St. Louis Cardinals left-hander Steven Matz (back) played catch off the mound at Busch Stadium on Friday, according to manager Oliver Marmol. Matz will throw at a much higher intensity on Monday. Matz is dealing with a protruding disc in his lower back and was placed on the 15-day injured list a week ago with a lower-back strain. Given the severity of the 32-year-old veteran southpaw's injury, fantasy managers in deeper leagues shouldn't be expecting Matz to return when he's eligible to come off the IL. In addition to Matz's pretty serious injury, he wasn't good in his six starts before getting hurt, going 1-2 with a 6.18 ERA and 1.73 WHIP with only 17 strikeouts in 27 2/3 innings. Matz probably isn't worth holding onto in shallow-mixed fantasy leagues at this point.

St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Brendan Donovan and second baseman Nolan Gorman are both out of the lineup on Friday with the team facing Milwaukee Brewers rookie left-hander Robert Gasser, who is making his major-league debut. Rookie Michael Siani is starting in center field and is batting ninth, while Jose Fermin is at second base and hitting leadoff for the Cardinals on Friday night. Donovan has struggled so far this year, hitting .217 (31-for-143) with four homers and 19 RBI. Gorman has been even worse, slashing .172/.256/.319 with four home runs and 12 RBI in 116 at-bats. Fermin will be a deep DFS sleeper on Friday night out of the leadoff spot. The 25-year-old Dominican has three hits in only 11 at-bats in eight games this year after making his MLB debut in 2023.

The Milwaukee Brewers acquired right-hander Mitch White from the San Francisco Giants on Friday in exchange for cash considerations and designated right-hander Corbin Martin for assignment in a corresponding move. White started the year with the Toronto Blue Jays and is now on his third organization in the first month and a half of the year. The 29-year-old will likely be a swingman for Milwaukee after recording a rough 7.63 ERA (5.71 FIP) and 1.76 WHIP with nine walks and seven strikeouts in 15 1/3 innings with the Blue Jays and Giants this year, all of which have come out of the bullpen. If the former second-round pick by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2016 out of Santa Clara makes any starts for the Brewers because of their banged-up rotation, White will merely be a shaky deep-league streaming option in fantasy.

The Milwaukee Brewers placed right-hander Joel Payamps on the bereavement list on Friday. In other moves, the Brewers selected left-hander Robert Gasser's contract from Triple-A Nashville, recalled right-hander Janson Junk from Nashville, optioned right-hander Tobias Myers to Nashville and moved right-hander J.B. Bukauskas (triceps) to the 60-day injured list. Payamps could be away from the team for as long as a week, but it's more likely that he's away for around two to three days. With Abner Uribe in the minors and Payamps away from the team, Trevor Megill is the clear favorite for saves in Milwaukee. That should be the case until regular closer Devin Williams (back) is ready to return around the All-Star break. Payamps currently has a 5.25 ERA, a 1.25 WHIP, a career-high four saves, three walks and nine strikeouts in 12 relief innings for the Brewers this year.

Milwaukee Brewers closer Devin Williams (back) is scheduled to start playing catch within the next two weeks, according to manager Pat Murphy. Williams has a checkup with a doctor for his back injury in the coming days. The Brewers' bullpen took a big hit when it was announced that the 29-year-old All-Star closer wouldn't be ready to make his 2024 debut until around the All-Star break due to a serious back issue that has been bothering him for a while. The good news is that Williams appears to be making progress. Given how elite he's been as a closer when healthy, he should be stashed in an injured list spot in all fantasy formats. Joel Payamps and Abner Uribe have been called on in a few save situations, but as of right now, Trevor Megill is the favorite for saves in Milwaukee with Williams still out of the picture.

Milwaukee Brewers outfield prospect Jackson Chourio remains out of the team's starting lineup on Friday as the club faces the visiting St. Louis Cardinals. It's the third straight game that the struggling 20-year-old has started on the bench for the Brew Crew since Christian Yelich returned from the injured list. Blake Perkins is starting in center field for Milwaukee and will hit seventh against Cardinals veteran right-hander Lance Lynn. Chourio is going to be back in the starting lineup at some point, but right now he's the odd man out after starting the year with a .205/.275/.387 slash line while adding four home runs, 13 RBI, six stolen bases and 14 runs scored in his first 33 games in the big leagues. Fantasy managers should keep Chourio on their benches until he gets going.

Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Matt Brash (elbow) underwent successful Tommy John surgery this week. The right-hander had his UCL repaired and is expected to be sidelined until June of 2025. That timeline seems a bit optimistic, but it's possible he returns around then if he doesn't suffer any setbacks. The loss of Brash is a significant hit to the Mariners bullpen considering how well he has pitched in the past. His absence won't mean much for fantasy purposes with Andres Munoz locked into the closer role.

Texas Rangers outfielder Evan Carter (rest) is out of the starting lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Colorado Rockies. The rookie outfielder will sit out for the third time this week against a left-handed starting pitcher. Ezequiel Duran will get the start in left field and bat seventh versus Austin Gomber. Carter has the potential to be a solid big league player, but his fantasy value is limited with him stuck in a platoon role.

San Francisco Giants shortstop Nick Ahmed (wrist) has been placed on the 10-day injured list on Friday. This news comes after Ahmed was hit by a 108-mph line drive during Thursday's game. The team is calling it a left wrist sprain, so hopefully Ahmed won't miss significant time. Casey Schmitt has been recalled from Triple-A to take the spot on the active roster. Both Schmitt and Tyler Fitzgerald figure to see increased playing time with Ahmed sidelined.

Chicago Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki (oblique) has been activated from the 10-day injured list ahead of Friday's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. He has been out since mid-April due to an oblique issue. Suzuki is not in the Cubs' lineup on Friday after appearing in two straight rehab games. This appears to be a travel day or rest day for Suzuki, so the expectation is that he'll play on Saturday. In the meantime, Mike Tauchman will cover right field and bat second versus right-hander Jared Jones on Friday.

Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes (rest) is out of the starting lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Chicago Cubs. Fantasy managers don't need to worry, as this appears to be a routine day off for Hayes. In his absence, Jared Triolo will cover third base and bat seventh versus right-hander Javier Assad on Friday. Fantasy managers should adjust their lineups accordingly.

Chicago Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson (knee) has been placed on the injured list ahead of Friday's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The veteran infielder sat out of Wednesday's game due to knee soreness. It sounds like Swanson has been dealing with a lingering knee issue for quite some time. The team has decided to place him on the injured list and give him some time to recover. Nico Hoerner figures to see more time at shortstop while Nick Madrigal and Miles Miles Mastrobuoni get some action at second base.

Cleveland Guardians catcher Bo Naylor and second baseman Andres Gimenez are both out of the starting lineup on Friday against the Chicago White Sox. Gabriel Arias will fill in at the keystone for Gimenez and bat eighth, while Austin Hedges is doing the catching and is batting in the nine-hole against White Sox left-hander Garrett Crochet. Neither Arias nor Hedges should be much of a consideration in DFS for Friday's lineups. Naylor is off to a slow start, unlike his brother, in 2024, as he's hitting just .189/.280/.295 with three home runs and nine RBI in his first 30 games. Gimenez is slashing .248/.316/.333 with one long ball, 19 RBI, five stolen bases and 19 runs scored in 141 at-bats as Cleveland's regular second baseman. Both Naylor and Gimenez should be back in action on Saturday.

Minnesota Twins second baseman Edouard Julien and outfielders Max Kepler and Alex Kirilloff are not in the starting lineup on Friday with the team facing Toronto Blue Jays left-hander Yusei Kikuchi. The Twins typically sit a lot of their left-handed hitters when they face a southpaw, so this isn't really anything new. Kyle Farmer is starting at second base and is hitting seventh, Manuel Margot is in right field and is batting fifth, and Ryan Jeffers is serving as the designated hitter and is batting leadoff for the Twins. Jeffers is hitless in four career at-bats against Kikuchi, but he's been one of the hottest hitters in baseball the last couple weeks and is hitting .306/.389/.631 with a 1.020 OPS, eight home runs, 29 RBI and 20 runs scored in 111 total at-bats. He'll be a prime DFS target against a southpaw.

Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Joey Votto (ankle) continues to ramp up his baseball activity and is said to be making good progress with hitting, fielding and throwing. His next steps will be live at-bats and then to play in minor-league rehab games. Votto made it clear that he wants to be 100 percent healthy before he returns. It sounds like it won't be until June when we might see the 40-year-old Canadian back in the big leagues with Toronto. When Votto is finally ready to return, he'll be a designated hitter option, at best, against right-handed pitching for the Blue Jays. The six-time All-Star has been hampered by injuries in recent years as he ages and is probably in the final season of his career. In 65 games in his final campaign with the Cincinnati Reds in 2023, Votto hit just .202 (42-for-208), but he did have 14 home runs and 38 RBI.

Toronto Blue Jays rookie right-hander Yariel Rodriguez (back) is playing catch up to 90 feet as he rehabs from thoracic spine inflammation that caused him to land on the 15-day injured list on April 30. Rodriguez will continue to ramp up his arm as he recovers from his back injury, but he almost certainly won't be coming off the injured list when he's eligible on May 14. The 27-year-old Cuban made his first four big-league starts with Toronto before getting hurt, allowing eight runs (seven earned) on 19 hits (two home runs) while walking eight and striking out 16 for a 4.11 ERA (4.53 FIP) and 1.76 WHIP. Rodriguez is much more intriguing in the long term in fantasy than in 2024 as the Blue Jays look to ease him into a starter's workload. Expect them to play it safe with Rodriguez when he returns from his back injury.

Toronto Blue Jays right-handed reliever Chad Green (shoulder) threw a bullpen session on Friday, which was his first time throwing off a mound since he was placed on the injured list back on April 20 with a right-shoulder strain. As long as the 32-year-old veteran doesn't encounter any setbacks along the way, he should certainly be back in Toronto's bullpen by the end of the month. The former 11th-round pick by the Detroit Tigers in 2013 out of Louisville isn't as attractive in fantasy now that regular closer Jordan Romano is back and healthy, but Green still plays a key role as a late-inning setup man and can carry fantasy value in holds leagues when he's active. Before his injury, he was 1-0 with two saves, a 2.35 ERA, a 1.04 WHIP and seven strikeouts in 7 2/3 relief innings.

Toronto Blue Jays right-handed reliever Yimi Garcia (back) is available to pitch out of the bullpen for Friday's game against the visiting Minnesota Twins, according to manager John Schneider. Because of a back injury, Garcia has not appeared in a game for the Blue Jays since April 28, but he should get into a game at some point this weekend. The 33-year-old isn't as attractive in fantasy now that regular closer Jordan Romano is back in the fold at the back end of the bullpen, but Garcia has still been excellent this year. He's currently sporting a microscopic 0.68 ERA and 0.53 WHIP with only three walks and 16 strikeouts in 13 1/3 relief innings pitched. Garcia has also recorded two saves, both those both came early in the year when Romano was hurt.

Toronto Blue Jays outfielders Kevin Kiermaier (illness) and George Springer (illness) are both out of Friday's lineup against the visiting Minnesota Twins because they are sick, according to manager John Schneider. Daulton Varsho is starting in center field and is batting second, while Cavan Biggio is in right field and is hitting seventh against Twins right-hander Joe Ryan. Davis Schneider is in left field and is batting leadoff for the Jays. With Springer under the weather and struggling offensively for much of the year so far, it's possible Schneider sees more time in the leadoff spot, even when Springer gets over his illness. Fantasy baseball managers will need to check back on Saturday to see if either Kiermaier or Springer are feeling well enough to get back on the field for the second game of the weekend series.

Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Bryson Stott and outfielder Brandon Marsh find themselves on the bench for Friday's contest against Miami Marlins left-hander Trevor Rogers. Cristian Pache is in left field for the Phillies and is batting in the eight-hole, while Whit Merrifield will play second base and bat sixth against Rogers. Stott is carrying a .250/.344/.389 slash line with three homers, 19 RBI, eight steals and 19 runs in 108 at-bats so far in 2024. Marsh will be out for the first time since May 1. The 26-year-old is batting .254 (30-for-118) with six homers, 20 RBI, five steals and 13 runs this year. Merrifield is the more realistic DFS sleeper target on Friday. He's never faced Rogers in his career and is hitting .237 (14-for-59) on the year with two homers, four RBI and four stolen bases.