| | | | Monday, May 1, 2023 | | Happy Monday, everyone! We have some exciting news coming up on the prospects front and on one of the best players in baseball, but first we need to get the bad news out of the way. The best pitcher in baseball is headed back to the IL. Rangers SP Jacob deGrom was forced to exit his Friday start with right elbow inflammation and he is now headed to the IL. The injury history and repeated issues in the same area are a major concern for deGrom and at this point we wouldn't blame you for selling before the news gets worse. At some point, there has to be a sunk cost fallacy at play here no matter how big of an investment you made in your draft. If there is a league-mate looking to swing for the fences on deGrom's upside once (if and for how long) he returns, you should look for a starting pitcher in return who is off to a surprising start that you want to bet on keeping it up. For now, the Rangers will use Dane Dunning in deGrom's place in the rotation. | | The other big news from the weekend is actually good news. Phillies OF Bryce Harper will see a doctor Monday morning and expects to return to the lineup Tuesday if he's cleared. You read that right -- tomorrow! Originally we thought June or maybe even the second half of the season. Harper could turn out to be the best value pick in any draft this season if he returns to the lineup this Tuesday and looks himself. The Phillies plan for him this season is to DH him, and that is an excellent development for his rest of season value. | | We broke down this news on the Fantasy Baseball Today in 5 Podcast here. | | | | Gavin Stone gets the call | | Dodgers SP Gavin Stone will get the call up from the minors to start Wednesday against the Phillies. Stone is one of the top pitching prospects in baseball but got off to a rocky start this season in the minors. However, over his past two starts he has allowed just one earned run with 15 strikeouts in 9 2/3 innings. Stone also pitched to a 2.48 ERA and 1.12 WHIP with 168 strikeouts over 121 2/3 innings through all three levels of the minors in 2021. His spring training was what has me most excited as he looked ready. Stone is 33% rostered and worth investing about 20% of your free agent budget in. His rotation spot might not seem secure at the moment, but with Clayton Kershaw (is he going to stay healthy all season?) and Noah Syndergaard (is he going to stay effective all season?) in the rotation, if Stone hits the ground running, the Dodgers could move to a six-man rotation. Scott White goes deeper on Stone's profile on his Waiver Wire piece today. | | Pfaadt too? | | This one is not confirmed, but the expectation is the Diamondbacks will call up SP Brandon Pfaadt to start Wednesday as well. Scott White recently wrote about Pfaadt in his : "Pfaadt features some of the most optimal characteristics of a modern pitcher, such as a sweeping slider and a fastball that works best up in the zone, and his 218 strikeouts last year were the most for any minor-league pitcher since 2001. The Diamondbacks have enough off days ahead that they can get by with a four-man rotation for now, but in a couple weeks, Pfaadt figures to get the call." | | | | Weekend standouts | | Here are a few of the standouts -- for better or worse -- that you need to know about from this past weekend as brought to you by Chris Towers. For a complete look at the week ahead, check out Towers' weekly Monday column that catches you up on anything you missed from the weekend action while also preparing you for what's ahead. | | From Chris: Manny Machado, 3B, Padres – Machado serves as the stand-in here for the wild two-game series between the Padres and Giants this weekend. Machado clubbed two homers Saturday, one of 10 players to homer in that 16-11 Padres win. Four more players homered Sunday. Those games were played in Mexico City, at a stadium that is over 7,000 feet above sea level, so even with the humidor, this was like a game played in the pre-humidor Coors Field. Don't hold that seven runs in 3.1-innings start against Joe Musgrove , in other words. From Chris: Logan Allen, SP, Guardians – It's not clear exactly how long Allen is going to remain in the Cleveland rotation, but I think he should probably just be there for good. He struck out eight in five innings against the Red Sox this weekend and now has 16 strikeouts to three walks in 11 innings in his first two starts. His stuff plays up thanks to a deceptive delivery, and he tweaked his pitch mix in his second outing to feature his sweeper more and still found success. I think he might just be really good. From Chris: Jarren Duran , OF, Red Sox – Duran had five hits, four of them for extra bases this weekend, and is now sporting a .396/.415/.646 line through 53 plate appearances. He won't sustain that, but there's quite a lot about what he's done so far that looks pretty sustainable. He's hitting the ball consistently hard in the air with a manageable strikeout rate (24.5%) and he has a power/speed combination that could make him very Fantasy relevant. I'm viewing Duran as a potential top-50 outfielder right now. From Chris: Brent Rooker , OF, Athletics – Rooker stayed hot this weekend, going six for nine with two more homers, and he now has an absolutely bonkers 1.262 OPS for the season. Again, he won't keep that up, and I'd bet on Rooker's strikeout rate climbing considerably from its current 19.5 mark. But he's always had power (46 homers per-150 games at Triple-A) and isn't swinging at anything out of the strike zone right now (83rd percentile chase rate). That's a good combination, and I've got him in that same range as Duran right now. | | | | News & notes | | Aaron Judge is dealing with a slight strain at the top of his hip. The team will wait a couple of days to see if he can improve before placing him on the IL. He missed the entire weekend and will not play Monday. Yordan Alvarez returned to the lineup Saturday after missing four straight with a neck injury.Julio Rodriguez left Saturday's game with back tightness and was not in the lineup Sunday. He's day-to-day. Corbin Carroll was removed Saturday after he collided with the left-field wall while chasing down a baseball. He was out of the lineup Sunday and is considered day-to-day.Max Scherzer is set to rejoin the Mets rotation on Tuesday.Justin Verlander struck out six over 4.2 scoreless in his rehab start at Double-A Friday. It sounds like he'll make his Mets debut in Detroit (fitting) on May 3.We haven't heard much about Brandon Woodruff recently but apparently, he underwent a follow-up MRI on Wednesday. The results of the scan were apparently encouraging. Their GM said the target return date is by the end of June.Eloy Jimenez was limited Sunday due to leg soreness. Luis Severino threw 40 pitches over three up-and-down sessions Friday. He'll begin a rehab assignment either Wednesday or Thursday at High-A.Tyler Glasnow threw a two-inning live bullpen session on Saturday and could make a rehab appearance at Triple-A within the next week. Tim Anderson is set to return Tuesday. Start in weekly leagues?Twins prospect Royce Lewis has been playing in Florida Complex League games and the hope is he can begin an official rehab assignment in May. He's returning from a second ACL surgery and is 22% rostered if you want to stash.Yandy Diaz left Friday with shoulder soreness and was not in the lineup Saturday or Sunday. Luis Robert was benched Saturday after not running out a ground ball but then it turns out Robert is dealing with a tight right hamstring.Andrew Benintendi's X-rays were negative after getting hit by a pitch on his elbow Friday. Tyler Mahle has an elbow impingement on the back of his right elbow and is expected to miss at least four weeks.Reynaldo Lopez was removed Sunday due to fatigue in his bicep. Walker Buehler was seen throwing from 150 feet at Dodgers Stadium Saturday. He began a throwing program in March and perhaps make it back as a reliever by the end of the season or playoffs. He should be rostered in most, if not all, keeper/dynasty leagues.Pete Fairbanks was removed Friday due to numbness from his ongoing Raynaud's Syndrome. He threw on Saturday. If anything happens, Jason Adam is likely the next man up.Jose Urquidy exited Sunday's start with some kind of arm injury. The Orioles optioned Joey Ortiz back to Triple-A on Sunday. Kyle Stowers was recalled. Brett Baty got a start against a lefty on Friday. Mike Yastrzemski left Sunday with a hamstring strain. He's set to undergo an MRI but will likely miss time. Alex Kirilloff was reinstated from the IL and optioned to Triple-A. He's batting .316 with four homers in the minors. David Peterson was optioned to Triple-A Saturday. Randal Grichuk made his return Saturday. He's 14% rostered. | | | | | | | | Golazo Network | | The Early Edge | CBS Sports Golazo Network, the first-of-its-kind, free, 24/7 channel dedicated exclusively to global soccer coverage is NOW STREAMING on the CBS Sports App, Pluto TV and Paramount+!
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