New York Yankees designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton is back in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Milwaukee Brewers. The slugger was given a rest day for Friday's game but still notched a go-ahead RBI double in extra-innings in the Yankees' 7-6 loss to the Brewers. Stanton has had a solid start to the season slashing .232/.284/.476 with five HR and 13 RBI. He'll get a matchup against Brewers right-hander Joe Ross, who Stanton is 2-10 against with a HR. With Stanton hitting for an .829 OPS against righties (compared to .658 vs lefties) he should be a viable option in DFS formats.

The New York Mets have placed outfielder Starling Marte on the bereavement list while infielder Mark Vientos has been recalled from Triple-A Syracuse to take his spot on the active roster. The 35-year-old has been off to a hot start this season, hitting .288 with four home runs, six stolen bases, and a .769 OPS across 111 trips to the plate, good for a 119 wRC+ that sits 19% above the league average. Marte plummeted down draft boards after a 2023 season that saw him hit .248 with only five homers alongside 24 stolen bases and a .625 OPS across 86 games in 2023, by far the worst offensive season of his career. However, he has rewarded managers who bet on a bounce back in drafts this spring.

New York Mets outfielders Harrison Bader and Starling Marte are both out of Saturday's lineup. As a result, Tyrone Taylor will play in center field and bat seventh, and DJ Stewart will man right field and bat fifth. Bader has put up a solid .267 AVG during his first month in Queens but will get a breather since he has not registered a hit in his past three games. Marte, who has been off to a great start with a .288 AVG and four home runs, will miss his first game of the season. Both Taylor and Stewart have a tough matchup today as they will face Sonny Gray, who enters Saturday with a dominant 1.04 ERA and 0.87 WHIP, and both will be popular fades in DFS.

Los Angeles Angels third baseman Anthony Rendon (hamstring) said he has a high-grade partial tear of his left hamstring and doesn't have a timetable to return. The Angels placed Rendon on the 10-day injured list on Sunday, but the 33-year-old is certainly going to be out for an extended amount of time. Ever since signing a seven-year deal with the Halos, Rendon has mostly been in the trainer's room and has been one of the biggest disappointments in baseball after recording a league-high 126 RBI and a career-high 34 home runs in his final year with the Nationals in 2019. Before the injury, he was hitting .267 (20-for-75) with no homers, three RBI and three steals. We wouldn't blame you for dumping Rendon to the waiver wire at this point. Miguel Sano has been playing third since Rendon went down, but Brandon Drury could also see time there moving forward.

New York Yankees outfielder Giancarlo Stanton (rest) is out of the starting lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Milwaukee Brewers. This appears to be a routine rest day for the veteran slugger. Stanton has started in five straight games, so the team has decided to give the 34-year-old the night off. In the meantime, Aaron Judge will serve as the designated hitter while Trent Grisham will cover center field versus right-hander Colin Rea.

Milwaukee Brewers veteran left-hander Wade Miley (elbow) needs Tommy John surgery and will spend the next 10 to 12 months rehabbing and then decide whether to continue his career. It's a tough break for the 37-year-old southpaw and the Brewers. Fantasy baseball managers that were stashing Miley in deeper leagues can now officially let go. "I've always said I want to go out on my own [terms]," Miley said. "I still feel like I've got more in the tank." While it sounds like the 14-year veteran wants to give it a shot to come back at some point in 2025, it's fair to wonder if he's already thrown his final pitch in the big leagues. Even if Miley rehabs for a comeback next season, he'll be off the radar in most fantasy formats. The former 43rd overall pick by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2008 out of Southeastern Louisiana gave up five earned runs with four walks and two K's in his two starts in 2024.

St. Louis Cardinals right-hander Miles Mikolas will look to get straightened out when he takes the ball for a road contest against the New York Mets. The 35-year-old was knocked around for nine hits, including three homers, leading to five earned runs allowed in just 4 1/3 innings in a losing effort against the Brewers his last time out. It was the second consecutive outing and third of five on the season in which the veteran has allowed five earned runs in less than five innings this season. The rough outing raised his ERA to 6.49 through five starts, although his 4.05 xFIP, 4.28 SIERA, and solid 6% BB% suggest positive regression is likely moving forward.

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.

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.

The Philadelphia Phillies reinstated first baseman Bryce Harper from the paternity list on Thursday and optioned infielder Kody Clemens to Triple-A Lehigh Valley in a corresponding move after Wednesday's game. Harper is playing first base and batting third in his return in the series finale against the Cincinnati Reds and right-hander Nick Martinez on Thursday. Fantasy baseball managers will want to put the two-time MVP back in their starting lineups in all formats. He's hitless in two career at-bats against Martinez. The seven-time All-Star returns to a .241/.330/.443 slash line with four home runs, four doubles, 14 RBI, one stolen base and 10 runs scored in 91 plate appearances over his first 21 games of 2024. Harper will be hoping to extend his current six-game hitting streak in his return on Thursday.

New York Yankees infielder DJ LeMahieu (foot), who was pulled from a minor-league rehab game early on Tuesday with Double-A Somerset, still has swelling in his injured right foot. He will be shut down from baseball activities for the next seven days and then be re-evaluated. LeMahieu was set to play fewer than five rehab games in the minors before being activated from the injured list for his 2024 debut with the Yankees, but that's not going to happen now. The 35-year-old veteran is struggling to return from a fractured right foot and will now need to rest some more before trying to restart his rehab assignment. Fantasy managers shouldn't expect to see LeMahieu now until around mid-May. Oswaldo Cabrera has benefitted from a regular role at third base in the Bronx as a result and was hitting .278 (20-for-72) with three homers, 14 RBI and 11 runs heading into Wednesday's contest.

Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Christian Yelich (back) ran on the field on Wednesday for the first time since injuring his back. Yelich hasn't swung or played catch yet, however, as he's progressed slower than anticipated from a strained lower back. Considering Yelich battled back issues in the early part of his career with the Miami Marlins, expect the Brew Crew to take a cautious approach with the 32-year-old star left fielder. Yelich was returning first-round fantasy value before hitting the shelf, slashing .333/.422/.744 with five home runs, 11 RBI, seven runs scored, and two stolen bases across 39 at-bats (11 games). The switch-hitting Blake Perkins has received everyday ABs in Milwaukee's outfield since Yelich went on the injured list, slashing .309/.387/.473 with two homers, six RBI, 13 runs scored, and two swipes through 55 ABs overall, and he's worth a look for those in NL-only or deep mixed leagues who need a stopgap solution.

Miami Marlins catcher Christian Bethancourt (illness) has been activated from the 10-day injured list on Wednesday. The 32-year-old will return to the field after missing the last week or so due to an illness. His return won't mean too much for fantasy managers as Bethancourt has struggled this season. He's hitless through 23 plate appearances, so fantasy managers can look elsewhere for help. Jhonny Pereda has been optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville to make room for Bethancourt on the active roster.

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen is not in the starting lineup for Wednesday's contest against the Milwaukee Brewers and right-hander Bryse Wilson. The veteran homered as part of a two-hit effort on Tuesday but will give way to Connor Joe to leadoff and man left field on Wednesday. Interestingly, McCutchen's splits lean heavily towards righties so far this season as he's hitting .295 with all three of his homers coming off of southpaws while he is just 1-for-16 (.063) with three walks in 20 plate appearances against lefties. He is seeing semi-regular playing time this season, appearing in 16 of the team's 24 games but isn't doing a ton for fantasy managers with a .233 average and 30.9% K% on the young season.

The New York Yankees have announced that third baseman DJ LeMahieu (foot) left Tuesday's minor-league game with Double-A Somerset due to soreness in his right foot, and the infielder will return to New York for examination tomorrow. The Yankees' plan was for LeMahieu to make four rehab appearances before potentially being activated from the injured list on Sunday, but this development is likely to delay the veteran's 2024 regular-season debut a bit longer. LeMahieu is working his way back from a non-displaced fracture of his right foot that he sustained on March 16, and the severity of his setback should be revealed sometime in the coming days. Switch-hitting utility man Oswaldo Cabrera is batting .290 (20-for-69) with three home runs, 14 RBI, and 11 runs scored in 19 games this year, and he should continue manning the hot corner regularly until LeMahieu is finally ready to play.

Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Jason Heyward (back) isn't swinging a bat and is still dealing with "residual soreness," according to manager Dave Roberts. Heyward is still more than a week from starting a minor-league rehab assignment. The 34-year-old veteran left-handed hitter was put on the 10-day injured list all the way back on April 3 with back soreness, and he hasn't made much progress since. There remains no timetable for a return from the IL, but fantasy managers in deeper leagues should expect him to be out at least another few weeks. Outfielder Teoscar Hernandez has been shifted over to right field for the Dodgers with Heyward out, while rookie prospect Andy Pages has also been platooning in center field with James Outman.

The Texas Rangers have signed starting pitcher Johnny Cueto to a minor-league contract on Tuesday. The 38-year-old lands a deal with the defending World Series champions after a rough year with the Miami Marlins. Cueto posted a 6.02 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, and a 39/15 K/BB ratio over 52 1/3 innings with the Marlins last season. It's uncertain what Cueto still has left in the tank, but he'll at least be additional depth for the organization. Cueto has plenty of experience but is unlikely to offer any kind of fantasy value.

New York Yankees infielder DJ LeMahieu (foot) is scheduled to begin a minor-league rehab assignment with Double-A Somerset on Tuesday. It sounds like the plan is for LeMahieu to play four games in the minors before possibly returning to the Yankees roster. The veteran slugger has been sidelined all season due to a fractured foot. The Yankees could certainly use LeMahieu's help given their current struggles at the plate. Fantasy managers should wait patiently as it sounds like LeMahieu should be back soon.

New York Yankees right-hander Gerrit Cole (elbow) got out to 120 feet on flat ground in his throwing program on Tuesday, which is typically as far out as pitchers will go before getting on the mound as they rehab. With that said, Cole isn't sure when he will advance to throwing off a mound. He will take the day off on Wednesday and go from there as he ramps up his throwing progression. If the 33-year-old reigning American League Cy Young winner feels good later this week, manager Aaron Boone said he could star throwing off a mound next week. Fantasy managers in all formats need to keep Cole stashed in an injured-list spot as he attempts to come back from nerve irritation in his right elbow, but he still has a ways to go.