Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper (hand) was able to take part in batting practice ahead of Wednesday's game against the Houston Astros. This is a good sign in Harper's recovery after he was able to go through his pre-game routine on Tuesday. The hope is that Harper keeps making progress and can return to the lineup by the end of the week. Harper has been sidelined since early June due to wrist inflammation. Fantasy managers should stay tuned for more updates as Harper appears to be on the verge of returning.

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Chicago White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr. (hamstring) was forced to make an early exit from Wednesday's game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Robert was taken out of the contest in the first inning due to left hamstring tightness. Luckily, Robert appears to have avoided serious injury and is currently considered day-to-day. The 27-year-old has been struggling with the bat, so maybe a few days off might be helpful. The expectation is that Michael A. Taylor and Austin Slater will see increased playing time while Robert is sidelined.

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New York Yankees starting pitcher Clarke Schmidt will have his next start pushed back to Saturday, according to manager Aaron Boone. The Yankees have decided to be cautious with Schmidt and give him an extra day of rest. This move will mean Will Warren takes the mound on Friday and Schmidt starts against the Athletics. Schmidt has looked sharp on the mound lately with three straight scoreless outings. The right-hander has only allowed three earned runs over his last five starts. Hopefully everything is fine with Schmidt because he's pitching extremely well right now.

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Colorado Rockies outfielder Brenton Doyle is absent from the starting lineup ahead of Wednesday's game against the Los Angeles Dodgers. This comes after Doyle went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts during Tuesday's loss. That being said, it looks like Doyle could use a day off to rest and recover. Doyle has struggled in the month of June with six hitless performances over his last 10 games. Sam Hilliard will take over in center field and bat ninth against right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

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St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar is out of the starting lineup ahead of Wednesday's game against the Chicago Cubs. This appears to be a routine rest day for Nootbaar versus a left-handed starting pitcher. Nootbaar has been swinging a hot bat lately with seven hits, three homers, and seven RBI over his last five games. In his absence, Brendan Donovan will shift to left field while Thomas Saggese covers second base versus left-hander Matthew Boyd on Wednesday. Fantasy managers should adjust their lineups with Nootbaar on the bench for this one.

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Updating a previous report, Texas Rangers outfielder Wyatt Langford (side) is out of Wednesday's starting lineup against the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards due to left-side tightness. Langford will go for testing when the Rangers return home from Baltimore, but there seems to be less concern than with first baseman Jake Burger, who went on the 10-day injured list on Saturday with a strained left oblique. The Rangers have a day off for travel on Thursday, but fantasy managers should automatically assume that Langford will return for Friday's series opener against the division-rival Seattle Mariners. Remember, the 23-year-old former first-rounder dealt with a mild oblique injury that kept him out for a while back in spring training, so the Rangers won't rush him back with the All-Star break looming. Alejandro Osuna and Sam Haggerty could pick up starts in left if Langford misses additional time.

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New York Mets third baseman Mark Vientos (hamstring) could be activated from the 10-day injured list on Thursday, according to manager Carlos Mendoza. The Mets will decide on whether to activate Vientos for the series finale against the division-rival Atlanta Braves on Thursday or give him an extra day off after playing in the minor leagues on Tuesday and Wednesday. If Vientos doesn't return on Thursday, he should be back for Friday's series opener against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The 25-year-old has been out since early June with a strained right hamstring, but he's on the cusp of a return to the big leagues and should return to regular starting duties at the hot corner in Queens despite his slow start to the 2025 season. Vientos broke out in 2024 with a career-high 27 homers and 71 RBI, but so far he's hit just .230 (43-for-187) with six homers and 21 RBI in 53 games in 2025.

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The St. Louis Cardinals announced on Wednesday that they placed outfielder Jordan Walker (appendix) on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to June 23) with appendicitis and recalled infielder Jose Fermin from Triple-A Memphis in a corresponding move. Walker will most likely require an appendectomy, which will probably keep him out of action through the mid-July All-Star break. It's more bad news for the 23-year-old former top prospect, who just hasn't been able to break through at the big-league level. Walker also missed time this season with a wrist injury, and when he returned recently, he hasn't been playing as much for the Cardinals. Overall, he's batting a disappointing .210/.267/.295 with a .562 OPS, three home runs, 23 RBI, 21 runs and three steals in 176 at-bats. Walker is running out of chances in St. Louis.

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The St. Louis Cardinals announced on Wednesday that they optioned right-hander Michael McGreevy to Triple-A Memphis and recalled right-hander Matt Svanson from Memphis in a corresponding move. McGreevy, the team's No. 9 prospect per MLB Pipeline, has been used as a spot starter for the Cardinals in recent weeks. The 24-year-old had his worst start of the year in Tuesday's win over the Chicago Cubs, allowing five earned runs on seven hits (one homer) while walking one and striking out only one in a no-decision in 4 2/3 innings of work. The 6-foot-4, 220-pounder will go back to the farm to continue his development, but he figures to be back in the big leagues in the second half of 2025 for more spot starts or to enter the rotation permanently if injuries occur. McGreevy doesn't have overpowering stuff and relies on control and location to succeed, limiting his fantasy upside.

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Atlanta Braves outfielder Michael Harris II (elbow) is back in center field and is hitting eighth in the batting order for Wednesday's contest at Citi Field against the division-rival New York Mets and right-hander Clay Holmes. Harris departed Tuesday's win over the Mets early after being hit by a pitch in the right elbow, but X-rays came back negative and he's good to go a day later. The 24-year-old former third-rounder in 2019 already has 11 stolen bases and 43 RBI in 78 games in his fourth year in the big leagues, but otherwise he's been a disappointment for fantasy managers, slashing .220/.246/.331 with six home runs and 18 runs scored in 316 plate appearances. Half of his homers have come in June, but otherwise he's gone 13-for-78 (.167) with 22 strikeouts and no walks in 21 games during the month. Harris is hitless in three career at-bats against Holmes.

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New York Yankees outfielder Cody Bellinger will take a seat for Wednesday's series finale in Cincinnati against the Reds at Great American Ball Park. Trent Grisham will start in center field and bat leadoff for the Yanks against Reds right-hander Brady Singer. Bellinger continues to play regularly for New York despite the recent return of slugger Giancarlo Stanton, and he's hitting a solid .278 (22-for-79) with two home runs, five doubles, a triple, six RBI, three stolen bases and eight runs scored in 20 games in the month of June. The 29-year-old former MVP and two-time All-Star isn't an elite fantasy asset, but he's been productive across the board in pinstripes with 10 homers, 38 RBI, 37 runs and seven steals in 273 at-bats. Grisham surprisingly has 15 long balls on the year, but he's hit only two in June while batting .206 (14-for-68). He's hitless in three career at-bats against Singer.

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Tampa Bay Rays infielder/outfielder Richie Palacios (knee) was pulled off his minor-league rehab assignment on Tuesday while he continues to deal with right-knee soreness, according to The Tampa Bay Times' Marc Topkin. It's been an injury-plagued 2025 season for Palacios, who began the regular season on the injured list due to a fractured finger. The 28-year-old has only played in one game for the Rays, going 3-for-4 with a double, stolen base and a run scored and spraining his knee. He has hit just .125/.243/.156 in eight games in the rookie-level Florida Complex League and at Triple-A Durham during his rehab assignment, but he'll now take some time off to let his knee rest. In a best-case scenario, Palacios won't return to the Rays as a utility player until some point in the second half after the mid-July All-Star break.

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Tampa Bay Rays left-hander Shane McClanahan (triceps) posted a video on his Instagram account of him throwing off a mound, according to Bally Sports' Ryan Bass. McClanahan was shut down briefly earlier this month due to a setback with the nerve-related issue in his left triceps, and this is the first time that he's thrown off a mound since then. It's good to see the 28-year-old two-time All-Star throwing again, but there remains no timetable for him to make his 2025 season debut, and that definitely won't happen until sometime in the second half. The former first-rounder in 2018 out of South Florida is absolutely deserving of being stashed in an IL spot in all fantasy leagues, even though we don't know exactly he'll be back for the Rays. In his three major-league seasons with the Rays, McClanahan has been a fantasy ace with a 28% strikeout rate and a 3.02 ERA in 74 starts.

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Minnesota Twins utility man Willi Castro (wrist) is back in the starting lineup for Wednesday's game against the visiting Seattle Mariners and right-hander George Kirby, playing third base and batting third in the order at Target Field. Castro is back in the lineup after a sore right wrist kept him sidelined for the previous three contests. The 28-year-old entered Tuesday's game as a defensive replacement at second base and went 0-for-2 at the plate, so it's not a surprise that he's back in the starting lineup. The Puerto Rican utility man is in a nice lineup spot for DFS sleeper appeal, and he's hit .333 with a home run and three RBI in a small sample size of nine career at-bats against Kirby. Between third and second base, Castro should be a lineup regular for Minnesota moving forward with Royce Lewis (hamstring) on the injured list.

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Texas Rangers outfielder Wyatt Langford is getting a breather in Wednesday's contest at Camden Yards against the hosting Baltimore Orioles. Alejandro Osuna will make the start for Texas in left field and will hit out of the nine-hole against Orioles rookie right-hander Brandon Young, who will be making just his third major-league start. Langford went hitless in six at-bats in Tuesday's game against Baltimore and has just one hit in his last 13 at-bats since returning from minor back stiffness that kept him out for a few games over the weekend. Fantasy managers should expect the former first-rounder to be back in the Rangers' starting lineup for Friday's series opener against the division-rival Seattle Mariners after a scheduled day off on Thursday. Osuna isn't a realistic DFS sleeper play, even against a rookie pitcher with limited experience.

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Baltimore Orioles infielder Jordan Westburg (finger) is back at third base and is hitting out of the two-hole for Wednesday's contest in Baltimore against the visiting Texas Rangers and right-hander Jacob deGrom at Camden Yards. Westburg will be returning to the lineup for the first time since spraining his left index finger while sliding last Saturday. The 26-year-old has missed a lot of time this year due to injury and is hitting just .229 (30-for-131) on the year with seven home runs, 14 RBI, 20 runs scored and a stolen base. Westburg isn't going to be a very popular DFS play against deGrom despite being in a cushy lineup spot in the two-hole. Since returning from the injured list on June 10, Westburg has gone 10-for-39 (.256) with three home runs, two doubles, eight RBI, a steal and eight runs scored in 11 games played.

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Boston Red Sox right-hander Kutter Crawford (wrist) will undergo surgery on his right wrist, according to manager Alex Cora, and he is "most likely" to miss the rest of the season. Crawford will end up missing the entire 2025 campaign after initially beginning the regular season on the injured list with a right-knee injury that he began dealing with in the offseason. Once the 29-year-old goes under the knife, the BoSox should have a better idea of how long he'll be out before he's able to resume a throwing progression. The former 16th-round selection in 2017 out of Florida Gulf Coast University made a career-high 33 starts last year and went 9-16 with a 4.36 ERA (4.65 FIP) and 1.12 WHIP with 175 strikeouts, 51 walks and a league-high 34 home runs allowed in 183 2/3 innings. If he's healthy by spring training next year, Crawford should compete for a rotation spot in Boston.

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It "looks like" Boston Red Sox third baseman Alex Bregman (quadriceps) won't be back until after the mid-July All-Star break, according to manager Alex Cora. There was some hope that Bregman would be back to close out the first half of the 2025 season, but the Red Sox aren't going to push the 31-year-old veteran, and hopefully he'll be all systems go on July 18. Bregman has been out a month with a strained right quadriceps muscle and will likely require at least a short minor-league rehab assignment before he rejoins the big-league roster as the starting third baseman. When the two-time All-Star does return, expect rookie infielder Marcelo Mayer to move over to the keystone regularly. Bregman has leaned more into his power in his first year in Beantown and was hitting a strong .299/.385/.553 with a .938 OPS and 11 homers in 197 at-bats before his injury. Keep him stashed in all fantasy leagues.

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Miami Marlins pitching prospect Noble Meyer (undisclosed) has been placed on the High-A Beloit seven-day injured list, retroactive to June 23. The nature of the injury is not yet known, so there is no projection for when he'll return. The Marlins' fourth-ranked prospect is having a tough year for the Sky Carp, registering a 5.09 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, and 15.0 percent K-BB% in 11 starts, although he's been better over his last six starts, posting a 3.52 ERA (2.93 FIP), a 1.09 WHIP, and a 21.4 percent K-BB% in 23 innings pitched. MLB.com's top prospect list gives an ETA of 2026 for the 2023 first-rounder's major-league debut, however, that timeline looks optimistic, especially if this injury causes him to miss significant time. He's still only 20 years old, and the 6-foot-5 hurler has time to develop, regardless of what the injury turns out to be.

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Chicago White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr. (hamstring) was pulled early from Wednesday's series finale against the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks with left-hamstring tightness. Austin Slater pinch hit for Robert in the bottom of the first inning, so Robert must have tweaked his hamstring on defense in the top of the first frame. The White Sox should have more information on Robert's hamstring injury after the game or on Thursday, but it's not a good sign for a player with a history of lower-body injuries. The 27-year-old Cuban does have 22 stolen bases on the year, but he's also hitting .185 (46-for-249) with eight home runs, 32 RBI and 27 runs scored. He is one of the biggest names on the trade market this summer, but his hamstring injury could affect other teams' interest in him if it's serious. Michael Taylor moved to center to replace Robert on Wednesday and would be the starter there if Robert goes on the IL.

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