Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve will start Sunday's contest versus the visiting Minnesota Twins on the bench and give way to Mauricio Dubon, who will start at the keystone and bat sixth against Twins rookie right-hander Simeon Woods Richardson. It's just the second time all year that Altuve hasn't started a game for the Astros. Fantasy managers will want to move him to their benches for Sunday's action. The 34-year-old perennial All-Star has avoided the injury bug so far in 2024 and continues to be a hitting machine, slashing .292/.346/.450 with nine home runs, 20 RBI, eight stolen bases and 34 runs scored in his 240 at-bats. Expect him to be back in the starting lineup for Monday's series opener against the visiting St. Louis Cardinals. Dubon has done nothing but hit this year as well but only has two homers and two steals to show for it.

San Diego Padres right-hander Yu Darvish (groin) has landed on the 15-day injured list on Saturday. The veteran was still under evaluation ahead of Tuesday's scheduled start against the Los Angeles Angels and while he hadn't been ruled out of making that start, he has indeed been placed on the 15-day IL. Making matters worse for the Friars is the fact fellow righty Joe Musgrove (elbow) also landed on the 15-day IL on Wednesday, decimating a Padres rotation that sits 18th with a 4.13 ERA on the season. As for Darvish, the 37-year-old has done his part in tossing a 3.20 ERA across his 11 starts, going 4-3 in the process. It's a nice bounce-back for Darvish who scuffled to a 4.56 ERA in the 2023 season but fantasy managers will need to exercise what will hopefully be some short-term patience as he sits on the sidelined with a groin issue.

Houston Astros first baseman Jon Singleton, outfielder Chas McCormick and catcher Yainer Diaz are all resting on Saturday against the visiting Minnesota Twins. Jose Abreu will start at first base and bat eighth, Mauricio Dubon will play left and hit seventh, and Victor Caratini will do the catching and fill out the nine-hole for Houston against Twins right-hander Joe Ryan. None of Houston's lineup replacements have a ton of DFS upside in the bottom third of the batting order against a tough pitcher. Now that Abreu is back from the minors, the 32-year-old lefty-hitting Singleton is going to find himself on the bench more often. In three games since returning to the big leagues, the struggling Abreu has two hits and an RBI in 10 plate appearances. The veteran slugger is now hitting just .111 (9-for-81) on the year and is still searching for his first homer.

Boston Red Sox relief pitcher Liam Hendriks (elbow) was able to throw fastballs and breaking pitches off the front of a mound on Thursday as he progresses in his throwing program after having Tommy John surgery. The 35-year-old Australian reliever overcame a cancer diagnosis to return to the Chicago White Sox in 2023, but he only ended up appearing in five games before undergoing elbow surgery. The three-time All-Star has 116 career saves in the big leagues over 13 seasons, so he'll bring veteran experience to the back end of Boston's bullpen when he's eventually cleared, but there's no current timetable for his return, and he's unlikely to join the team until the second half of the season. For now, Hendriks can be left to the waiver wire in most fantasy leagues, and there's no guarantee he'll be a candidate for saves in Boston as long as Kenley Jansen remains healthy.

San Diego Padres starting pitcher Yu Darvish (hamstring) is still being evaluated and could make his next scheduled start. The right-hander was removed from Wednesday's start after three innings due to a left hamstring issue. Depending on how he feels, Darvish could make his next start on Tuesday. Fantasy managers will have to wait and see as the Padres are taking it day-by-day right now. There should be an update on his status within the next day or two.

Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez went 2-for-4 with a double and his 10th home run of the season in Wednesday's 6-1 win over the Twins. The veteran collected two RBI and scored twice as well. The 34-year-old is having a nice season so far, with a .325-10-41-24-0 line along with a .397 wOBA and 156 wRC+. Perez is the second-highest-scoring catcher in fantasy to date, providing fantasy managers who invested in him a bountiful early return on their investment.

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith put on a power display in Wednesday's blowout win over the hosting New York Mets, going 3-for-5 with two solo home runs. Smith launched his eighth and ninth homers on Wednesday, first belting a solo home run to left field to give the Dodgers a 1-0 lead in the second inning and later smacking a go-ahead home run to left-center field to give the team a 4-3 lead in the eighth inning. The 29-year-old slugging backstop is now slashing .296/.360/.516 with nine home runs, 14 doubles, 36 RBI, and 32 runs scored over 186 at-bats (49 games) as LA's primary option behind the dish. Continue to roll with Smith in all fantasy leagues.

San Diego Padres right-hander Yu Darvish (hamstring) left his start early on Wednesday against the Miami Marlins with left-hamstring tightness. Darvish is currently undergoing testing, and we should have a better idea of whether he'll be forced to miss his next scheduled start after we receive those results. Before being pulled, the 37-year-old Japanese hurler gave up three runs (two earned) on six hits while walking one and striking out two to take his third loss of the season. Until we know more, fantasy managers may want to prepare for a possible trip to the injured list for Darvish. If Darvish is forced to miss a few starts, Randy Vasquez could be in line to join SD's rotation for a bit. Heading into Wednesday's game, Darvish had been solid this year, going 4-2 with a 3.04 ERA and 0.99 WHIP with 51 K's in 53 1/3 innings over 10 starts.

Texas Rangers second baseman Marcus Semien is taking his first day off of the year and his first since May of 2022 for Wednesday's matinee game against the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks. With Semien on the bench, Ezequiel Duran is at the keystone and is batting ninth, while outfielder Travis Jankowski is serving as the designated hitter and batting leadoff against Diamondbacks right-hander Ryne Nelson. Semien isn't hurt, but he's been a little banged up after colliding with teammate Adolis Garcia back on May 18. The 33-year-old will also have the day off during the team's travel day on Thursday before returning to action for Friday's series opener against the Marlins in Miami. Semien is currently slashing .249/.302/.425 with nine homers and 34 RBI in 233 at-bats. Jankowski will have some DFS sleeper appeal in the leadoff spot for Texas.

Texas Rangers starting pitcher Max Scherzer (thumb) is scheduled to throw a "full" bullpen session on Wednesday. This seems like good news after the veteran right-hander was pulled off a rehab assignment earlier this month due to a nerve issue. The hope is that Scherzer can ramp up his activities and start a rehab assignment in early June. There is no current timetable for Scherzer, but at least this sounds like Scherzer is headed in the right direction.

According to Pittsburgh Pirates manager Derek Shelton, veteran left-hander Martin Perez (groin) will go on the 15-day injured list as the team awaits more testing on him. The groin injury that Perez suffered in his last outing on Sunday against the Atlanta Braves is obviously serious enough to keep him out for at least the next two weeks, but we don't have the exact specifics of the severity of the injury. The 33-year-old southpaw has been up and down in 2024 and doesn't have much upside in the strikeout department. Perez has so far gone 1-3 on the year with a 4.71 ERA (4.67 FIP) and 1.55 WHIP with 19 walks and 46 strikeouts in 57 1/3 frames over his 11 starts for the Bucs. The most likely scenario is that young pitcher Quinn Priester is brought back up from the minors to take Perez's rotation spot the next few weeks.

Houston Astros first baseman Jose Abreu was recalled from Triple-A Sugar Land on Monday. He is back in the starting lineup at first base and batting eighth against the Seattle Mariners. Joey Loperfido was optioned back to Triple-A as a corresponding move. Abreu was demoted to the minor leagues after a horrific start to the season that saw him slashing .099/.156/.113 through 22 games. The veteran slugger was also pretty dismal throughout the 2023 campaign, so a return to fantasy relevance seems unlikely at this point. Abreu will also have to battle Jon Singleton, who is starting at DH tonight, for regular playing time. As for Loperfido, the team's sixth-ranked prospect performed well in limited at-bats. He remains a player of interest in dynasty formats, but him and Abreu are both non-factors in redraft leagues at this point.

Toronto Blue Jays designated hitter Justin Turner and outfielder Kevin Kiermaier are both starting on the bench for Monday's contest in Chicago against the White Sox. Turner has lost playing time of late, with this being the third time in the last five games that he finds himself on the bench to start. Kiermaier, meanwhile, will ride the pine for the second straight day. Daniel Vogelbach is serving as the DH and will hit fifth, while Daulton Varsho starts in center field and bats sixth against White Sox right-handed rookie Nick Nastrini. Davis Schneider is in left field and is batting leadoff for the Jays. Turner has had a disastrous month of May, hitting .102 (6-for-59) without a home run to drop his season line to .222/.301/.359. Kiermaier hasn't been much better in 2024, hitting .226 (.21-for-93) with only one homer and seven RBI.

St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Sonny Gray tossed five shutout innings on Sunday Night Baseball and allowed just one hit and two free passes to lead St. Louis to a series sweep. He struck out eight. This dominant outing brings Gray to a stellar 2.60 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, and 67:12 K:BB ratio through his first nine starts with his new club. Gray's underlying metrics are quite strong, suggesting that the 34-year-old could be in for a nice summer. He currently holds a 34.1% hard-hit rate and 32.4% K rate, which place him in the top 79th percentile and 93rd percentile, respectively. Gray should continue to be started in all formats and will usually be a solid choice in DFS formats.

Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Chris Sale was magnificent once again on Sunday, throwing seven innings of one-run ball in an 8-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Sale allowed just four hits and one walk while striking out eight. The veteran lefty improved to 8-1, lowering his ERA to 2.12 and his WHIP to 0.85. Those are Cy Young caliber numbers, and the guy was being drafted outside of the top 100. At this point, it seems that the only thing that can hold him back from being an ace for the rest of the season is an injury.

Houston Astros first baseman Jose Abreu will return to the team on Monday to kick off their series against the Seattle Mariners. Abreu had most recently been with Triple-A Sugar Land after the Astros optioned him to the minors due to his early-season struggles. The veteran slugger had produced a dismal .099/.156/.113 slash line with no home runs, three RBI and a 3:18 BB:K through 22 games in 2024. While he had some production in the Florida Complex League immediately after his demotion, he actually went hitless across his seven at-bats in Triple-A. Even with Abreu returning, there is no guarantee he gets regular playing time over Jon Singleton. The former MVP is best left on the waiver wire at this point.

Pittsburgh Pirates left-hander Martin Perez (groin) left Sunday's start against the Atlanta Braves after three innings due to a groin injury. He surrendered one run on four hits while giving up two walks and striking out two. The veteran left-hander is undergoing further testing as the extent of the injury is not known at this point. It is unclear whether he will be able to make his next scheduled start on June 2 against the Toronto Blue Jays. Perez has compiled a 4.71 ERA, 1.55 WHIP and 46:19 K:BB across 11 starts this season and is nothing more than a streaming option when healthy.

Los Angeles Angels star outfielder Mike Trout (knee) said before Saturday's game that he's feeling better and his rehab is going to plan. He underwent surgery to repair the meniscus in his left knee in early May. The 32-year-old has been on the elliptical and the bike. His next step will be the treadmill. Trout has not begun baseball activities but is progressing. There is no official timetable for his return, but he is expected to return later in the season. He slashed .220/.325/.541 with 10 home runs, 14 RBI, 17 runs, and six stolen bases over 29 games before landing on the injured list. Fantasy managers should continue to stash Trout on their rosters in all leagues.

Houston Astros starting pitcher Justin Verlander struck out nine batters and picked up the win in Friday's 6-3 victory over the Athletics. The veteran scattered eight hits and hit a batter over six innings of work while walking none. It was the 41-year-old's fourth quality start in seven starts and a nice bounce-back game after giving up four runs in four-and-two-thirds-innings pitched. The righty is now 3-2 on the season and owns a 3.60 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, and a 12.6% K-BB%. Verlander gets a mouthwatering matchup with Seattle his next turn through the rotation on Thursday. The Mariners have the fourth-lowest team batting average on the season and have the most strikeouts in the entire league.