Toronto Blue Jays relief pitcher Nate Pearson managed to secure his first save of the season in Monday's 6-5 win over the Royals. Pearson came in to pitch the top of the ninth inning up by one. He allowed a leadoff single, got the first two outs on a groundout and a line-out, allowed another single, and stranded the tying run at third with a strikeout. Closer Jordan Romano had pitched in each of the last two days, so Pearson was called upon. The former prospect has a 1.80 ERA in 10 innings of work this season, but his fantasy value will remain limited until he can routinely earn high-leverage situations.

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Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Ryan Pepiot continued to string together strong starts in Monday's 1-0 win over the Brewers. Pepiot pitched six innings, allowing just two hits and no walks with seven strikeouts. The 26-year-old has looked good in his first starts with his new team, going 3-2 with a 3.12 ERA, a 9.87 K/9 rate, and a 2.60 BB/9 rate in six starts and 34 2/3 IP. He will look to keep things going in his next projected start against the middling Mets.

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New York Mets shortstop prospect Luisangel Acuna hit his second home run of the season on Sunday for Triple-A Syracuse. The 22-year-old went 2-for-4 with three RBI and a run scored, while the home run was his first since the first game of the season. Not known as much for his power as his older brother, he does still have some wheels, swiping 57 bags last season, and is up to eight so far in 2024. MLB's 59th-ranked prospect overall is inching closer to the bigs, but with Francisco Lindor blocking him at short it's uncertain where he would fit in. Managers in need of steals will need to be ready once he earns the promotion.

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Washington Nationals shortstop CJ Abrams showcased his power and speed in Monday's 7-2 win over the Marlins. Abrams went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run, two walks, and a stolen base. The 23-year-old has traded some of his speed for power to this point but is slashing a solid .297/.377/.634 with seven HR, 17 RBI, and six stolen bases in 115 plate appearances. He has provided plenty of fantasy value, even if it hasn't been exactly as fantasy managers expected.

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Milwaukee Brewers first baseman prospect Tyler Black keeps making the push for a promotion to the big league club, smacking two solo home runs on Sunday for Triple-A Nashville. The 23-year-old is now slashing .303/.393/.525 on the season and has shown some power (five HR), some speed (three SB), and patience (11:12 BB:K). The lefty hit 18 home runs and stole 55 bases last season in 123 games between Double-A and Triple-A, and if he does get the call, he could instantly provide a boost to the Brewers as well as fantasy lineups.

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Toronto Blue Jays first baseman/designated hitter Justin Turner did his part in Monday's 6-5 win over the Royals. Turner went 2-for-5 with a two-run home run, a solo HR, and a strikeout. The 39-year-old veteran has continued to provide fantasy value late into his career and is now slashing .311/.390/.533 with four HR and 15 RBI in 105 plate appearances. He should continue to be a reliable source of batting average with some pop.

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Baltimore Orioles third baseman/shortstop Gunnar Henderson continued his power display in Monday's 2-0 win over the Yankees. Henderson went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a strikeout. He was also hit by a pitch. The 22-year-old is now tied for the league lead with 10 HR and owns a .289/.352/.632 slash line with 23 RBI and six stolen bases. He showed huge fantasy potential last season in terms of power and speed and has taken a step forward in average so far this season.

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Baltimore Orioles relief pitcher Danny Coulombe picked up his first save of the season in Monday's 2-0 win over the Yankees. Coulombe entered the game to pitch the top of the ninth inning up by two and turned in a 1-2-3 outing with no strikeouts. Closer Craig Kimbrel (back) is currently day-to-day with back tightness, so Coulombe was called upon to close things out. The 34-year-old has pitched well this season with a 3.18 ERA, an 11.12 K/9 rate, and a 1.59 BB/9 rate in 11 1/3 IP. His fantasy value will remain limited without seeing routine high-leverage situations, but he could provide value in saves-plus-holds leagues if he ends up getting interim save opportunities.

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Baltimore Orioles relief pitcher Cionel Perez (oblique) was reinstated from the 15-day injured list Monday and pitched a scoreless inning in a 2-0 win over the Yankees. Perez had been dealing with a right oblique strain. Dillon Tate was optioned in a corresponding move. Perez has made just two appearances this season, allowing two runs over an inning plus of work. The 28-year-old has been a reliable later-inning arm for the O's over the past couple of seasons, making him worth a look in saves-plus-holds leagues.

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Boston Red Sox second baseman prospect Nick Yorke went 2-for-4 with a double, two runs scored, and a stolen base on Sunday for Double-A Portland, extending his current hit streak to seven games. During the streak, the 22-year-old has gone 10-for-28 (.357) with three doubles, two home runs, seven RBI, seven runs scored, and three stolen bases, raising his season average to a solid .284. He's coming off a season in which he hit .268 with 13 home runs and 18 stolen bases in 110 games at Double-A. The former first-round draft pick could see Fenway by the end of 2024, but offseason acquisition Vaughn Grissom is going to get a shot at being the everyday second baseman starting this week when he comes off the IL. Nevertheless, with the tools that Yorke has, he should be on dynasty managers' radar.

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Boston Red Sox first baseman prospect Blaze Jordan went 2-for-5 with a double and a run scored for Double-A Portland on Sunday, extending his current hit streak to nine games. After beginning the season 3-for-29 (.103) through eight games, the 21-year-old has gone 15-for-39 (.385) over his next nine games, including five multi-hit efforts in his last six. Jordan was a third-round draft pick in 2020 and is expected to reach the majors by 2025 per MLB.com. The right-handed hitter had 18 home runs in 2023 over 122 games between High-A and Double-A, but with his profile, that was a bit under expectation and he's got just two so far in 2024. As long as he keeps on hitting like this though, the home runs should come. Dynasty managers in need of power production should keep tabs on Jordan for signs that the home run stroke is continuing to develop.

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Tampa Bay Rays manager Kevin Cash said the news was "pretty good" on the MRI exam of outfielder Josh Lowe's injured right hamstring and that "we'll just kind of take it day-to-day." Lowe opened the 2024 regular season on the 10-day injured list with an oblique injury and now is dealing with right-hamstring tightness that he felt during his minor-league rehab assignment. The 26-year-old doesn't appear to be dealing with a significant hamstring injury, but it remains to be seen when he'll come off the IL to make his season debut after he was initially expected to return to the Rays lineup over the weekend. It's been frustrating so far this year for Lowe's fantasy managers, but they need to remain patient and keep him stashed everywhere after he hit .292 (136-for-466) with 20 homers, 83 RBI and 32 steals in 135 games in his third MLB season in 2023.

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Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said he doesn't think outfielder Jason Heyward (back) has been cleared to start baseball activities yet. The expectation is that Heyward would be with the team on their road trip to Arizona this week to face the Diamondbacks, but he is not. Heyward recently was still feeling soreness in his back and apparently has yet to resume baseball activities. The 34-year-old left-handed hitter has been out since April 1 and will need a lengthy minor-league rehab assignment as soon as he begins ramping up his activities. It's made it difficult for fantasy managers to hang onto him in deeper leagues, especially as a platoon player in LA's outfield. Rookie Andy Pages has benefitted from Heyward's absence and entered Monday's game hitting .302 (13-for-43) with two home runs and five RBI in his first 11 MLB games.

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New York Mets starting pitcher Luis Severino teased a no-hitter in Monday's 3-1 loss to the visiting Chicago Cubs, spinning eight innings of one-run ball on one hit and two walks with five strikeouts. Chicago's offense offered little to no resistance up until the late stages of the game, but Dansby Swanson's bloop single in the eighth inning broke up the no-hit bid to spoil a masterful performance out of Severino. It still added to a great start to the campaign for the 30-year-old right-hander, however, who looks revived in the early stages of the year following a strong spring training and now owns a 2.31 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, and 31:11 K:BB through six regular-season starts (35 innings) for the Mets. Severino will take a ton of momentum into his next scheduled start on Saturday on the road against the Tampa Bay Rays, where he'll remain worth deploying in all mixed fantasy leagues.

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The Tampa Bay Rays placed right-hander Chris Devenski (knee) on the 15-day injured list (retroactive to April 26) on Monday with right-knee tendinitis and recalled left-hander Jacob Lopez from Triple-A Durham in a corresponding move. Devenski will be eligible to return to the Rays bullpen on May 11. The former 25th-round pick of the Chicago White Sox in 2011 out of Cal State Fullerton has had a rough start to his first full season with the Rays, as he's allowed 17 runs (12 earned) on 19 hits while walking six and striking out 11 in 14 innings out of Tampa's bullpen. Devenski is not on the fantasy radar at all and could be designated for assignment once he's ready to come off the injured list in May.

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New York Yankees starting pitcher Nestor Cortes looks to maintain his strong start to the 2024 season when he takes the ball for Tuesday's start on the road against the division-rival Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards. Although Cortes had a sluggish start in spring training, he's throwing for a rock-solid 3.50 ERA (3.71 FIP), 1.00 WHIP, and 32:5 K:BB over 36 innings (six starts) to begin the regular season. The 29-year-old left-hander now has to do battle with a high-powered offense, but in his last seven appearances versus the O's since 2021, Cortes is 3-0 with a 1.73 ERA and 59:11 K:BB across 41 2/3 frames. Baltimore's current roster is batting a career .180 (18-for-100) with just four extra-base hits against Cortes, who should be rostered in all fantasy leagues ahead of Monday night's waiver runs and makes for an interesting DFS tournament play on Tuesday in a difficult setup on paper.

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Seattle Mariners shortstop J.P. Crawford (oblique) took grounders before Monday's game versus the Atlanta Braves. Crawford also reported after Sunday's pregame activity that he's feeling much better as he recuperates from a Grade 1 right oblique strain. The M's believe that his timeline is still a matter of multiple weeks, however, so fantasy managers should not be expecting Crawford to be reinstated from the injured list when first eligible on May 5. The 29-year-old on-base machine is only worth stashing in formats that record walks, as evidenced by his .198/.296/.302 triple-slash line with two home runs, nine RBI, and 13 runs scored in 86 at-bats (22 games). Utility man Josh Rojas is seeing more action in the leadoff spot and should be considered in AL-only or deep mixed leagues in Crawford's stead, slashing a robust .297/.366/.516 with three home runs, six RBI, 10 runs scored, and one stolen base in 64 ABs (20 games).

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Chicago Cubs outfielder Cody Bellinger (ribs) did some light throwing, running, and hitting at Fenway Park on Sunday. It was a positive step in Bellinger's progression from two fractured ribs on his right side, as he's being evaluated on a daily basis with the goal of ramping up his activity based on his recovery and tolerance. Although there is still no firm timetable for the 28-year-old All-Star slugger's activation from the 10-day injured list, there's optimism he'll be able to return to Chicago's outfield right around when he's first eligible to return. Top prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong is batting .313 (5-for-16) with one home run and four RBI in six games since being called up from the minor leagues, and he should patrol center field every day against right-handed pitching in the meantime for the Cubs. The former first-round pick is worth a look for fantasy managers in deep mixed or NL-only leagues in the interim.

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Houston Astros starting pitcher Cristian Javier (neck) threw a bullpen session prior to Sunday's game against the Colorado Rockies. Javier had flown to Chicago on Tuesday to receive treatment and get checked out by team doctors, and he appears to be progressing well in his recovery from discomfort in his neck. There's a chance the 27-year-old star right-hander could come off the 15-day injured list and start in this upcoming weekend's three-game series against the division-rival Seattle Mariners, which begins on Friday. With a 1.54 ERA and 1.11 WHIP with 18 strikeouts and 11 walks through 23 1/3 innings (four starts) for the Stros this season, Javier is certainly a must-stash fantasy player with his return perhaps looming. Rookie righty Spencer Arrighetti will draw Thursday's start against the visiting Cleveland Guardians, but he's given up 13 runs across 10 2/3 frames in Houston's injury-riddled rotation this year.

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Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Zac Gallen (hamstring) threw a successful bullpen session before Monday's series opener against the division-rival Los Angeles Dodgers. It coincides with the optimism that Gallen won't need to miss a turn in the rotation after exiting Friday's start against the Seattle Mariners with tightness in his right hamstring. The 28-year-old ace right-hander appears firmly on track to take the hill in Wednesday's scheduled start against the Dodgers, and fantasy managers should be relieved Gallen isn't dealing with a significant injury. Gallen owns a solid 3.38 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, and 35:9 K:BB over 32 frames (six starts) this year, but he'd be a risky fantasy start in a tough matchup at home if he's ultimately cleared for the start.

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