Everything that happens in and around MLB has some additional context when viewed from a fantasy baseball perspective. From lineup changes to minor league call-ups to injuries and so much more, the news cycle will constantly affect player values in fantasy baseball.
Our fantasy baseball buzz file, with contributions from our ESPN fantasy writers, aims to provide fantasy managers with the intel they need as news breaks around MLB.
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May 15: Friday's Forecaster findings
By Tristan H. Cockcroft
Get ready for a busy week heading into Memorial Day weekend, as fantasy baseball's Week 8 has 12 of the 30 teams scheduled to play seven games and the remaining 18 each set to play six times. It's also one of those rare weeks where four teams are scheduled to play seven games entirely at home, as the Arizona Diamondbacks, Los Angeles Angels, Miami Marlins and New York Yankees play hosts all week.
Speaking of those Yankees, their seven home games will be played entirely in-division, against the 2025 AL champion Toronto Blue Jays (four games, Monday-Thursday) and the current AL East leaders, the Tampa Bay Rays (three, Friday-Sunday). The Yankees lost all three games against the Rays in Tampa from April 10 to April 12 earlier this season, and they lost 11 out of 17 games against the Blue Jays (including the postseason) in 2026.
Yankees staff ace Max Fried is nursing an elbow injury that figures to land him on the 15-day IL and perhaps result in the 2026 debut of prior staff ace Gerrit Cole sometime during Week 8. Should Fried make a swift recovery, however, and be able to take his next turn in the rotation, that would arrive on Tuesday against the Blue Jays, aligning him for a two-start week with his second turn Sunday against the Rays. He projects to be one of the week's top-10 fantasy starting pitchers in that event, while Cole would be more of a top-25 option if assigned two starts and a top-75 starter if making only one start during the week. Stay tuned!
The NL Central-leading Chicago Cubs host their division rivals, the Milwaukee Brewers, for three games from Monday through Wednesday, during which Jacob Misiorowski is scheduled to pitch the opener and perhaps be lined up for a two-start week (depending upon whether or not Brandon Woodruff returns during the week). Misiorowski would be a top-15 starting pitcher if he takes two turns, despite what would be a tough Sunday assignment against the Los Angeles Dodgers at home.
The NL West-leading Dodgers, meanwhile, begin their week with a three-game trip to Petco Park to face their division rivals, the San Diego Padres, who entered play on Friday a mere half-game back in the standings. Shohei Ohtani is aligned to make a start during that series, currently projected for Tuesday.
*Be sure to check out the complete Forecaster before locking in your Week 8 fantasy lineups.
May 15: Friday's news to know
By Todd Zola
It's Rivalry Weekend, with most series featuring teams in the same state or close geographically. The Chicago Cubs pay a visit to the Chicago White Sox, so there's no afternoon games today. As such, a pair of 6:40 p.m. ET contests get things going.
Shohei Ohtani is expected to return as the DH tonight for the Los Angeles Dodgers when they head to Anaheim to play the Los Angeles Angels. Ohtani pitched on Wednesday but didn't hit, then had yesterday off to "reset" as he's been struggling at the plate with a .797 OPS, following three straight seasons with a mark over 1.000.
Christian Yelich missed his second straight game yesterday as he's been dealing with a back issue. He managed to play only one game after missing almost a month with a groin issue. The Milwaukee Brewers will reportedly decide today whether or not Yelich needs another IL stint. As he did when Yelich was previously out, Andrew Vaughn is the likely substitute.
Chase Dollander left yesterday's start in the second inning due to tightness in his throwing arm. The Colorado Rockies right-hander's velocity was down, and the Pittsburgh Pirates took advantage with three runs on five hits and a walk in just one inning. He's expected to undergo imaging to evaluate the severity of the injury.
The Houston Astros hoped to have SS Jeremy Pena back for their home set against the Texas Rangers, but instead, he's likely going to resume his rehab stint after colliding with a base runner on Tuesday night and experiencing a sore neck. Barring a setback, Pena could still return this weekend after missing over a month due to a strained right hamstring.
Byron Buxton was a late scratch last night after reporting right hip soreness. It's unclear when he suffered the injury, and his status for tonight's game when the Minnesota Twins host the Brewers is uncertain.
As outlined below, the Seattle Mariners have placed C Cal Raleigh on the 10-day IL. He's been playing through a lingering side injury, but after aggravating it on Wednesday night, he'll require the first IL stint of his career. While no timetable for a return has yet been established, he'll likely be out longer than the 10-day minimum, with Mitch Garver elevated to primary backstop and Jhonny Pereda handling backup duties.
Be sure to check out the latest fantasy lineup advice as well as the MLB betting tips for Friday.
May 14: Cal Raleigh (oblique) placed on the IL
By Tristan H. Cockcroft
With Thursday's news that the Seattle Mariners have placed Raleigh, author of the first 60-HR season among catchers in baseball history last year, on the 10-day injured list, five of the top 11 overall picks (on average) during the preseason have now spent time on the IL in 2026. Yes, it has been that kind of season.
The concern with Raleigh's injury that it's a right oblique strain, which historically has cost players greater than the 10-day minimum IL stay -- often up to three weeks or more. It's an ailment that cost him three games at the beginning of the month. Between that and his .045 (2-for-44), 19-strikeout performance over his past 11 games, it seems likely that he has been playing through it for some time. If the time off helps Raleigh eventually turn around what had been a massively disappointing season to date, that's great. For now, though, his fantasy managers are left with a void at catcher.
While it might feel like catcher has been a position richer in talent over the past couple of years, it's still baseball's worst in terms of batting average (.228), on-base percentage (.298) and OPS (.670). Where that most manifests itself is in deeper-than-standard leagues, especially those that require two starters per team to dig at least 20 players deep into the positional pool. Only 18 catcher-eligibles have scored 50-plus fantasy points to date -- Raleigh is not among them -- and only nine have 75-plus, whereas first base has 47 eligibles with 50-plus and 30 have 75-plus.
Keeping all that in mind, there are still options to fill in, however deep your league, while we await Raleigh's return. Consider any of the following:
Dillon Dingler, Detroit Tigers (44.3% rostered): The ideal substitute for ESPN standard league play, Dingler's contact-quality metrics have spiked in a big way, meaning he'd help contribute to the power-oriented categories, which was Raleigh's strength. Dingler has shaved nearly 4% off his strikeout rate while boosting his Statcast Barrel rate by more than 5%, and he's one of the position's better defenders, which helps stabilize his playing time.
Carter Jensen, Kansas City Royals (18.8%): As is the case with many Royals hitters thus far, Jensen's numbers appear to be underwhelming, and he's striking out in more than 30% of his trips to the plate. He's still one of their more skilled batsmen, however, and he's maintaining 44.4% hard-hit and 11.1% Barrel rates, speaking to his well-above-average power potential.
Joe Mack, Miami Marlins (1.2%): An ideal pickup for those in deeper leagues -- think 15-team mixed formats. Mack is the hitting-oriented replacement for Agustin Ramirez, who got off to a miserable start and was recently returned to Triple-A. While Mack's early big-league returns aren't anything special -- he has just six fantasy points in nine games -- he was a 20-HR hitter in both 2024 and 2025 in the minors and will get regular playing time in Miami for the foreseeable future.
May 14: Thursday's news to know
By Todd Zola
Today's 11-game schedule gets underway at 12:35 p.m. ET with the Pittsburgh Pirates hosting the Colorado Rockies in the rubber game of their three-game series. Six more matinees follow, with the final four games played under the lights.
Working solely as a pitcher, Shohei Ohtani hurled another gem last night, recording seven scoreless frames in the Los Angeles Dodgers' 4-0 win over the San Francisco Giants. Earlier in the week, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts indicated that not only would Ohtani not serve as last night's DH, but he'd also get today off from hitting duties, though he would be available to pinch hit.
Juan Soto left last night's game after fouling a ball off his right ankle in the third inning, although he did stay in the contest until the seventh. Postgame X-rays came back negative, so he's being listed as "day-to-day" with a bruise. He'll be questionable for today's afternoon affair when the New York Mets go for the sweep over the Detroit Tigers in Flushing.
The Miami Marlins are poised to call up Braxton Garrett from Triple-A Jacksonville to start today's rubber game of their road set with the Minnesota Twins. He's taking Robby Snelling's spot in the rotation after the rookie was placed on the 15-day IL due to a UCL sprain. However, Garrett earned the promotion after posting a 2.30 ERA and an 0.80 WHIP in six starts for the Jumbo Shrimp. He hasn't appeared in the majors since 2024, missing last season following UCL revision surgery, needing the internal brace procedure.
Pete Fairbanks was activated from the 15-day IL prior to last night's contest but was not needed in the Marlins' 9-5 win. The veteran right-hander is expected to resume closing duties, funneling Calvin Faucher back to the setup role.
The Twins will reportedly call up Zebby Matthews to oppose Garrett. Connor Prielipp was initially slated to start, but they opted to give him extended rest. With Taj Bradley on the IL, Matthews was already going to be called up over the weekend. He'll make his 2026 Twins debut today instead. He last pitched a week ago, capturing his third straight win for Triple-A St. Paul, allowing just three runs over eight frames.
Jacob Misiorowski came out for the eighth inning after fanning 10 over the first seven, but he appeared to hurt his leg while warming up and left the game. He exited with the Milwaukee Brewers up 1-0 over the San Diego Padres but ended up without a decision after Brewers closer Abner Uribe yielded a three-run homer to Gavin Sheets in the ninth.
Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh seemingly aggravated the right-side injury that had kept him out of the lineup for three games earlier this month. The extent of the injury is unclear, as is his status for this afternoon's road tilt with the Houston Astros. Mitch Garver would likely fill in behind the plate if needed.
Trea Turner was under the weather, so he didn't start last night's interleague affair in Fenway Park. He pinch hit for the Philadelphia Phillies in the ninth, drawing a walk and then stealing second base, but he was stranded there in the 3-1 loss to the Boston Red Sox. That said, coming off the bench indicates he should be in the starting lineup for today's rubber game between two clubs with interim managers.
