Yahoo Sports Fantasy Baseball

  • Steals third bag of season
    Vargas went 1-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base in Wednesday's loss to the White Sox.

    Advice: Batting third against southpaw Garrett Crochet as Nats manager Dave Martinez desperately tried to spark his struggling offense, Vargas didn't make a big impact but was able to steal his third bag of the year, tying his career high. The 32-year-old utility player has been seeing semi-consistent starts in May, batting .294 (5-for-17) in nine games with three doubles, two runs and an RBI. He's already played 10-plus games at both second base and third base in 2024 while also seeing duty in left field (six games) and at shortstop (three games), giving him some fantasy value in deep NL-only formats. Rotowire.com Today, 8:21 am
    Ildemaro VargasWSH - 2B,3B,SS,OF
    New Player Note
     
  • Heading to bench Thursday
    Cabrera is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Twins.

    Advice: Cabrera has been the Yankees' preferred option at third base all season, but he's started to cede more work of late to Jon Berti, who will occupy the hot corner for the fourth time in six games Thursday. Given that he holds a 129-point advantage in OPS over Berti for the season, Cabrera should still be the favored option more often than not, but both will see their opportunities take a hit once DJ LeMahieu (foot) eventually returns from the injured list to make his 2024 debut. Rotowire.com Today, 7:54 am
    Oswaldo CabreraNYY - 2B,3B,SS,OF
    W, 5-0 @MIN
    New Player Note
     
  • On bench in second straight
    Martin is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Yankees.

    Advice: After recently picking up four starts in a five-game stretch, Martin finds himself on the bench for the second straight day. While he's up with the big club, the right-handed-hitting Martin should play regularly versus left-handed pitching, but the trio of Alex Kirilloff, Willi Castro and Max Kepler looks to be the Twins' preferred outfield alignment against right-handers. The outfield will become even more crowded when Byron Buxton (knee) returns from the 10-day injured list, perhaps as soon as this weekend. Rotowire.com Today, 7:20 am
    Austin MartinMIN - 2B,SS,OF
    L, 0-5 vs NYY
    New Player Note
     
  • Homers Wednesday
    Ortiz went 2-for-2 with a solo homer, two walks and an additional run scored in Wednesday's 10-2 win over the Pirates.

    Advice: Ortiz is now 5-for-10 with three extra-base hits and a .615 OBP over his last three games while securing the everyday third-base job in Milwaukee. Overall, the 25-year-old Ortiz is slashing .277/.384/.511 with four homers, 12 RBI, 13 runs scored and a stolen base through 37 games this season. Rotowire.com Today, 7:13 am
     
  • Pops homer in loss
    Espinal went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Wednesday's 2-1 loss to the Diamondbacks.

    Advice: Epsinal cracked his second home run of the season in the fifth inning and has hit safely in five straight games, going 6-for-15. The infielder is playing more than originally projected, filling in at second base for Matt McLain (shoulder) or third for Noelvi Marte (suspension), but Espinal's .200 average and .536 OPS are not enticing. Rotowire.com Today, 5:27 am
     
  • Blasts leadoff homer
    Westburg went 2-for-5 with a solo home run and an additional run scored in Wednesday's 3-2 win over the Blue Jays.

    Advice: Westburg made manager Brandon Hyde look smart -- this was Westburg's first big-league game at leadoff, and he hit a homer in his first at-bat. The infielder is 11-for-32 (.344) over his last eight games, adding six extra-base hits and seven RBI in that span. For the season, he's slashing .301/.354/.534 with seven homers, 28 RBI, 22 runs scored and five stolen bases through 159 plate appearances. Westburg may get more looks at leadoff versus southpaws, but he should be expected to bat lower in the lineup versus right-handers, as he has yet to above sixth in the order against same-handed pitchers this season. Rotowire.com Yesterday, 10:07 pm
     
  • Homers in Wednesday's win
    Semien went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Wednesday's 4-0 win over the Guardians.

    Advice: Semien's fifth-inning blast was ultimately all the run support Jon Gray needed to carry the Rangers to a win. Through 15 games in May, Semien is 21-for-68 (.309) with three homers, 11 RBI and 12 runs scored. The second baseman has just one stolen base on the year after reaching double-digits in each of the previous eight full-length seasons, but the rest of his numbers are strong. Semien is at a .276/.320/.464 slash line with eight homers, 31 RBI, 33 runs scored, 10 doubles and a triple of 206 plate appearances on the year. Rotowire.com Yesterday, 9:50 pm
     
  • Swipes bag in win
    Torres went 1-for-3 with a walk, one stolen base and one run scored in Wednesday's 4-0 win over the Twins.

    Advice: Torres' steal was his first since April 13. The second baseman has had a modest May, batting .205 (9-for-44) with two home runs and four RBI. That's a little worse than his .216 average for the season, and he's added a poor .574 OPS with four steals, two home runs, 10 RBI, 19 runs scored and four doubles through 183 plate appearances. While Torres has struggled, he remains the Yankees' near-everyday starter at the keystone. Rotowire.com Yesterday, 9:34 pm
     
  • Three-hit effort in win
    Madrigal went 3-for-4 in Wednesday's 7-1 win over Atlanta.

    Advice: All three hits were singles as Madrigal earned his fourth multi-hit effort in 39 contests this season. The infielder is slashing .234/.300/.281 with no home runs, nine RBI, four runs scored and one stolen base over 69 plate appearances. Madrigal had been limited to a bench role for much of the season, but he's receiving more playing time while Dansby Swanson (knee) is on the injured list and Nico Hoerner (hamstring) is out of the lineup. Rotowire.com Yesterday, 9:18 pm
    Nick MadrigalCHC - 2B,3B
    4:40 pm vs PIT
    New Player Note