San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Blake Snell (groin) is nearing a return to the big league rotation. The left-hander has been sidelined since late April due to a lingering groin issue. The good news is that Snell looked great during his most recent rehab outing on Friday. The left-hander threw five scoreless innings and struck out 10 batters. It sounds like the plan is for Snell's next start to be with the Giants. That'll likely happen at some point next week, possibly Wednesday versus the Pittsburgh Pirates.

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Texas Rangers outfielder Evan Carter (back) is returning to the starting lineup for Sunday's game against the Los Angeles Angels. The rookie outfielder missed over a week due to a lower back issue. Luckily, it appears to be behind him and he's ready to play again. Carter has put together an up-and-down season so far in 2024. Fantasy managers who have Carter rostered can get him back in their lineups. Carter will cover left field and bat seventh against the Halos on Sunday.

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San Diego Padres starting pitcher Joe Musgrove (triceps) won't be activated from the injured list ahead of Sunday's game against the Atlanta Braves. Instead, Musgrove is likely to be activated and start against the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday. The Padres were planning on bringing Musgrove back on Sunday, but a rainout on Saturday pushed back their rotation. Fantasy managers will have to wait a little longer before getting the 31-year-old back on the mound. Musgrove holds a 6.37 ERA, 1.51 WHIP, and a 36/13 K/BB ratio through eight starts this season. Hopefully some time off will help him get back on track.

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Chicago Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner (hamstring) remains out of the starting lineup ahead of Sunday's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. This marks the sixth straight game that Hoerner has missed due to tightness in his hamstring. The 27-year-old is considered day-to-day, but it's a bit surprising Hoerner hasn't been placed on the injured list yet. In the meantime, Nick Madrigal will bat seventh and cover second base on Sunday.

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Seattle Mariners second baseman Jorge Polanco (hamstring) remains out of the starting lineup on Sunday against the Orioles in Baltimore. It will be the fifth straight game that Polanco has missed with a hamstring injury that could very well land him on the injured list. Outfielder Jonatan Clase, the team's No. 10 prospect per MLB Pipeline, is on the team's taxi squad right now and could join the active roster if Polanco lands on the injured list. On top of his injury, the 30-year-old Polanco has been a huge disappointment in his first year in Seattle, hitting just .192 (28-for-146) with five home runs, 13 RBI and 15 runs scored in 41 games played. Josh Rojas is getting another start at second base and is hitting leadoff against Orioles right-hander Corbin Burnes. Rojas is hitting .111 in nine career at-bats against Burnes. The 29-year-old is bound to cool off at the plate, but there's no ignoring the fact he's currently hitting .311 (37-for-119) with three homers, nine RBI and four steals.

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New York Mets outfielder Starling Marte will not start on Sunday against the Marlins in Miami. It appears to just be a normal day of rest for the 35-year-old veteran. DJ Stewart is getting the start in right field for the Mets and will hit cleanup against Marlins right-hander Sixto Sanchez. Marte has stayed healthy so far this year through 183 plate appearances and is currently slashing .266/.313/.379 with four home runs, 16 RBI, eight stolen bases and 22 runs scored for the Mets. He should be back in the lineup on Monday for the series opener against the Cleveland Guardians. Stewart has some thump in his lumber with four home runs in 35 games in 2024, but he's also hitting just .203 (15-for-74) with 16 RBI, 19 walks and 19 strikeouts. He has never faced Sanchez in his career.

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Washington Nationals second baseman Luis Garcia Jr. (heel) is back in action on Sunday against the Philadelphia Phillies and right-hander Aaron Nola, serving as the designated hitter and batting cleanup. Ildemaro Vargas is at second base and will hit in the two-hole for the Nats. A right-heel forced Garcia out of the lineup the last two days, but he will return on Sunday. It's unclear when the 24-year-old will be feeling good enough to return to defensive duties at the keystone. Garcia has plenty of experience in his career against Nola and is batting .250 against him in 24 at-bats with three RBI and a .655 OPS. He's having a very solid season so far at the plate but has cooled off a bit in May, going 11-for-42 (.262) with two home runs, nine RBI and two stolen bases in 12 games played. It's also not the best matchup for Garcia coming off a minor injury.

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Minnesota Twins outfielder Byron Buxton will not play on Sunday against the Guardians in Cleveland. Buxton made his return from the injured list on Saturday due to right-knee inflammation and went 1-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored, but the Twins will hold him out a day later. Don't be surprised if the oft-injured 30-year-old gets frequent off days heading into next week as the Twins try to keep him on the field. With Buxton on the pine on Sunday, Willi Castro will start in center field and bat sixth against Guardians right-hander Tanner Bibee. Castro has been a nice fill-in for the Twins in the early going this year and is currently batting .260/.320/.422 with three home runs, 14 RBI, six stolen bases and 20 runs scored on the year. He's gone 16-for-59 (.271) with three doubles, two triples and a homer in 16 games in May.

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New York Mets designated hitter J.D. Martinez (illness) is out of the starting lineup on Sunday against the Miami Marlins due to flu-like symptoms. There is some kind of bug going around the team's clubhouse right now. With Martinez under the weather, Brandon Nimmo will serve as the DH and bat third, with Tyrone Taylor in left field and hitting fifth against Marlins right-hander Sixto Sanchez. Fantasy managers will need to remove Martinez from their starting lineups and check back on Monday to see if he's feeling good enough to play in the series opener in Cleveland against the Guardians. Martinez didn't make his 2024 debut for the Mets until April 26, but he's hit the ground running and is currently batting .315 (23-for-73) with two home runs and nine RBI in 21 games. The six-time All-Star is still a nice source of power in fantasy despite being 36 years old.

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Baltimore Orioles outfielder Anthony Santander (knee) is out of the starting lineup on Sunday against the visiting Seattle Mariners while dealing with a sore and swollen left knee. Santander said running in the outfield has been tricky and he expects it to be a few more days before he's 100 percent. He crashed into the outfield wall on Wednesday and aggravated his knee while running the bases. The 29-year-old served as the team's designated hitter the last two days but will get a day off on Sunday and could also miss the series opener on Monday in St. Louis against the Cardinals. Austin Hays is getting a start in left field and is batting sixth, while Ryan O'Hearn is serving as the team's DH and is batting in the three-hole on Sunday against Mariners right-hander George Kirby. Santander is having a tough season to this point and is hitting .204 (10-for-49) with three homers and seven RBI in 14 games to this point in May.

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St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Masyn Winn and second baseman Nolan Gorman are both getting a breather on Sunday against the visiting Boston Red Sox. Winn will take a seat while currently riding an eight-game hitting streak that has seen him raise his season slash line to a strong. 281/.340/.383 with a homer, 11 RBI, seven stolen bases and 13 runs scored in his first year as the full-time starter at shortstop. Brandon Crawford will play the 6 and bat sixth against Red Sox right-hander Nick Pivetta. Gorman has homers in each of his last two games but is still hitting only .201 (28-for-139) on the year with seven homers, 18 RBI and 55 strikeouts in 157 plate appearances in 2024. Brendan Donovan is starting at second on Sunday and is hitting sixth. Alec Burleson is in left field and hitting fifth, while Matt Carpenter is the designated hitter while batting leadoff against Pivetta.

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Baltimore Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman is not in the team's starting lineup on Sunday against the visiting Seattle Mariners. James McCann will do the catching for right-hander Corbin Burnes and will hit ninth against Mariners right-hander George Kirby. It's just a normal day off for the 26-year-old backstop in the series finale against Seattle. Rutschman is hitting .283 (17-for-60) with five home runs and 10 RBI in 14 games so far in the month of May and is hitting over .300 on the year with nine long balls, 28 RBI and 26 runs scored in 178 total at-bats. Rutschman is one of the best offensive-minded catchers in the game in one of the stronger lineups in baseball. McCann is hitting .215 (14-for-65) with a homer and seven RBI on the year as the backup and has never faced Burnes in his career.

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Tampa Bay Rays relief pitcher Colin Poche (back) has resumed baseball activities, but it's still uncertain how long he's going to be sidelined. The left-hander landed on the injured list in late April due to back tightness. He received an injection in his back and needed a second cortisone-type shot in early May. The fact the Rays went out and acquired left-hander Richard Lovelady suggests that Poche won't be ready anytime soon. Peter Fairbanks, Garrett Cleavinger, and Jason Adam figure to be the primary late game options for the Rays right now.

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Houston Astros starting pitcher Jose Urquidy (forearm) made his second minor league rehab start on Saturday. The right-hander got smacked around for three runs in 2 2/3 innings during his start last weekend. He didn't do much better this time around allowing four runs on seven hits over four innings of work. The good news is that Urquidy feels better and says his velocity should increase during his next start. The right-hander should be able to return to the Astros rotation in late May or early June.

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San Francisco Giants shortstop Marco Luciano put together a solid performance against the Colorado Rockies on Saturday. The 22-year-old was recalled on Tuesday with the team being shorthanded in the infield. He made the most of his chances on Saturday, going 2-for-4 in the win. The expectation is that Luciano is going to get significant at-bats with Nick Ahmed (wrist) still on the injured list. Luciano should get plenty of chances to show what he can do at the big league level.

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Houston Astros starting pitcher Luis Garcia (elbow) was able to throw a success bullpen session on Saturday. The right-hander is working his way back from Tommy John surgery he underwent in May of last year. The team has been taking it slow but Garcia was able to throw 20 pitches on Saturday without any issues. The hope is that Garcia can continue throwing and will eventually go on a minor league rehab assignment. The expectation is that Garcia will be able to rejoin the Astros rotation mid-way through the season.

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San Francisco Giants outfielder Heliot Ramos continued his hot stretch at the plate during Saturday's game against the Colorado Rockies. Ramos went 2-for-5 with two RBI in the blowout win. The 24-year-old has been impressive since getting called up a few weeks ago. So far, Ramos is slashing .297/.350/.378 with 11 hits and seven RBI in 37 plate appearances. The expectation is that both Ramos and Luis Matos are going to see more playing time with Jung Hoo Lee (shoulder) being out for the season. Ramos could be worth a look as a pickup in deeper leagues.

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Los Angeles Angels outfielder Taylor Ward went 2-for-6 in Saturday's 3-2 extra-innings loss to the Rangers. Both of Ward's hits went for extra bases, one for a double and the other a solo home run. The home run was his tenth of the year, and the 30-year-old is looking like one of the better values in fantasy drafts this year after having an ADP in the 200s. On the season, the former first-round MLB draft pick has a .275-10-28-27-2 line with a .352 wOBA and 127 wRC+.

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Tampa Bay Rays right-hander Ryan Pepiot (leg) threw a three-inning bullpen session on Friday. He has now completed successful three successful bullpen sessions over the week. The 26-year-old was placed on the 15-day injured list after getting struck by a line drive in his last start on May 5 against the New York Mets. He owns a 3.68 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, and 41 strikeouts across 36 2/3 innings this season. Pepiot is on track to be activated next week ahead of the three-game series against the Boston Red Sox. Fantasy managers might want to see how Pepiot performs if he is activated next week before inserting him into their starting lineups. Pepiot is off to a solid start and is a mid-to-back-end starter for most fantasy rotations in 2024.

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Texas Rangers outfielder Adolis Garcia launched his eleventh home run of the season in Saturday's 3-2 win over the Angels. Angels starter Patrick Sandoval had held Garcia and the Rangers in check until the sixth inning when the 31-year-old took the southpaw deep to knot the score at 1-1. It was the 2x All-Star's third home run in his last four games, but despite the power surge, he's having a rough May, slashing just .188/.216/.348 during the month. On the season, the powerful righty has a .251-11-35-24-4 line with a .337 wOBA and 117 wRC+.

From RotoBaller