Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (forearm) is absent from the starting lineup for Friday's series opener at Fenway Park against the division-rival Boston Red Sox despite manager John Schneider saying earlier in the day that he expected the All-Star slugger to return. Guerrero was pulled from Thursday's series finale against the Cleveland Guardians after he was hit by a pitch in his right forearm, but thankfully X-rays came back negative. The 26-year-old is considered day-to-day, and we'd be surprised if he's not back in there for Game 2 of the series in Beantown on Saturday. Ernie Clement will start at first on Friday and bat sixth against Red Sox right-hander Brayan Bello. Clement is hitless in five career at-bats versus Bello and lacks power, but the 29-year-old is hitting a cool .303 (77-for-254) on the year. However, he's in the fifth percentile for barrel rate and has an xBA of .269.

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Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Oneil Cruz is on the bench for Friday's series opener at PNC Park against the visiting New York Mets. Alexander Canario is starting in center field for the Bucs and will hit eighth against Mets left-hander David Peterson. Not only has Cruz been slumping at the plate, but he was pulled from the game earlier this week after not running out a double-play ground ball. In 21 games in June, the 26-year-old Dominican has gone 12-for-81 (.148) with a homer, two doubles, five RBI, eight steals, 10 walks and 32 strikeouts in 93 trips to the plate. He has only two hits in his last 31 at-bats with 12 K's. Cruz is barely hitting over the Mendoza Line in 264 at-bats in 2025, but he does still have 13 long balls, 42 runs and a league-high 26 stolen bases, making him a must-start in fantasy amidst his struggles. Canario is hitless in three career at-bats against Peterson and is a low-upside DFS sleeper.

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San Diego Padres shortstop Xander Bogaerts (shoulder) is back in the starting lineup for Friday's series opener in Cincinnati against the Reds and right-hander Nick Martinez, playing shortstop and batting sixth. Bogaerts was scratched from the series finale on Wednesday against the Washington Nationals with left-shoulder soreness, but he's feeling better after a scheduled day off on Thursday. While the 32-year-old continues to be very mediocre overall on offense, he has hit .385 with a 1.082 OPS, one home run and two RBI in 13 career at-bats against Martinez, a former Padre. In 22 games in June, Bogaerts has been slightly better, hitting .259/.319/.365 with a home run, six doubles, eight RBI, 10 runs scored, two stolen bases and an 11:8 K:BB in 94 plate appearances. The four-time All-Star's diminishing power is no secret, but he does already had 13 steals in 78 games.

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New York Mets right-hander Griffin Canning (Achilles) will miss the rest of the 2025 season after being placed on the 60-day injured list on Friday with a ruptured left Achilles that he suffered in Thursday's game against the Atlanta Braves. The Mets added right-handed pitching prospect Blade Tidwell from Triple-A Syracuse in a corresponding move. It's a tough break for Canning, who might not be ready for the start of next year either, depending on how his rehab goes this offseason. The 29-year-old was having his best year in the big leagues in his first season with the Mets, going 7-3 with a 3.77 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and 70:35 K:BB in his 16 starts. Obviously, fantasy managers in single-year leagues can now drop him. With Kodai Senga (hamstring) and Sean Manaea (elbow, oblique) on the IL, Tidwell could temporarily fill the fifth spot in New York's starting rotation.

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The Colorado Rockies officially reinstated left-hander Kyle Freeland (back) from the 15-day injured list on Friday and optioned right-hander Anthony Molina to Triple-A Albuquerque in a corresponding move. Freeland will make the start for Friday's series opener in Milwaukee against the Brewers. The 32-year-old veteran required a minimum stay on the IL and skipped a minor-league rehab assignment, so there's a good chance he will be on a strict pitch count in his first start back against a tough opponent on the road. Fantasy managers in deeper leagues should probably be looking to stay away from Freeland, who has gone 1-8 this year with a 5.13 ERA (3.63 FIP) and 1.53 WHIP with 57 K's and 15 walks in 73 2/3 innings over his 14 starts. In his first start against Milwaukee on April 8, Freeland allowed five earned runs on eight hits while striking out five in a loss in 6 1/3 innings.

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The Boston Red Sox placed rookie infielder Marcelo Mayer on the bereavement list on Friday and recalled infielder Nick Sogard from Triple-A Worcester in a corresponding move, according to Mass Live's Chris Cotillo. Mayer will step away from the team for a couple of days and will most likely miss the entire weekend series at Fenway Park against the division-rival Toronto Blue Jays. Sogard will step into the starting lineup on Friday against Blue Jays right-hander Jose Berrios, playing third base and batting in the nine-hole. Mayer, the team's No. 2 prospect per MLB Pipeline, is the club's shortstop of the future, but he has been filling in at the hot corner in Beantown with Alex Bregman (quadriceps) expected to be out for the rest of the first half of the season. The 22-year-old has hit just .208 (16-for-77) but does have four home runs in his first 27 MLB contests.

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The Cincinnati Reds activated outfielder Austin Hays (foot) from the 10-day injured list on Friday, according to FOX 19's Charlie Goldsmith. Hays has been an everyday player for the Reds this year when he's been healthy, and he'll step back into that role, but the team will ease him back in as the designated hitter at first for Friday's series opener against the visiting San Diego Padres and right-hander Dylan Cease. The 29-year-old has been out since May 29 with a left-foot contusion. Hays has had a tough time staying on the field in 2025, but when he's been active, he's been useful in mixed fantasy leagues with a .303/.346/.555 slash line, .901 OPS, six home runs, 25 RBI, 23 runs scored and two stolen bases in 119 at-bats. Outfielder Jake Fraley (shoulder) was put on the IL in a corresponding move with Hays returning.

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The Cincinnati Reds placed outfielder Jake Fraley (shoulder) on the 10-day injured list on Friday with a shoulder sprain and activated outfielder Austin Hays (foot) from the 10-day IL in a corresponding move, according to FOX 19's Charlie Goldsmith. It's unclear how long Fraley will be sidelined, but even if it's a minor injury, there's a good chance we won't see him again until the second half of the season in late July. The Reds get some reinforcement in Hays, but Will Benson and Rece Hinds could end up splitting playing time in right field with Fraley out. The 30-year-old left-handed-hitting outfielder is primarily a fantasy asset in NL-only leagues because of the fact that he rarely plays against left-handed pitchers. The former second-rounder by the Tampa Bay Rays in 2016 out of LSU is also hitting just .224 (28-for-125) on the year with five homers, 17 RBI, 24 runs and four steals.

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St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar (intercostal) is back in the team's starting lineup for Friday's series opener against the hosting Cleveland Guardians and right-hander Luis L. Ortiz, playing left field and batting fifth in the order. Nootbaar will return to action after missing the final two games of the series against the Chicago Cubs with an intercostal injury, but he's back on Friday and ready to go for the weekend. He has hit .237 (44-for-186) with nine of his 11 home runs on the year against right-handed pitchers and has gone hitless in just two career at-bats versus Ortiz. The 27-year-old left-handed-hitting outfielder comes into Friday's series opener riding a modest six-game hitting streak in which he's gone 7-for-22 with three home runs, a double, seven RBI and three runs scored.

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It's unclear if Atlanta Braves pitching prospect Didier Fuentes will get another turn in the starting rotation after giving up eight hits and six runs in 3 1/3 innings in his second major-league start on Wednesday against the New York Mets, and he now has a 10.80 ERA. Meanwhile, right-hander Jackson Stephens threw five shutout innings with one hit allowed on Thursday for Triple-A Gwinnett after going four hitless and scoreless innings in his previous start. The Braves have been impressed with Fuentes' maturity, but if they wanted to make a change going into next week's series against the Los Angeles Angels, it would line up for Stephens to make a start as the Braves continue to look to fill Chris Sale's (rib cage) spot in the rotation. The 31-year-old Stephens was recently moved to a starting role at Gwinnett after opening the year in the bullpen.

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Atlanta Braves outfielder/designated hitter Marcell Ozuna had a .287 average and .922 OPS through the first 30 games of the season despite battling through a hip injury. However, he had only five home runs and 12 RBI with 29 walks through his first 30 games after totaling 79 homers and 204 RBI in the last two seasons. Since then, he's hit just .224 with six home runs and a .700 OPS in 46 games before Thursday's contest, but he said two weeks ago that his hip was no longer an issue. He does have 15 RBI in his last 22 games, but he's also had just one home run and five extra-base hits. Ozuna currently is in the 90th percentile in xwOBA and 81st percentile for hard-hit rate, so as long as he stays healthy, there should be some positive regression coming in the second half for a Braves team that has had its share of offensive struggles in 2025.

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Detroit Tigers outfielder Wenceel Perez got a late start to the 2025 season due to a back injury, but he's been a different player since he returned, and it's mainly been attributed to a mechanical tweak in his stance, according to The Athletic's Cody Stavenhagen. Perez has closed off his stance and is angling his front foot to make sure he doesn't pull off the baseball. It's helped him be effective from both sides of the plate as a switch-hitter, as he has three homers apiece from each side and currently sports a .983 OPS. In addition to his adjustments as a hitter, the 25-year-old has made strides at his new home in right field and has shown off his arm strength recently by hosing two Athletics baserunners. It's still only a small sample size of 83 at-bats in 2025, but the Dominican is hitting .301 and is worth a look as a waiver-wire pickup if he's available in your league.

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Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh announced on Friday that he will compete in this year's All-Star Home Run Derby on July 14 at Truist Park in Atlanta, according to MLB.com's Daniel Kramer. Raleigh, who great up 150 miles away in North Carolina, will be hoping to become the only catcher ever to win a Home Run derby. He might switch hit during the event, which would make him just the second player to do so after Baltimore catcher Adley Rutschman did it in 2023. Raleigh will be the eighth Mariners player to participate in the derby, with only Ken Griffey Jr. winning it (three times). Raleigh, 28, is by far and away the best fantasy catcher in 2025 and currently leads baseball with 32 home runs while also hitting .275 (81-for-295) with 69 RBI, 58 runs scored and nine stolen bases in a true breakout season. He has already set a record for most homers by a catcher and switch-hitter before the All-Star break.

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Cleveland Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said on MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM that third baseman Jose Ramirez (forearm) "probably isn't going to be able to play" in the series opener on Friday against the St. Louis Cardinals. Ramirez was hit by a pitch on his right forearm in Thursday's loss to the Toronto Blue Jays and was pulled from the game early, but thankfully X-rays came back negative for a fracture. While J-Ram won't start on Friday, he could be available off the bench later in the game, which signals that he could return to action for fantasy managers for Game 2 of the series on Saturday at Progressive Field. Daniel Schneeman and Gabriel Arias are both options to start at third on Friday. The 32-year-old Ramirez continues to be one of the best all-around players in baseball and currently has a .317/.378/.514 slash line with an .892 OPS, 13 homers, 38 RBI, 43 runs and 21 steals.

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Arizona Diamondbacks catching prospect Adrian Del Castillo (back) was sent to the Arizona Complex League to begin his rehab assignment. Del Castillo was placed on the 7-day IL with a back injury earlier in June. This is an excellent sign as the young backstop appears to be on track to make a quick return. Fantasy managers should continue to monitor his status, as he could return to Triple-A Reno as early as next week. Last season, the No. 6-ranked prospect in the system made his MLB debut and performed quite well during his first taste of the majors, posting an elite .313/.368/.525 slash line with five doubles and four long balls. With Gabriel Moreno (finger) on the IL in the majors as well, Del Castillo could push for a promotion early in the second half once cleared to return to action.

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San Francisco Giants shortstop Willy Adames went 3-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored in Thursday's 12-5 home loss to the Miami Marlins. All three hits were singles. The Giants lost their third straight to the Fish in this one, but it was no fault of the 29-year-old's, as he notched his second three-hit outing of the month. Adames is having his best month of the campaign, though that isn't saying much considering he failed to eclipse a .219 average in April or May. After a dismal 1-for-22 stretch to start June, he's gone a more palatable 16-for-54 (.296) over the ensuing 15 games. All four of his homers in the month have come in that time.

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Detroit Tigers second base prospect Hao-Yu Lee went 2-for-5 with a home run and two strikeouts during their contest against Triple-A Charlotte. This was Lee's second-straight contest tallying at least two hits. This was also his second long ball since the start of June. Lee is considered the No. 6-ranked prospect in the Detroit system on MLB.com. The 22-year-old spent the entire 2024 campaign with Double-A and was given the nod to open the 2025 campaign with Triple-A Toledo. Through his first 63 games at the top level of the minor leagues, Lee has posted a .255/.361/.410 line with nine doubles, five triples, six home runs, 10 stolen bases, and a .771 OPS. At Double-A, Lee held a strong .298/.363/.488 line. Lee could be in the mix to reach the majors in the second half.

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SNY's Andy Martino reports that New York Mets No. 15 overall prospect, pitcher Blade Tidwell, will rejoin the big-league roster on Friday for the team's series opener with the hosting Pittsburgh Pirates. The news comes as New York has dealt with a myriad of pitching injuries -- the latest of which, affecting starter Griffin Canning (Achilles). Canning isn't the Mets' only concern, with Kodai Senga (hamstring) and Tylor Megill (elbow) still shelved -- not to mention the recent news regarding the loose foreign body rolling around in Sean Manaea's (elbow, oblique) elbow. For now, Tidwell will be available out of the bullpen, but he could take Canning's vacant spot in the rotation if the Amazin's decide to go in that direction. He sports a ghastly 9.82 ERA and 2.59 WHIP through two starts (7 1/3 innings) in his debut.

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Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider told MLB Network Radio on SiriusXM that he expects first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (forearm) to be in the team's lineup for their series opener against the hosting Boston Red Sox. The fantasy stalwart took a pitch to the forearm on Thursday from Guardians pitcher Tanner Bibee and was forced from the outing early. However, X-rays returned negative, and it doesn't appear to be serious. Guerrero Jr. is slashing a solid .286/.389/.506 across 77 at-bats in the month, with three long balls, eight doubles, 14 runs scored, 14 RBI, and a 9:9 BB:K ratio. He'll line up against right-handed hurler Brayan Bello for Friday night's matchup if he's in the starting nine.

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The New York Yankees are promoting outfield prospect Spencer Jones to Triple-A. Jones has spent the entire 2024 campaign and the first half of 2025 with Double-A Somerset. After posting a modest .259/.336/.452 slash line last summer, Jones has taken a significant step forward this season, which earned him the promotion. Through 49 games this season, Jones has posted an impressive .274/.389/.594 slash line with eight doubles, 16 home runs, and 10 stolen bases. Across 122 games last season, Jones hit just 17 round-trippers. The 24-year-old is currently considered the No. 2-ranked prospect in the Yankee system on MLB.com. Fantasy managers should keep a close eye on his progression in Triple-A, as he could open the door for a late-season MLB debut if he continues to showcase his high power upside.

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