Chicago Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong (knee) is sitting on Sunday against Washington Nationals left-hander Andrew Alvarez. Kevin Alcantara will take PCA's place in center field and bat ninth. Crow-Armstrong left the Cubs' 2-1 loss to the Nats on Saturday shortly after fouling a ball off his right knee, but it seems he avoided any major damage. The team diagnosed Crow-Armstrong with a contusion, and he'll get at least one day off to recover from it. Although the 23-year-old All-Star had a terrible August (.446 OPS), he has still provided plenty of fantasy value this season with a .789 OPS, 28 homers, 85 RBI, 84 runs scored, and 32 stolen bases in 571 plate appearances.

From RotoBaller

Chicago Cubs outfielder Kyle Tucker (calf) is on the bench Sunday against Washington Nationals left-hander Andrew Alvarez. Seiya Suzuki will play right field and bat third, while Justin Turner will serve as the designated hitter and occupy the seventh spot in the lineup. Tucker has been dealing with a calf injury that will shelve him for a fourth straight game, but the Cubs are optimistic that he'll avoid a stint on the 10-day IL. The 28-year-old went through a brutal slump earlier this summer that led to the Cubs giving him back-to-back days off from Aug. 19-20, but Tucker has since picked up at least one hit in 11 of 13 games. The hope is that he'll return to the lineup when Chicago begins a series against the Atlanta Braves on Monday.

From RotoBaller

Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. (back) is absent from the lineup on Sunday against Minnesota Twins right-hander Bailey Ober. Maikel Garcia will play short and hit second, while Nick Loftin will man third base and bat seventh. Witt hasn't played since leaving the Royals' 2-1 win over the Twins on Friday with low-back spasms, but an MRI didn't reveal anything serious. Fantasy managers should check back on Monday to see if Witt is ready to return for the Royals' series opener against the Cleveland Guardians.

From RotoBaller

Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Will Smith (hand) is out of the lineup on Sunday against Baltimore Orioles right-hander Tomoyuki Sugano. Ben Rortvedt will fill in behind the plate and bat ninth. Smith left a 3-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday with a bone bruise in his right hand and will now miss a fourth straight game. The Dodgers have since lost backup Dalton Rushing (shin) to the 10-day injured list, leaving Rortvedt and Chuckie Robinson as their healthy options at catcher. With Smith potentially available off the bench Sunday, he could return to the lineup when the Dodgers open a series against the Colorado Rockies on Monday.

From RotoBaller

Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette (leg) is not in the lineup against the New York Yankees on Sunday. Ernie Clement will handle short and hit fifth in a meeting with ace left-hander Max Fried, while Isiah Kiner-Falefa will play third base and bat seventh. Manager John Schneider said Bichette's leg was "cut up pretty good" after a sixth-inning collision with Yankees catcher Austin Wells at home plate in a 3-1 loss on Saturday. Bichette finished the game, and X-rays came back negative, but Toronto is off Monday and will give him a couple of days to recuperate. The 27-year-old has played in 139 games this season and slashed an outstanding .311/.357/.483 with 18 homers, 93 RBI, 78 runs scored, and four stolen bases in 628 plate appearances.

From RotoBaller

Milwaukee Brewers designated hitter/outfielder Christian Yelich (back) remains out on Sunday against the Pittsburgh Pirates. William Contreras will serve as the DH and hit third versus right-hander Bubba Chandler, and Danny Jansen will do the catching and bat eighth. Yelich is battling back soreness and will now miss a fifth consecutive game, though he did progress enough to take swings in the batting cage on Saturday. Manager Pat Murphy said it went well and suggested that Yelich could be available to pinch-hit on Sunday. With that in mind, Yelich may return to the Brewers' lineup for Monday's series opener against the Texas Rangers.

From RotoBaller

Cleveland Guardians second base prospect Travis Bazzana belted two home runs in a 3-for-5 day at the plate on Saturday for Triple-A Columbus. It was his second three-hit game in his last three games, during which time he's tallied three home runs, five RBI, seven runs scored, and a 2:2 BB:K. The 2024 first-overall draft pick is hitting just .244 through 22 games at Triple-A, but an elite 23.1 percent walk rate has helped him to a .427 OBP, and he's also registereda .449 SLG (.876 OPS). There's still time for a late-season call-up to the big leagues, but that may be too late for fantasy purposes. Look for the 23-year-old to be in the majors next year, and with good all-around hit, power, and speed tools, it will be interesting to see how high he'll go in drafts for season-long leagues.

From RotoBaller

Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Spencer Strider has been scratched ahead of his scheduled start against the Seattle Mariners. Instead, Joey Wentz will take the mound for Sunday's contest. The plan is for Strider to be pushed back and start during the upcoming series versus the Chicago Cubs. This doesn't sound like it's injury related, but the Braves want to give Strider extra rest. Strider has struggled as he's allowed five runs or more in three of his last five starts. He gave up three runs and walked three batters during his most recent start against the Cubs. Strider is no longer a must-start fantasy option given his struggles this season.

From RotoBaller

Baltimore Orioles catcher Samuel Basallo (hand) was forced to make an early exit from Saturday's game against the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was lifted in the fifth inning after taking a foul ball off his right hand. Basallo attempted to stay in the game, but had trouble throwing the ball. He underwent X-rays that came back negative for any fractures. That being said, Basallo appears to have avoided any serious injuries. For now, fantasy managers should consider Basallo as day-to-day. He'll likely sit out for a few days, which could result in more playing time for Alex Jackson behind the plate.

From RotoBaller

Houston Astros starting pitcher Framber Valdez will make the start against the Texas Rangers on Sunday. Previously, Luis Garcia was scheduled to start, but will have his outing pushed back. Now, Valdez is slated to take the mound for this important divisional matchup. Garica isn't dealing with an injury, so this move was either matchup related or to give Garcia extra rest. The expectation is that Garcia will move into Valdez spot in the rotation which was Tuesday versus the Toronto Blue Jays. Fantasy managers should adjust their lineups accordingly.

From RotoBaller

Seattle Mariners infield prospect Michael Arroyo exited Friday's game at Double-A Arkansas with what appeared to be a hamstring injury. The Mariners' sixth-ranked prospect suffered the injury attempting to beat out a grounder in the fourth inning of that contest. He has yet to be placed on the injured list, however, he was absent from the lineup on Saturday. If the injury requires an IL stint, it would likely end his season at this point. The 20-year-old began the year at High-A and earned a promotion to Double-A in June, where he hit just .255, but he lowered his strikeout rate from 21.1 percent to 15.6 percent while drawing walks at a 12.0 percent rate, allowing him to boast a .376 OBP. The 5-foot-10 Colombian also stole nine bases in 56 games for the Travelers, finishing with a .349 wOBA and 123 wRC+ at that level. Hitting .313 over his last nine games, the arrow is still pointing up for Arroyo, who has looked like a solid under-the-radar stash in dynasty formats and could be in the big leagues as early as late next season.

From RotoBaller

Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. (back) was forced to make an early exit from Friday's game. As a result, Witt sat out of Saturday's game due to back spasms. Luckily, the MRI showed no structural damage, so Witt isn't dealing with anything too serious. For now, fantasy managers should consider Witt as day-to-day. It wouldn't be shocking to see Witt miss a handful of games. Right now, it doesn't sound like this issue will force Witt onto the injured list. In his absence, Maikel Garcia and Nick Loftin should help try to fill the void at shortstop.

From RotoBaller

Houston Astros starting pitcher Luis Garcia won't make his scheduled start against the Texas Rangers on Sunday. Garcia is healthy, but the team has decided to push him back in the rotation. Instead, Framber Valdez will get the ball versus the Texas Rangers on Sunday. It sounds like Garcia will probably be pushed back until the Toronto Blue Jays series next week. Garcia tossed six innings, allowing three runs on three hits while striking out six batters during his season debut last Monday. The expectation is that the Astros are going to be careful with Garcia down the stretch of the season. Fantasy managers who have Valdez rostered should get him starting on Sunday.

From RotoBaller

Baltimore Orioles starting pitcher Dean Kremer (forearm) is not expected to miss significant time. He was forced to make an early exit from Friday's start due to forearm discomfort. The right-hander was lifted after three scoreless innings, but doesn't appear to be dealing with anything serious. The MRI came back clean and didn't show any signs of structural damage. The O's plan to have Kremer skip his next turn in the rotation in order to rest. It sounds like the O's want to avoid placing Kremer on the injured list. The O's aren't in the playoff race and there's only three weeks left in the regular season. That being said, it's unclear if Kremer will actually take the mound again this season. The O's haven't said who will take over the vacant spot in the rotation.

From RotoBaller

White Sox's SS Colson Montgomery scored 31.5 fantasy points going 6-for-23 with three home runs and eight RBIs in six games this week. Montgomery is owned in 59.5% of mixed leagues.

Las Vegas' RF JJ Bleday scored 33.0 fantasy points going 7-for-14 with four home runs and nine RBIs in four games this week. Bleday is owned only in 1.9% of mixed leagues.

Washington Nationals' 2B Luis Garcia Jr. had three stolen bases and a .286 average with 5 RBIs in four games this week. Garcia Jr. is owned only in 36.1% of mixed leagues.

Rays' CF Jake Mangum had a slash line of .455/.500/.545 going 10-for-22 in six games this week. Mangum is owned only in 8.4% of mixed leagues.

Angels' LF Jo Adell scored 39.5 fantasy points going 10-for-23 with four home runs and 10 RBIs in six games this week. Adell is owned in 69.1% of mixed leagues.

Giants' SP Justin Verlander had an ERA of 1.06 and a WHIP of 1.12 in 17 innings over his last three games. Verlander is owned only in 19.7% of mixed leagues.