• Unavailable on Opening Day
    Bednar was unavailable to pitch Thursday against the Marlins due to ongoing rehab from a lat injury, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

    Advice: Bednar was sidelined for much of spring training with a lat issue, though he managed to make his Grapefruit League debut March 21 while making an additional appearance on March 24. He hasn't been placed on the injured list, so presumably, Pittsburgh expects him to be ready to retake the mound quickly. Rotowire.com 3 minutes ago
     
  • Stumbles early
    Cortes didn't factor into the decision Thursday, allowing four runs on five hits and two walks over five innings in a 5-4 win over Houston. He struck out five.

    Advice: The Astros got to Cortes early Thursday, scoring three runs in the opening inning before Jake Meyers led off the second with a solo homer. While it looked like the game could get out of hand, Cortes recovered to set down 12 of the final 13 batters he faced, ultimately winding up with a no-decision as the Yankees scored five unanswered runs in a comeback win. New York is hoping for a bounce-back campaign from Cortes after he made just 12 starts last year, going 5-2 with a 4.97 ERA. The left-hander is tentatively lined up for a road matchup with the Diamondbacks in his next outing. Rotowire.com 14 minutes ago
     
  • Trevor Stephan out 12-16 months after elbow surgery
    Trevor Stephan will be out 12-16 months after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

    Advice: Stephan was placed on the 60-day injured prior to Thursday’s Opening Day contest and will miss the entire 2024 season. Rotoworld 18 minutes ago
     
  • Wild in opener
    Valdez allowed three runs on five hits and six walks over 4.2 innings in a no-decision Thursday against the Yankees. He struck out five.

    Advice: Valdez managed to skirt danger through the first four innings, holding the Yankees off the board thanks to three double-play balls. However, the left-hander's shaky command finally caught up with him in the fifth, where he was tagged for three runs. While his final line ultimately could have looked a lot worse, it's a discouraging outing from Valdez, who's expected to anchor the Astros' rotation while Justin Verlander (shoulder) is sidelined. Valdez went 12-11 last season with a 3.45 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 200:57 K:BB across 31 starts. Rotowire.com 22 minutes ago
     
  • X-rays negative on Max Kepler’s right leg
    X-rays came back negative on Max Kepler’s right leg.

    Advice: Kepler appears to have avoided serious injury following an early exit from Thursday’s Opening Day matchup against the Royals after fouling a ball off his right leg. He’ll likely wind up getting a few days off to rest and recover, but fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day for now. Rotoworld 22 minutes ago
    Max KeplerMIN - OF
    W, 4-1 @KC
     
  • X-rays clear on right leg
    Manager Rocco Baldelli noted after Thursday's 4-1 win over the Royals that X-rays on Kepler's right leg came back negative, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

    Advice: Kepler managed to finish his at-bat after the foul ball, but he didn't take the field in the bottom of the eighth inning. The Twins have Friday off, which gives the team an extra day to see how Kepler feels ahead of Saturday's contest. He went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts before exiting Thursday. Rotowire.com 30 minutes ago
    Max KeplerMIN - OF
    W, 4-1 @KC
     
  • Hangs on for opening-day save
    Holmes worked around three hits to deliver a scoreless ninth inning, earning the save in a 5-4 win over the Astros on Thursday.

    Advice: It certainly appeared that Houston was poised to tie the game in the ninth after two of the first three batters reached safely off Holmes. However, Juan Soto threw out Mauricio Dubon at home for the second out, preserving the one-run lead, before Holmes coaxed a groundout off the bat of Alex Bregman to seal the victory. While Thursday's outing may have been more tenuous than Holmes would have liked, the 31-year-old right-hander appears to be locked into the closing job in New York. Holmes recorded 24 saves last season, pitching to a 2.86 ERA with a 1.17 WHIP and 71:23 K:BB across 63 innings. Rotowire.com 32 minutes ago
  • Juan Soto reaches three times, Yankees edge Astros
    Juan Soto went 1-for-3 with an RBI and a pair of walks on Thursday, leading the Yankees to a narrow 5-4 win over the Astros.

    Advice: Soto kicked off the scoring for the Yankees with a fifth-inning RBI single against Astros starter Framber Valdez and wound up reaching base safely in three of his five plate appearances in his Yankees debut. The 25-year-old fantasy superstar will continue batting second for New York ahead of Aaron Judge, which should give him a decent shot at leading the majors in the runs scored department. Rotoworld 35 minutes ago
    Juan SotoNYY - OF
    W, 5-4 @HOU
     
  • Josh Hader fans three in impressive Astros debut
    Josh Hader struck out the side in a perfect ninth inning Thursday in his Astros debut.

    Advice: Hader was called upon with Houston trailing by a run and wound up striking out Giancarlo Stanton, Anthony Rizzo and Anthony Volpe to keep it a one-run margin. That’ll do. Rotoworld 35 minutes ago