Kansas City Royals third baseman/utility man Maikel Garcia had a monster game in the second half of the team's doubleheader against the St. Louis Cardinals, going 2-for-3 with a homer, a double, two walks, three runs scored, two RBI, and two steals. Garcia did it all in this one and was a big reason why the Royals pulled out a 7-5 victory. It has been a tremendous season for the 25-year-old so far, who appears to be putting his tools together and breaking out. He now has a .311 AVG and .852 OPS to go with 28 runs, six homers, 29 RBI, and 13 swipes in 222 at-bats. With an everyday job secured, Garcia could be a very valuable five-category contributor in fantasy. He should be rostered everywhere at this point.

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Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Taylor Walls finished off a big comeback effort on Thursday, as the Rays scored three in the bottom of the ninth to steal a win from the Texas Rangers in a 4-3 victory. Walls' hit actually didn't leave the infield, but some sloppy defense from the Rangers allowed Junior Caminero to score from second and end the game. The 28-year-old finished the game 2-for-4, giving him his first multi-hit game since May 8. Walls is definitely not known for his bat, and that has been evident this season. He now has a .193 AVG, .507 OPS, 17 runs, one homer, 12 RBI, and seven swipes in 135 at-bats this year. There is no need to roster Walls in any fantasy format.

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San Francisco Giants closer Camilo Doval slammed the door on the San Diego Padres on Thursday, tossing a scoreless ninth inning to preserve a 3-2 win. Doval allowed two singles and a hard-hit flyout, but struck out Jake Cronenworth to finish off the Padres. The 27-year-old is coming off a tough outing against these same Padres where he allowed two runs and blew his third save of the season, so it was good to see him bounce back. Doval is now 8-for-11 in save chances this year and has put up a terrific 1.61 ERA and 0.96 WHIP to go along with 25 strikeouts in 28 IP. He has been able to put a tough 2024 behind him and should remain the Giants' closer as long as he keeps getting the job done. Doval should be rostered in all formats.

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Chicago Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong continued his breakout campaign on Thursday, launching a two-run homer in the first inning to give the Cubs a lead they wouldn't lose in a 7-1 victory over the Washington Nationals. The 23-year-old phenom has been a revelation for the Cubs and is showing no signs of slowing down. He now has a .275 AVG, .869 OPS, 49 runs, 16 homers, 53 RBI, and 21 steals in 244 at-bats, and has played gold glove-caliber defense to boot. Crow-Armstrong is among the best five-category contributors in the game right now and has seen his fantasy stock rise more than any other player this season. Those who drafted him are reaping the rewards in a big way.

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St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Willson Contreras clutched up in the bottom of the tenth on Thursday, delivering an RBI single that gave the Cards a 6-5 win in Game 1 of their doubleheader against the Kansas City Royals. Contreras also doubled, walked, and scored a run to round out a nice game at the plate. It hasn't been a great season for the veteran backstop, but he has held his own. The 33-year-old now holds a .250 AVG and .719 OPS to go with 28 runs, six homers, and 36 RBI. Contreras remains a must-start player in fantasy, even with the mediocre statline, since he holds catcher eligibility.

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Arizona Diamondbacks third baseman Eugenio Suarez came up big on Thursday, smacking a two-run double in the top of the ninth to put the D-backs up 11-10 on the Atlanta Braves, a lead they would hold onto for the win. Suarez capped off a seven-run ninth inning for the snakes in the biggest comeback of the season thus far. The 33-year-old also added a single and a walk in a productive day at the plate. For the season, Suarez is batting .232 with a .815 OPS, 38 runs, 16 homers, and 46 RBI. While he doesn't provide much average or speed, his counting stats and power have been elite this season. Suarez is a must-start third baseman who can go deep at any time.

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Pittsburgh Pirates pitching prospect Bubba Chandler allowed three runs on four hits and one walk with one strikeout over two innings against Triple-A Memphis. Chandler had an abbreviated outing on Thursday, throwing just 49 pitches, and uncharacteristically didn't draw a ton of whiffs. He generated six whiffs on 30 swings overall and wasn't quite as effective in getting swing and misses in the zone. The velocity on the fastball still looked awesome at 97.7 MPH, he filled up the zone, and he didn't give up a lot of hard contact. The top prospect looks ready to be called up to the majors at any moment and would be viewed as a priority add.

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Miami Marlins pitching prospect Adam Mazur picked up the win against Triple-A Durham, allowing two runs on four hits and a walk across six innings. He struck out eight and filled up the zone, throwing 53 of his 81 pitches for strikes. It's been a tale of two months so far in 2025 for the right-hander with drastically different numbers comparing April to May. In April, he posted a 1.44 ERA, 0.84 WHIP, and a 24:3 K:BB in 25 innings. Conversely, he fell off to a 5.63 ERA, 1.67 WHIP, and a 14:11 K:BB in 24 innings in May. Mazur is not going to hold a high strikeout rate, but offsets it with solid command. He spent time in the majors last season with San Diego with poor results, but could be called upon to fill a spot in the Miami rotation if an injury pops up. He would likely be viewed as a low-upside streamer.

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Chicago White Sox shortstop prospect Colson Montgomery went 2-for-3 with two home runs and three RBI in an 11-4 loss against Triple-A Lehigh Valley. With this power outburst, his season line rises to just .195/.284/.361. It's been a struggle overall for the 23-year-old in his second season at Triple-A, with his strikeout rate spiking to a career worst 34.7%. The shortstop still displays a solid approach at the plate and the ability to get on base, but he's unlikely to make his major league debut until he starts showing more positive signs.

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Philadelphia Phillies outfield prospect Justin Crawford went 3-for-3 with a double, three RBI, and two runs scored in an 11-4 win against Triple-A Charlotte on Thursday. The 21-year-old was pinch-hit for in the top of the fifth inning, and there's no update yet on the reason. Crawford enjoyed a highly productive May, slashing .378/.440/.489 and stealing 13 bases, the second most in all of Triple-A. The speedster has stolen a gaudy number of bases throughout his minor league career and has improved his strikeout rate incrementally over the years. Also, there is an element of some power upside with his batted ball metrics, holding a 42.8 percent hard-hit rate and a 110.6 MaxEv at Triple-A this season. Crawford is someone to watch for to be called up later in the summer, and could be a useful option for steals.

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Baltimore Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman hit a key home run to help the O's to a 4-3 victory over the Seattle Mariners on Thursday. With the Orioles trailing 3-1 in the top of the sixth, Rutschman took Seattle starter Bryan Woo deep to right for a two-run, game-tying homer. Rutschman added a pair of singles to finish 3-for-4 and collect his second three-hit game of June. He has also homered in back-to-back games, raising his line to .225/.314/.375 with seven dingers and 18 RBI in 226 plate appearances. The switch-hitter is miles off the 80-RBI pace he set in the previous two seasons, though he could approach or reach the 20-HR mark for the third consecutive year. He'll face Athletics lefty JP Sears on Friday. Their meetings have worked out well for Rutschman, who's 4-for-10 with two HRs against Sears.

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New York Yankees ace Max Fried (8-1) spun another gem on Thursday against the Cleveland Guardians to notch his eighth win of the season. The left-hander limited the Guardians to one hit (a single) over six innings while striking out seven and walking two in the Yankees' 4-0 victory. Fried, a former Brave, signed an eight-year, $218 million contract with the Yankees in the offseason and has looked well worth the investment so far. After shutting down Cleveland, Fried owns an elite 1.79 ERA with 77 strikeouts, 18 walks, and a 0.94 WHIP in 81 innings. He's scheduled to face the Kansas City Royals on the road next Wednesday. The Royals have mustered an unimposing .232/.290/.303 line against southpaws, which bodes well for Fried.

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Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette helped lead the charge in the team's 9-1 blowout of the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday. Bichette bashed a 413-foot homer against left-hander Jesus Luzardo and picked up a single to finish 2-for-4 with two RBI. It was the right-handed Bichette's first HR against a lefty this season. He has recorded a hit in nine straight games and now owns a .279/.324/.443 line with eight HRs, 35 RBI, four steals, and a career-best 15.7% strikeout rate in 281 plate appearances. Bichette's production fell off a cliff during an injury-ravaged 2024, but his numbers have returned to respectability in his age-27 campaign.

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Philadelphia Phillies left-hander Jesus Luzardo (5-2) turned in his second straight disastrous start Thursday in a 9-1 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays. Luzardo lasted 2 1/3 innings and surrendered eight earned runs on nine hits while striking out two and walking a pair. The 27-year-old had jumped out to a spectacular start this season until the wheels began falling off last Saturday in a loss to the Milwaukee Brewers. They teed off on Luzardo for 12 earned runs on 12 hits in 3 1/3 innings. Between that performance and his outing Thursday, Luzardo yielded a shocking 20 earned runs in a 5 2/3-inning span. As a result, Luzardo's ERA has soared from 2.15 to 4.46 over the past week. The 27-year-old still carries an outstanding 83:24 K:BB through 72 2/3 frames, while predictive metrics such as FIP (2.90) and xFIP (3.20) are bullish on him. However, fantasy managers may not regard Luzardo as a must-start option anymore. He looks like an ultra-risky play for his next scheduled start against an elite Chicago Cubs offense on Tuesday.

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New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso belted his 15th home run of the season in a 6-5 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday. Alonso, who has already homered four times in June, added two singles in the game to go 3-for-4 with two RBI and an additional run scored. The 30-year-old slugger is now hitting a personal-best .298/.394/.579 with 55 RBI through 277 trips to the plate. Alonso is well on his way to a fifth straight season of 30-plus HRs and the fourth 100-RBI campaign of his career. To the delight of fantasy managers, he will begin a three-game set at Coors Field against the Colorado Rockies' woeful pitching staff on Friday.

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New York Mets left-hander David Peterson tossed seven effective innings in a no-decision against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday. The Mets suffered a 6-5 loss, but Peterson allowed just three earned runs on seven hits, struck out six, and walked two to rack up his seventh quality start of 2025. The 29-year-old has been a model of consistency, having given up three or fewer earned runs in all 12 of his starts this season. Thanks in part to a career-best 56.9 ground-ball rate, Peterson has pitched to an appealing 2.80 ERA in 70 2/3 frames. He's slated to start on Wednesday against a middle-of-the-pack Washington Nationals offense.

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San Francisco Giants left-hander Robbie Ray (8-1) collected his National League-leading eighth win of the season Thursday in a 3-2 decision against the San Diego Padres. Ray fired seven innings of two-run ball with four hits allowed, nine strikeouts, and a walk to continue his fantastic start to the 2025 campaign. After two injury-wrecked seasons in a row, the former AL Cy Young winner looks back in peak form this year. Ray has posted a sparkling 2.44 ERA with 87 strikeouts against 31 walks over 77 1/3 frames. Now riding a streak of eight consecutive quality starts, the 33-year-old will head to Coors Field to face the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday. He threw seven scoreless innings against the Rockies on May 2.

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San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado smacked the 350th home run of his career in the team's 3-2 loss to the San Francisco Giants on Thursday. It's an important milestone for Machado, who became the 10th third baseman in history to reach the 350-HR mark. His 391-foot blast off left-hander Robbie Ray in the third inning knocked in the Padres' only runs of the game. Machado also singled during a 2-for-4 afternoon, continuing another highly productive season for the six-time All-Star. Set to turn 33 next month, Machado is hitting a robust .317/.382/.498 with eight homers, 31 RBI, and eight steals over 254 plate appearances. Machado's numbers are bolstered by rock-solid underlying metrics, including a .398 xwOBA. He'll take on Milwaukee Brewers right-hander Chad Patrick on Friday.

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Pittsburgh Pirates right-handed reliever Colin Holderman (thumb) has taken a "pause of healing," according to Todd Tomczyk. Holderman remains on the injured list while he deals with right-thumb tenosynovitis. He received a cortisone injection last week but has yet to resume throwing. The Pirates will re-evaluate him on Friday. The 29-year-old landed on the IL back on May 29. We don't have a concrete timetable on when Holderman might rejoin Pittsburgh's bullpen, but because of the fact that he was shut down from throwing, he's likely at least several weeks away from a return. Before getting injured, Holderman appeared in 14 games in relief and allowed 15 earned runs on 20 hits (three homers) while walking 11 and fanning 11 in 15 innings. He should remain on waiver wires in pretty much all leagues.

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Athletics first baseman Tyler Soderstrom led the offensive charge in Thursday's 14-3 blowout win in Sacramento over the visiting Minnesota Twins. Soderstrom went 2-for-5 in the contest with a grand slam and a two-run home run for a total of six RBI on the day. The 23-year-old left-handed slugger and former first-rounder is having a breakout campaign in 2025 in his third year in the big leagues, and he's a big reason why the A's have a top-five OPS as a team. Thursday's impressive performance was Soderstrom's fourth multi-home run game of the year, and it was nice to see after he has recently slowed down his offensive pace. Soderstrom came into Thursday's game with a .254/.332/.462 OPS with a .794 OPS, 12 homers and 36 RBI in 63 games. With an xBA of .275 thanks to strong batted-ball metrics, Soderstrom is likely to continue doing damage for fantasy managers.

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