Minnesota Twins relief pitcher Griffin Jax shut the door on the Chicago White Sox on Thursday, helping secure a 6-3 victory. Jax came in with the bases loaded and one out with a four-run lead and managed to escape with only one runner crossing home (on an error), picking up his fourth save in the process. Jax has filled in admirably as the impromptu closer after Jhoan Duran went down before the season started, posting a 2.53 ERA and 0.94 WHIP while striking out 15 batters in 10 IP. He is also 4-for-5 in save chances. Unfortunately for Jax and his fantasy managers, Duran could be back at any point as he is currently on a rehab assignment. Once he is back, Jax will likely shift back to a set-up role.

Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Hector Neris notched his third save on Thursday, slamming the door on the Houston Astros in a 3-1 win. Neris was a little shaky in his inning of work, walking a pair before getting out of it. Since manager Craig Counsell said that Adbert Alzolay was being taken out of the closer role last weekend, Neris has converted on all three of his save opportunities and apparently taken that role over. He should be added in most leagues where saves are important.

Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Andres Munoz picked up his third save of the season on Thursday, locking down the Texas Rangers in a 4-3 win. Munoz tossed up goose eggs across the board in his inning of work as he didn't allow a baserunner and didn't strike anyone out either. It was the 25-year-old's first save since April 6, as he has been used in non-save situations and has also blown a save since then. It seems like Munoz is still Seattle's highest-leverage pitcher and should see the most save chances, but his season total might be held back by being used in the seventh or eighth innings on occasion.

Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Justin Lawrence threw a perfect ninth inning in a 10-9 victory over the San Diego Padres, picking up his second save in the process. Lawrence struck out one and didn't allow a baserunner in his inning of work. Although he hasn't been good this year, as evidenced by his 5.59 ERA and 1.55 WHIP, Lawrence still might be the best Colorado has in its bullpen. He has the team's last two saves and is likely to remain in that role. He doesn't need to be owned in standard leagues, but deeper league managers who play in saves-only formats might want to give Lawrence a look.

Los Angeles Dodgers closer Evan Phillips locked down the Washington Nationals on Thursday, helping secure a 2-1 win. Phillips looked great in this one, striking out a pair in a perfect ninth inning. For the season, the 29-year-old has been excellent, posting a 0.84 ERA and 1.13 WHIP with 13 strikeouts in 10 IP. Phillips should continue getting the bulk of the Dodgers save chances, making him an elite closing option in fantasy.

Texas Rangers first baseman Nathaniel Lowe clubbed his first home run of the season on Thursday despite taking a 4-3 loss at the hands of the rival Seattle Mariners. The 28-year-old appeared in only his fifth game of the season due to an oblique injury suffered late in spring training but he's been off to a hot start in a small sample. Lowe is hitting .294 (5-for-17) with a homer, a double, three walks, three runs scored, and .929 OPS across his first 20 trips to the plate. Armed with pop and plenty of patience at the plate, Lowe hit .262 with 17 home runs, 89 runs, 82 RBI, a 12.8% BB%, and a .774 OPS while appearing in 161 games in the 2023 season, the third straight season in which he has appeared in at least 157 contests.

Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Teoscar Hernandez slugged his sixth home run of the season on Thursday as part of a narrow 2-1 win over the hosting Washington Nationals. Hernandez clubbed a solo shot to get the scoring started in the top half of the second inning while Yoshinobu's six scoreless innings helped keep the Nationals' offense at bay. After a mild season, by his standards, in his lone campaign with the Mariners in 2023, Hernandez is back to his slugging ways with a .255 average alongside those six home runs and an .807 OPS across 27 games his first 114 trips to the plate in a Dodgers uniform. Even with a 35.1% K% on the season, Hernandez is providing quality returns to those fantasy managers who invested in a bounce-back in 2024.

Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler was brilliant on Thursday, tossing six shutout innings while allowing just one hit while punching out eight on the afternoon as part of a 5-0 win over the Cincinnati Reds. He walked four on the day and was at 103 pitches by the end of his outing but managed to earn his second decision of the season. With the outing, the 33-year-old lowered his ERA to a tidy 1.93 mark on the season through six starts, striking out 46 while walking 11 across 37 1/3 innings of work. Somehow, he has managed to go just 2-3 on the young season. He lines up to take on the Angels in his next scheduled start next Tuesday in Los Angeles.

Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper celebrated the birth of his second child with a home run on Thursday in his return from the paternity list. Harper's third-inning two-run shot was his fifth of the season and gave the Phillies a 4-0 lead as part of an eventual 5-0 victory over the Cincinnati Reds. Interestingly, Harper also homered in his first game back from the birth of his first child five years ago. The 31-year-old is now hitting .256 with those five long balls alongside 16 RBI and an .835 OPS across 22 games on the season. The two-time NL MVP has made a full-time transition to first base this season to take pressure off of his surgically-repaired elbow and has provided his typical big-time offense for fantasy managers early in the 2024 season.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.