Atlanta Braves catcher Travis d'Arnaud will get a day to rest in the matinee affair on Thursday at Wrigley Field against the Chicago Cubs to wrap up the series. With d'Arnaud on the bench, Chadwick Tromp will do the catching for right-hander AJ Smith-Shawver and will hit in the eight spot against Cubs right-hander Ben Brown. d'Arnaud has admirably held down the fort as Atlanta's primary backstop with Sean Murphy (oblique) on the injured list since getting hurt on Opening Day. The 35-year-old veteran catcher got off to a hot start with regular playing time in April, but he's cooled off so far in May, going 9-for-43 (.209) with no homers, one RBI and 13 strikeouts in 14 games played. With Murphy's return coming soon, d'Arnaud is going to find himself on the bench more often in the near future. Tromp has gone 11-for-45 (.244) with no homers and six RBI in limited action in 2024.

Texas Rangers right-hander Jon Gray has been placed on the 15-day injured list with a mild groin strain after it was apparent that he wasn't going to be able to make his next scheduled start for the team. Gray injured his groin during his start on Tuesday in the loss to the Philadelphia Phillies, and now he'll have to sit out for at least the next two weeks after an MRI exam revealed a strain in his groin. We'll keep tabs on the 32-year-old's recovery process as he tries to make it back to the Rangers' rotation when he's eligible. Fantasy managers should look to keep Gray stashed on their rosters after he went 2-2 with a strong 2.21 ERA and 1.19 WHIP with 56 strikeouts in 57 innings over 11 outings this year. It's unclear who will take Gray's next turn in the rotation, which comes up on Sunday against the Minnesota Twins, but Nathan Eovaldi (groin) could be an option coming off the injured list.

Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager will get a day to rest on Thursday in the series finale against the Philadelphia Phillies. In his absence, Josh Smith will handle shortstop duties and will bat third against Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler. Ezequiel Duran is manning the hot corner and batting eighth for the Rangers. Seager appears to just be getting a regular day of rest during a day game after he cleared the fences in three straight games. After a slow start to the year in 2024 after having offseason sports-hernia surgery, Seager is starting to hit a stride at the plate and is currently batting .278 (20-for-72) with six of his eight home runs on the year and 11 RBI in 19 games in the month of May. He's a must-start when he's in the Texas lineup. Smith has been swinging a hot bat this year as well and is in an enviable lineup spot on Thursday, but the matchup against Wheeler will be a challenge.

Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Chris Bassitt went seven strong innings in Wednesday's 9-2 victory over the White Sox. The veteran allowed five hits and two walks while striking out four on his way to earning the win. It was the righty's fifth quality start out of 10 starts, and his record now stands at 4-6. This season has been a bit of a mixed bag, as the 35-year-old has a 4.39 ERA on the season despite Wednesday's strong outing, and owns a 1.46 WHIP with a low 10.0% K-BB%. His K% is slightly below average at 20.5%, but it's the walks that have been hurting him, as his BB% stands at 10.5%. He's also got an elevated .314 BABIP, which isn't normal for him (career .281), so perhaps there's been a bit of bad luck too. You're probably only using Bassitt in easier matchups like this one against the Sox, and as luck would have it, he'll face them again in his next start next Monday in Chicago.

Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager clubbed his eighth home run of the year in Wednesday's loss on the road to the Philadelphia Phillies, adding a single and two walks in the blowout defeat. Seager smashed a solo shot to left-center field in the seventh inning, cutting the Rangers' deficit to 10-4. The 30-year-old All-Star slugger is still recovering from a painfully slow start to the season, but he's starting to look like the fantasy stalwart we've come to expect over the years. Over his last 17 games, Seager is hitting .313 with six big flies, 11 RBI, and nine runs scored. A daunting task awaits Seager in the form of Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler in Thursday's series finale, but the veteran infielder has gone 5-for-14 with a double and an RBI in 14 career plate appearances against Wheeler.

Philadelphia Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto broke out at the dish in Wednesday's blowout win over the visiting Texas Rangers, belting his first home run in 14 games since April 28 with three RBI in the rout. After smashing a solo homer to left field to give the Phillies a 3-2 lead in the third inning, Realmuto knocked a two-run single to left field to up the lead to 8-2 during the sixth. The 33-year-old perennial All-Star has been regularly batting second in Philly's lineup since Trea Turner (hamstring) went down, and while he's hitting an excellent .350 (21-for-60) in May, Realmuto only has five RBI and zero stolen bases over 14 games this month. Realmuto will clash with Rangers left-hander Andrew Heaney in Thursday's series finale, and the veteran backstop is batting .360 (18-for-50) with two long balls, three doubles, and six RBI against left-handed pitching this year.

Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Max Fried threw his second complete game of the season in Wednesday's victory on the road over the Chicago Cubs, allowing two runs (one earned) on three hits with a season-high nine strikeouts en route to his fourth win of the year. Fried needed 105 pitches to go the distance in Wednesday's masterful performance, carrying a bid for a perfect game into the sixth inning before Ian Happ's leadoff double broke it up. Even though it's been an up-and-down campaign for the 30-year-old star left-hander, he owns a strong 3.38 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, and 48:20 K:BB with a career-best .197 average against through 10 starts overall (58 2/3 frames) for the Braves in 2024. Monday's series opener at home against the division-rival Washington Nationals marks Fried's next projected start. He gave up two runs over 9 1/3 innings (two starts) with a 9:1 K:BB against Washington in 2023.

Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Trea Turner (hamstring) was taking grounders ahead of Wednesday's game versus the visiting Texas Rangers. Turner has been taking batting practice and also ran arcs in the outfield on Wednesday, which typically preludes running the bases, but he'll get a "pullback day" on Thursday before resuming his ramp-up during the club's weekend series against the Colorado Rockies. Although there's no timeline yet for Turner's return from a strained left hamstring, he could potentially begin a minor-league rehab assignment before the end of May and rejoin Philly's lineup as early as June 8 for the start of the Phillies' two-game series against the division-rival New York Mets in London. Edmundo Sosa is worth a look in deep mixed or NL-only leagues in the interim, slashing .296/.406/.481 with one home run, eight RBI, 13 runs scored, and two stolen bases over 65 plate appearances this year.

Los Angeles Angels relief pitcher Luis Garcia was tasked with holding a one-run lead in the ninth inning of Wednesday's game against the Houston Astros. The right-hander blew the lead during the seventh inning of Tuesday's game. Despite that, Garcia was given another chance and worked a perfect ninth inning to earn his third save of the season. Garcia has been busy pitching in four of the last five games. The Angels bullpen situation is a little messy with Carlos Estevez as the primary closer, but Adam Cimber and Garcia are in the mix as well.

Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Tyler Anderson was able to put together a solid outing during Wednesday's game against the Houston Astros. The left-hander allowed only one run over eight innings of work during Wednesday's victory. Anderson did allow six hits, but he was able to limit the damage. He now holds a 5-4 record with a 2.52 ERA to begin the season.

Seattle Mariners second baseman Jorge Polanco (hamstring) is returning to second base and will bat seventh for the M's on Wednesday against the New York Yankees and left-hander Nestor Cortes in the Bronx. Polanco returns to action for Seattle after missing over a week with a right-hamstring injury. The 30-year-old veteran switch-hitter has struggled to get things going at the plate in his first year with the team in 2024, as he's hitting .192/.298/.308 with five home runs, 13 RBI, one stolen base and 15 runs scored in 146 at-bats. Polanco has been better in May, though, going 11-for-46 (.239) with a homer and three RBI in 11 games. His fantasy managers will be hoping he can pick up where he's left off this month after missing the last week. Polanco has two hits and an RBI in 10 career at-bats off of Cortes.

San Diego Padres second baseman Xander Bogaerts (shoulder) is heading to the injured list, and it appears that veteran outfielder David Peralta will replace him on the active roster. Bogaerts is dealing with a fracture in his left shoulder, although there's no indication of a labrum tear or a need for surgery. He will just need some time for the bone to heal and he intends to play again this year, perhaps by late summer. The Padres are planning for more tests on Bogaerts on Wednesday. The 31-year-old injured his shoulder diving for a ball early in the first game of a doubleheader on Monday against the Atlanta Braves and will now be forced to miss significant time. Luis Arraez should now handle the keystone on a daily basis, leaving Donovan Solano, Tyler Wade and Jose Azocar to battle for DH duties in San Diego. Bogaerts was already off to a weak .219/.265/.316 start with four homers and 14 RBI.

Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Yasmani Grandal (groin), outfielder Jack Suwinski and first baseman Rowdy Tellez are all sitting on Wednesday with the team facing San Francisco Giants left-hander Blake Snell, who is making his first start off the injured list. Joey Bart will do the catching and bat seventh, Michael Taylor is in center field and hitting ninth, and Connor Joe is at first base and batting third against Snell. Grandal left Tuesday's game against the Giants late with left-groin soreness. The Pirates have catcher Grant Koch on the taxi squad, so there's a chance the 35-year-old veteran could land on the injured list. With ... [More]

Detroit Tigers right-hander Shelby Miller (elbow) completed a successful bullpen session on Tuesday. It was the first time that he had thrown off a mound since going on the injured list on May 13 with right ulnar nerve inflammation. The 33-year-old veteran will need to slowly build his arm back up with several more bullpen sessions before he's cleared to face live hitters in batting practice sessions or on a minor-league rehab assignment. Given the fact that Miller is now in a relief role, it shouldn't take him as long to return, which means he has a shot to come off the injured list before June. Miller isn't really on the fantasy radar at all and is currently 3-4 in 2024 with a 4.41 ERA (4.37 FIP) and 1.04 WHIP with six walks and 15 strikeouts in 16 1/3 innings pitched in 15 appearances out of Detroit's bullpen.

Detroit Tigers right-hander Kenta Maeda (illness) threw a bullpen session at Kauffman Stadium on Wednesday and is lined up to start on Saturday or Sunday against the Toronto Blue Jays. Maeda is attempting to return to the Tigers' starting rotation after landing on the injured list with a viral illness in mid-May. The 36-year-old veteran pitched in a minor-league rehab game last week and appears to be feeling good enough to rejoin the team this weekend. The matchup against Toronto isn't a bad one, but fantasy managers should still be very hesitant to throw Maeda back into the fire as a streamer this weekend. In seven starts before going on the shelf, the Japanese hurler went 1-1 with a 6.75 ERA and 1.40 WHIP with only 23 strikeouts in 30 2/3 innings pitched.

Houston Astros first baseman Jose Abreu will remain in West Palm Beach and play Florida Complex League games on Wednesday and Thursday before reporting to Triple-A Sugar Land this weekend, according to manager Joe Espada. It was reported earlier this week that Abreu could rejoin the big-league roster by Friday for the series opener against the Oakland Athletics, but it looks like that won't be the case. The 37-year-old veteran Cuban slugger agreed to head to the minors after starting the 2024 season with a lowly .099 average (7-for-71) with no homers, three RBI and 18 strikeouts in his first 22 games. He's played in four games in the FCL so far, going 6-for-18 (.333) with two doubles and two RBI. When Abreu does return to the Astros, it could just be in a platoon role at first base with the left-handed-hitting Jon Singleton.

Kansas City Royals outfielder Hunter Renfroe will head to the bench for Wednesday's contest as the Royals go for the sweep against the visiting Detroit Tigers in the series finale. Renfroe has gone 6-for-24 (.250) with a homer and five RBI in his last seven games since May 12, but overall he's been bad this year with a .160/.236/.282 slash line with four home runs, 18 RBI and 15 runs scored in 144 plate appearances over 43 games played in his first year in KC. With Renfroe on the bench, Dairon Blanco is getting the start in right field and will bat seventh against Tigers left-hander Tarik Skubal. Blanco has three hits and two RBI in six career at-bats against Skubal. The 31-year-old Cuban outfielder has been useful for his speed this year in AL-only leagues, as he has 11 thefts in just 44 at-bats in 2024.

Texas Rangers starting pitcher Jon Gray (groin) will undergo an MRI after being removed early from Tuesday's start with a right-groin injury. The veteran tossed five innings on 75 pitches before being pulled from the game. Manager Bruce Bochy said that Gray was experiencing tightness in his right groin and it wasn't worth it to keep pushing Gray and potentially injure him more. It seems like the move to remove Gray was more of a precaution than anything, but his MRI will determine the true extent of his injury. Bochy expect Gray to be able to make his next start versus the Minnesota Twins on Sunday. If Gray does miss time, Jack Leiter would be an option for a spot start.

Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Jose Alvarado picked up his ninth save of the season in Tuesday's 5-2 win over the Rangers. Alvarado came in to pitch the top of the ninth inning up by three. He got the first out on a ground-out, had a runner reach on a throwing error and allowed a single, and ended the game with back-to-back strikeouts. The 29-year-old has pitched well overall this season, converting all of his save opportunities with a 3.54 ERA, an 8.85 K/9 rate, and a 3.10 BB/9 rate in 22 appearances. However, Jeff Hoffman, who pitched in the eighth inning of this game, has also pitched well and has converted three of six save opportunities. Alvarado appears to have more fantasy value of the two, but his overall value may remain in the mid-tier if Hoffman continues to see somewhat frequent save chances.