this year, slashing .282/.363/.690 with an American League-high eight homers, 11 RBI, 12 runs scored, and three stolen bases while returning early-round numbers in all fantasy settings. His RBI upside will likely be held back by Anaheim's underwhelming lineup all season long, but the swipes are a welcome sight after the oft-injured Trout stole only three bags across 201 games from 2022 to 2023. After Thursday's series finale against the Rays, Trout gets a three-game series at the hitter-friendly Great American Ball Park.

Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez (groin) made a significant impact during his return to the lineup on Wednesday. The 33-year-old backstop is playing through a Grade 1 left groin strain that he suffered earlier in the week. On Wednesday, Perez smacked a go-ahead two-run home run off right-hander Michael Kopech in the eighth inning. Perez is off to a red-hot start at the plate this season. He has five home runs and 17 RBI through 17 games.