Chicago Cubs right-hander Jameson Taillon (7-3) was fantastic on Thursday against the Pittsburgh Pirates and walked away with his fifth victory over his last five outings. Taillon has been phenomenal in 2025, enjoying one of his better seasons as a big leaguer. Against the Pirates on Thursday, he went 6 1/3 innings, allowed four hits, two earned runs, two walks, and tallied seven strikeouts as the Cubs went on to win 3-2. On the season, Taillon now owns an impressive 3.48 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, 7.08 K/9, and a 1.75 BB/9 over 82 2/3 innings pitched. After losing Justin Steele (elbow) for the season, and Shota Imanaga (hamstring) being out since May 4, Taillon has stepped up for the Cubs in a big way thus far in 2025. Next up, he tentatively lines up to take on the Milwaukee Brewers at home on Wednesday, June 18.

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Washington Nationals young star James Wood enjoyed a nice afternoon on Thursday, going 3-for-4 with one run scored and one strikeout in the Nationals' 4-3 loss to the New York Mets. Wood has gone 13-for-43 over the past two weeks (.302 average), but has not hit a home run since May 30 in Seattle. In addition, he has only scored two runs and knocked in two RBI since May 31 and not stolen a base during this time. Although the average has been solid, Wood has had a quiet couple of weeks in category leagues, primarily due to his lack of RBI, runs scored, stolen bases, and home runs. Next up for Wood is a three-game series back at home against the Miami Marlins, where he is projected to take on three right-handed starters.

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Detroit Tigers young right-hander Jackson Jobe (elbow) is scheduled to undergo Tommy John surgery and will miss the rest of the 2025 season, so the Tigers will move him to the 60-day IL to clear a 40-man spot for Matt Gage, who was selected from Triple-A Toledo on Thursday. A timeline for Jobe's return will likely arise following his procedure, though it's practically a guarantee that he won't be cleared to pitch until mid-to-late 2026 at the earliest. From a fantasy perspective, it appears Sawyer Gipson-Long has taken the fifth spot in the rotation. Jobe finished his rookie season with 49 innings pitched, a 4.22 ERA, and 1.49 WHIP.

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Baltimore Orioles catcher Gary Sanchez (wrist) now has a greater chance to return before the end of the homestand, per Orioles interim manager Tony Mansolino, who said the backup catcher is progressing through rehab quicker than expected, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports. Sanchez is on a tear in Triple-A Norfolk, going 8-for-20 with three home runs in six rehab games, and seems to be coming along more quickly than expected. He injured his wrist in late April, and it appears he could return to action within the next day or two. Sanchez is expected to continue to back up Adley Rutschman and start in the lineup occasionally against left-handed pitchers. Sanchez is not a recommended waiver wire pickup in the immediate future.

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Nathan Eovaldi (triceps) recently returned to Arlington for further diagnostics. He has been playing catch over the last few days, and the club hopes he'll throw a bullpen session sometime Saturday or Sunday. Eovaldi recently began a throwing program and underwent further diagnostics in Arlington. The rehab appears to be progressing as expected for the right-hander. Eovaldi was removed from his start on May 27 with the injury, and considering the location of the injury this is positive news coming from the Rangers' clubhouse, as Eovaldi seems to be moving in the right direction, and possibly get him back on the mound in the next couple of weeks after a few bullpens. At this point, it's unclear if the Rangers will have him throw a rehab start in the minors or not. Fantasy managers will want to keep tabs on how his bullpen goes over the weekend.

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Houston Astros left-hander Josh Hader picked up his 18th save in a 4-3 win over the Chicago White Sox on Thursday. Hader allowed one run on two hits in his lone inning of work while striking out two in the frame. He made things interesting in the outing, coughing up a solo homer to Mike Tauchman to cut the Astros' lead to one run and then putting the tying run on second base via a Miguel Vargas double. Hader bounced back, however, striking out Austin Slater to get the final out. Hader now has a 2-0 record, 1.55 ERA, 0.79 WHIP, 18 saves, and 45 strikeouts over 29 innings of work on the season. He remains an elite fantasy closer in all formats.

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Washington Nationals right-handed pitching prospect Travis Sykora tallied a season-high 10 punchouts en route to picking up the victory on Thursday against High-A Hub City. In this outing, Sykora tossed five shutout innings. He allowed just two hits and no walks. Through his first 18 innings at the High-A level, Sykora has held an impressive 1.00 ERA with a 0.50 WHIP. During this stretch, he has struck out 32 batters and allowed just two free passes. Sykora opened the campaign with Low-A, where he tossed six shutout innings with nine strikeouts. Last season, the top-ranked prospect in the system held a 2.33 ERA with a stellar 0.91 WHIP across 85 innings of work at Low-A. He struck out 129 batters while allowing only 27 free passes. Sykora will likely spend most of the season with High-A but is quickly rising up prospect boards.

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Detroit Tigers right-hander Will Vest slammed the door on the Baltimore Orioles to earn the save in a 4-1 win on Thursday. Vest tossed a scoreless ninth inning, striking out two while not allowing a hit on 19 pitches to pick up his 12th save of the season. The veteran reliever has run away with the closer's role in Detroit after they opened the year with a committee. Vest now has a 5-0 record, 1.83 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, and 36 strikeouts over 34 1/3 innings of work while blowing only two saves. With the Tigers leading the AL Central, Vest should continue to see plenty of save chances going forward.

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New York Mets infield prospect Jett Williams continued to swing a hot bat on Thursday. During their contest against Double-A Richmond, Williams went 3-for-4 at the plate with a double, two triples, a stolen base, and two RBI. Williams has tallied at least one hit in each of his last four games and posted three multi-hit games during this stretch. Over his last seven games, Williams has only gone hitless once and held an impressive .552/.633/1.130 line with four doubles, two triples, two home runs, and a stolen base. Through 52 games with Double-A this season, the top-ranked prospect in Queens has posted a strong .298/.407/.530 slash line with 16 doubles, four triples, and six long balls. Given his steady progress, Williams will likely move up to Triple-A in the coming weeks.

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New York Yankees right-hander Devin Williams preserved a 1-0 win over the Kansas City Royals on Thursday. Williams fired a perfect ninth inning while striking out one to earn his ninth save of the season. The veteran reliever got off to a rough start this season but has improved as the year has gone on, posting a 1.98 ERA over his past 15 appearances, spanning 13 2/3 innings of work. Overall, Williams has a 2-2 record, 5.68 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, and 32 strikeouts over 25 1/3 innings of work on the year. He should remain a top-notch fantasy closer going forward.

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Texas Rangers shortstop Josh Smith had a big day in his team's 16-3 win over the Minnesota Twins on Thursday. Smith went 2-for-5 with a homer, a walk, three runs, and one RBI in the lopsided victory. The veteran infielder kicked off the scoring in the game with a leadoff homer off Twins starter Bailey Ober. Smith is now hitting .279 with six homers, 26 runs, 19 RBI, and eight stolen bases across 208 at-bats for the Rangers this season. He has been hot over the past week, batting .393 with a homer and three RBI in his past seven contests. Smith has settled in as a solid, if unspectacular, fantasy option in most leagues.

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Chicago Cubs outfield prospect Owen Caissie went deep in his third-straight game during the first game of a doubleheader on Thursday against Triple-A Louisville. In this contest, Caissie went 2-for-3 with a home run and a stolen base. However, in the second game, he saw his impressive power streak come to an end as he went 1-for-3 with a double. Over his last 18 games, the No. 3-ranked prospect in the Cubs' system has been swinging a hot bat, holding a stellar .328/.416/.582 slash line with eight doubles, three home runs, 11 RBI, and two stolen bases. Through 54 total games, Caissie has posted a .262/.366/.510 line with 16 doubles and 10 long balls. Given his steady progression at Triple-A, Caissie should be in the mix to reach the majors this season. However, given the depth in the Chicago outfield, he will likely need to wait for an injury.

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Chicago White Sox third baseman Miguel Vargas had a big day in his team's 4-3 loss to the Houston Astros on Thursday. Vargas went 3-for-4 with two doubles, a triple, a walk, and two runs scored in the one-run loss. The veteran has been a productive bat for the Sox this season, hitting .242 with 17 doubles, one triple, nine homers, 32 runs, 30 RBI, and two stolen bases across 240 at-bats. After hitting under .200 in each of his previous three seasons, this season's modest breakout is a welcome sight for Vargas and fantasy gamers. He has worked his way into the conversation as a viable reserve corner infield option in most fantasy leagues.

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Colorado Rockies second baseman Thairo Estrada was a key part of his team's 8-7 win over the San Francisco Giants on Thursday. Estrada went 3-for-5 with two doubles, one run, and two RBI to help down the Giants in the contest. The veteran infielder ripped a two-run double to cut the Giants' lead to 7-5 in the seventh inning. He later came around to score the game-tying run following his second double of the evening. Estrada is now hitting .261 with five doubles, four runs, and seven RBI across 46 at-bats this season. With two seasons of 21 or more stolen bases under his belt, Estrada has some potential in fantasy if he can work his way into an everyday role with the Rockies.

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Detroit Tigers infield prospect Kevin McGonigle went 4-for-5 with two doubles and a home run during their contest against High-A Lansing on Thursday evening. McGonigle has continued to swing a hot bat since moving up to High-A. Through 18 games with High-A West Michigan this season, the No. 2-ranked prospect in Detroit has posted a stellar .394/.488/.704 slash line with 13 doubles, three home runs, and a 12:13 K:BB. He began the season on the injured list and spent a six-game stint with Low-A during his rehab assignment, and hit a .235/.350/.352 line. Last summer, the No. 26-ranked prospect in baseball made his High-A debut but struggled during his first 14 games, posting a mere .214 AVG with a .725 OPS. Fantasy managers should continue to monitor McGonigle's progression as he will likely earn the call to Double-A in the coming weeks.

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Colorado Rockies outfielder Mickey Moniak had a productive game in his team's 8-7 win over the San Francisco Giants on Thursday. Moniak went 2-for-3 with a solo homer and two runs scored to help down San Francisco in the comeback victory. The veteran outfielder was a key part of the comeback as he cut the Giants' lead to 7-3 with his solo homer in the sixth inning. Moniak is now batting .227 with seven homers, 21 runs, 18 RBI, and two stolen bases across 163 at-bats this season. He is on a modest hot streak, with a .278 average and two homers over his past seven contests.

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Texas Rangers outfielder Sam Haggerty was not in the initial starting lineup but made his mark in a 16-3 win over the Minnesota Twins on Thursday. Haggerty hit a pinch-hit, three-run homer in his only at-bat in the lopsided win. The veteran pinch-hit for Marcus Semien and launched a three-run shot in the ninth inning, a blast that gave the Rangers their final runs of the game. Haggerty is now hitting .268 with two homers, 13 runs, nine RBI, and five stolen bases across 71 at-bats for the Rangers this season. As a part-time player, Haggerty isn't on the radar in fantasy leagues.

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Houston Astros outfielder Jose Altuve turned in a productive game in his team's 4-3 win over the Chicago White Sox on Thursday. Altuve went 2-for-3 with two doubles, a walk, a run, two RBI, and a stolen base in the one-run win. The veteran notched one of the key at-bats of the game when he gave Houston a 2-1 lead with a two-run double in the third inning. Altuve is now hitting .275 with nine doubles, nine homers, 32 runs, 27 RBI, and six stolen bases across 255 at-bats for the Astros this season. He has fallen off since his prime and is more of a reserve option in deeper fantasy leagues these days.

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San Francisco Giants first base prospect Bryce Eldridge went 1-for-4 with a home run during their contest against Triple-A Tacoma on Thursday evening. This was Eldridge's second home run since moving up to Triple-A. Through his first eight games with Sacramento this season, Eldridge has struggled, holding a .138/.235/.345 line with a 12:4 K:BB. He received a brief taste of Triple-A last season as well, and posted a .258/.343/.258 line across eight contests. At the start of the season, Eldridge was with Double-A and looked quite comfortable as he held a .280/.350/.512 line with eight doubles, seven home runs, and a 39:13 K:BB. If the top-ranked prospect in the San Francisco system can build off this outing, he could be in the mix to reach the majors early in the second half.

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Baltimore Orioles outfielder Dylan Carlson was one of the lone bright spots in his team's 4-1 loss to the Detroit Tigers on Thursday. Carlson went 3-for-3 with a solo homer to provide Baltimore's only run in the loss. He ruined the Tigers' shutout with a solo blast in the eighth inning, a shot that traveled 408 feet with an exit velocity of 103.8 MPH. Carlson is now hitting .247 with four homers, seven runs, 12 RBI, and one steal across 73 at-bats this season. He has been swinging a hot bat since a quiet start to the season, hitting .333 with four homers and 10 RBI over his past 15 games, spanning 51 at-bats. He's worth a look as an add in deeper leagues while he's hot at the plate.

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