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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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Apr 20: What you need to know for Sunday

  • Sunday brings bonus baseball with Friday’s postponement in Coors Field being made up today with the Colorado Rockies hosting the Washington Nationals for a pair. The over/under for both games is 10.5, so squeeze in as many batters as possible from this one.

  • Today’s action starts at 1:35 p.m. ET with five contests. The ESPN Sunday Night Baseball affair features a great starting pitcher matchup with Framber Valdez and the Houston Astros hosting Dylan Cease and the San Diego Padres.

  • Los Angeles Dodgers DH Shohei Ohtani is expected to rejoin the club today and return to his familiar leadoff spot in Arlington.

  • Texas Rangers OF Wyatt Langford is ticketed to come off the IL and return to today’s lineup when the club hosts the Los Angeles Dodgers. With Josh Smith off to a .341/.438/.512 start, he’s likely moving to first base, leaving Jake Burger and Joc Pederson to share DH duties. Smith had been covering left field.

  • The Cincinnati Reds are calling up Randy Wynne to serve as the primary pitcher for their Sunday road date with the Baltimore Orioles. Nick Lodolo was expected to start, but he’s away from the team on paternity leave.

  • Miami Marlins OF Griffin Conine dislocated his shoulder yesterday and is earmarked for a lengthy IL stint. Dane Myers and Javier Sanoja are in line for more playing time.

  • Tomorrow is Patriots Day in Boston, which means the annual 11:05 a.m. ET start in Fenway Park. Pickups need to be completed by the early first pitch, though you can still maneuver the rest of your roster.

April 19: What you need to know for Saturday

Today’s 15-game slate gets underway at 1:05 p.m. ET with the first of 11 matinees. The Coors Field game with the Colorado Rockies hosting the Washington Nationals was initially scheduled for 3:10 p.m., but it will start an hour later. Friday night’s postponement between the clubs will be made up Sunday as part of a separate-admission doubleheader.

  • The Los Angeles Dodgers will be without their DH, with Shohei Ohtani away from the team on paternity leave. OF Eddie Rosario was summoned from Triple-A Oklahoma City to fill the opening.

  • The Philadelphia Phillies will be without OF Brandon Marsh again Saturday. He’ll miss his third straight game with a sore knee. Johan Rojas will continue to sub for Marsh.

  • The Kansas City Royals demoted OF MJ Melendez to Triple-A Omaha. Melendez had been losing playing time with a .085/.173/.170 start and now will try to find his stroke on the farm. Mark Canha is returning from the IL to take the roster spot and probably Melendez’s playing time as well.

  • Boston Red Sox reliever Liam Hendriks is slated to come off the IL on Saturday and rejoin the bullpen. The veteran may be used in some late-inning scenarios, but LHP Aroldis Chapman has the closer role on lock.

April 18: How did the return of Spencer Strider go?

Stephania Bell: The anxiously awaited return of Strider to the Atlanta Braves rotation may have culminated in a loss, but his presence on the mound was a “big picture” win for everyone involved.

In early April 2024, Strider underwent a right (throwing) elbow UCL repair with InternalBrace with Dr. Keith Meister. While baseball’s seasonal calendar may have helped provide Strider with the cushion of a full-year recovery window, there was still no guarantee of him matching any pre-injury metrics right out of the gate. Yet he hit 97.9 mph with his fastball in the first inning — better than his average fastball velocity in 2023, the last full season he pitched.

Granted, the velocity dipped as the throws increased, but that is not unusual early in post-op returns and his arm endurance will continue to improve. Strider also managed to approach a full workload, going five innings and throwing 97 pitches. It’s a solid indicator that he is prepared to resume his regular role in the rotation.

An outing like the one Strider had is far more important for confidence as the season progresses than any early win would be. If he continues his trajectory towards his pre-injury form, the wins will likely follow.

April 18: What you need to know for Friday

Todd Zola: The standalone Friday matinee in Wrigley Field returns today with the Chicago Cubs hosting the Arizona Diamondbacks at 2:20 PM ET. The remaining 14 games are under the lights, beginning with a pair of tilts at 6:40 PM ET.

  • Colorado Rockies OF Brenton Doyle will miss the home weekend series, beginning today against the Washington Nationals. Doyle has been nursing a quad issue, although he did pinch-hit last night. However, he has since been placed on the bereavement list, so he’s out for at least three, and up to seven games. Nick Martini should remain the primary beneficiary with Doyle away from the team.

  • In other Rockies news, DH Kris Bryant was placed on the IL with C Braxton Fulford getting recalled to take his roster spot. The move allows regular C Hunter Goodman to serve as the DH so that backup C Jacob Stallings can garner more action. The fantasy repercussion is that Goodman is almost assured to be in the lineup every day.

  • Philadelphia Phillies OF Nick Castellanos left yesterday’s game in the seventh inning due to a tight left hip flexor, putting his 183 consecutive games played streak in jeopardy. However, the club is confident that Castellanos will take the field today when they host the Miami Marlins.

  • Minnesota Twins OF Matt Wallner was placed on the IL yesterday. He had to exit Tuesday’s game early as a result of a strained left hamstring. To fill the roster spot, the Twins acquired INF Jonah Bride from the Marlins. OF DaShawn Keirsey Jr. should be Wallner’s replacement with Bride fortifying the infield, especially with Willi Castro and Carlos Correa both being listed as day-to-day. The club is also promoting INF Luke Keaschall from Triple-A St. Paul. He’s one of the Twins’ top prospects. The 22-year-old is off to a slow start with a .261/.379/.348 line, albeit with four swipes.

  • The Marlins filled Bride’s roster spot by activating 3B Connor Norby from the IL. Norby began the season on the IL due to an oblique strain. He immediately takes over at the hot corner, pushing Graham Pauley into a reserve role.

  • Last night, the Baltimore Orioles were without OF Tyler O’Neill for the second straight game as he’s been dealing with neck discomfort. He’s questionable for tonight’s home affair with the Cincinnati Reds. Ramon Laureano is the likely replacement if O’Neill continues to be out of the lineup.

  • The Milwaukee Brewers are slated to recall 3B Caleb Durbin from Triple-A Nashville today. Durbin will take over as the regular third baseman after the club demoted Oliver Dunn. Durbin had a chance to break camp with the big club, but the Brewers opted to go with Dunn, who had enjoyed the better spring. Durbin, who has posted a .278/.316/.481 line with three steals so far at Nashville, merits immediate mixed-league consideration.

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Ranking every prospect dealt before the 2025 MLB trade deadline

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Ranking every prospect dealt before the 2025 MLB trade deadline

MLB trade season has officially kicked into high gear with contenders looking to add to their rosters for the stretch run ahead and rebuilding teams aiming to stockpile young players with an eye to the future before Thursday’s 6 p.m. ET deadline arrives.

As the moves go down, you can probably form your own opinion of the MLB veterans headed to new teams, but it’s much more difficult to figure out what to make of the minor leaguers who have moved.

Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Here’s our running ranking of every notable prospect who was dealt during July sorted by tiers using my Future Value grades so you can see where they slot in an MLB top 100 list or your team’s farm system ranking.

This story will be updated with top prospects headed to new teams added to the list with every new deal, so come back every time a move goes down to see which stars of tomorrow are on the move this month.


40+ FV tier

Acquired from Seattle Mariners in Josh Naylor deal

A 2023 11th-rounder out of Texas A&M, Garcia was a sleeper in the Seattle system who broke through as a starter in 2024. This season, he was moved into a full-time relief role, leading to his big league debut earlier this month.

He has an upper-body-reliant delivery with very short extension and a near-sidearm slot that nonetheless creates a lot of velocity, with his fastball peaking at 100.4 mph this season and living at 95-98 mph with his plus sinker. He also mixes in an 88-90 mph cutter and 84-86 mph sweeper that are both plus pitches. Garcia’s fastball command improving and the cutter continuing to be a useful weapon against righties are keys to him becoming a late-inning reliever.


40 FV tier

Acquired from New York Yankees in Ryan McMahon deal

Herring signed for $800,000 after being selected in the sixth round of the 2024 draft. He made only one start over two seasons at LSU but showed starter traits. Through 16 appearances as a starter this year, pitching across both Single-A levels, that theory has mostly held up.

His 88-92 mph heater touches 94 and looks as if it’ll be a fringe-to-average pitch, while his slider is above average and his changeup (which should be used more often) also flashes above average. He’ll move up to the 40+ FV tier with a little more bulk of performance and/or a strong finish/promotion in Double-A.


Acquired from New York Mets in Gregory Soto deal

Aracena was a low-profile international signee, getting a $70,000 bonus in 2022 out of the Dominican Republic. He sat 90-94 mph for his first two pro seasons, then his velo exploded in 2024 to 95-98, hitting 100 mph. This year he’s been even a bit higher, sitting 96-99 and hitting 101 mph at 20 years old as a starter in Single-A.

The reason he isn’t ranked higher is his command is below average to the point that his likely career outcome is as a reliever. His fastball also plays below its velocity right now due to his command issues and higher arm slot, which creates a nonideal plane and a cutting action to the pitch. His 89-95 mph slider (possibly a cutter and slider that run together) is nasty, a clear plus pitch, while his changeup is rarely used and rudimentary.

The raw ability here is impressive and Aracena is young and athletic enough to get another year or two to prove he can start, but he also has late-inning potential as a reliever if that doesn’t work out. Aracena will move into the 40+ FV tier with either a tick more of command, developing a legitimate changeup or just keeping his head above water performance-wise as a starter in High-A.


Acquired from the Detroit Tigers in Chris Paddack deal

Jimenez is a 19-year-old, switch-hitting catcher playing in Rookie ball who has a solid chance to stick behind the plate long term, but, as you’d guess, he still has some defensive work to do. He’s a slightly above-average framer (particularly to his glove side) and has above-average arm strength (catching 34% of baserunners this year), but is a below-average blocker of pitches in the dirt.

He’d benefit from getting more agile behind the plate but the athleticism is there to do so: Jimenez is a solid-average runner right now despite a stout 5-foot-9 frame. His raw power projects as fringe-to-average given his lack of physical projection, though he has solid ball flight (think 15ish homers at peak), with a grade more power as a left-handed hitter. Jimenez’s contact and on-base skills grade about average, so the sales pitch here is an overall average offensive threat, which is enough to warrant playing him at other positions to get his bat in the lineup as a platoon option, but hoping he can progress in all phases enough to become a primary catcher.


5. Ashton Izzi, RHP, Arizona Diamondbacks

Acquired from Seattle Mariners in Josh Naylor deal

Izzi was a classic projection righty who signed for $1.1 million after being selected in the fourth round of the 2022 draft out of an Illinois high school.

He has delivered on that projection, with his average fastball velo having crept up from 93.1 to 94.0 to 94.5 in his three pro seasons. His four-seamer is a solid-average pitch, while his slider can get to average with slightly better locations and his sweeper is an above-average pitch, maybe plus.

The issue is Izzi’s sinker; although it has a fine velocity/movement combination, it is too center-cut in the zone and has been hammered by hitters while being used almost as much as his four-seamer. He also doesn’t use his changeup much — but probably should, especially as he dials back his sinker. With some progress in his mix and locations, this is a No. 4 starter package, but Izzi is more of a long reliever as currently constituted.


Acquired from Kansas City Royals in Randal Grichuk deal

Hoffmann was a 12th-round pick out of Illinois in the 2021 draft who was traded to the Royals in 2022 and finished the season in Double-A, beating predraft expectations. He was seen as a potential back-end starter at that point, but moved to full-time short relief this season en route to making his big league debut.

His mid-90s fastball is a solid-average pitch that plays up due to his funk and deception, and his main weapon is a plus changeup that tunnels well to the bottom of the zone. His slider is a clear third pitch and is fringy, which is why he was moved to relief to focus on using his two best pitches. With better fastball locations, Hoffmann could move from middle relief into the later innings.


35+ FV tier

Acquired from New York Yankees in Amed Rosario deal

Beeter was a second-round pick in the 2020 draft and has slowly moved down the starter-to-reliever spectrum to becoming a full-time reliever for the first time in 2025. He’s 26 years old with five career big league appearances under his belt, but Beeter is still in Triple-A for now because of his walk rate: 7.2 per 9 innings — including issuing seven walks in his last 8⅓ innings pitched.

Beeter is still a solid prospect because of his 65-grade slider and above-average fastball that peaks at 99 mph. His fastball command is the variable that, with more progress, could turn him into a late-inning reliever, but Beeter is a higher-variance middle reliever who needs to avoid walks in Triple-A to get his next big league shot.


8. Browm Martinez, CF, Washington Nationals

Acquired from New York Yankees in Amed Rosario deal

Martinez signed for a $130,000 bonus last January and was solid last summer in the Dominican Summer League before having a huge repeat season in the league this year — posting an OPS of 1.139 driven by higher contact rates.

There is still a wide range of potential outcomes for Martinez as an 18-year-old playing in the lowest level of the minors, but the key here is he has above-average bat control and pitch selection at the plate, arguably the two most important things to demonstrate at lower levels.

He’s also a solid-average runner who has 34 career stolen bases, and that speed could allow him to stay in center field. There’s some physical projection left given his age, but his power projects to continue to be below average, so sticking in center would be key to his long-term value.


9. Josh Grosz, RHP, Colorado Rockies

Acquired from New York Yankees in Ryan McMahon deal

Grosz is a potential No. 5 starter/swingman type with some feel and deception from his abruptly quick delivery. He throws a 92-95 mph dead-zone fastball with heavy tail that plays around average, an above-average changeup and a fringy slider.

He has a tougher road to being a solid big leaguer if he can’t stick as a starter because most teams prefer a middle reliever to have an above-average breaking ball to get right-handed hitters out.


10. Cameron Foster, RHP, Baltimore Orioles

Acquired from New York Mets in Gregory Soto deal

Foster is a 26-year-old long reliever who sits 93-96 and hits 99 mph from a high slot (it’s on the whole an average big league pitch). He also mixes in an 86-88 mph cutter (a solid-average pitch), an 81-84 mph slurve (an above-average pitch), and a big loopy 75-78 mph curveball (effective as a fourth offering that’s used in certain situations). He’s a solid back-end-of-the-roster-type utility arm who can be used in multiple roles and should debut this year or next. He needs to be added to the 40-man roster after the season to protect from the Rule 5 draft.

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Deion announces he battled, beat bladder cancer

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Deion announces he battled, beat bladder cancer

BOULDER, Colo. — University of Colorado football coach Deion Sanders announced Monday that he had undergone surgery to remove his bladder after doctors discovered a tumor there. Sanders said, since the surgery, there are no traces of cancer, and he will continue to coach this season.

In a packed Touchdown Club in the Dal Ward Athletic Center, Sanders appeared with Dr. Janet Kukreja, director of urological oncology at University of Colorado Cancer Center, and answered some of the questions that have swirled around him throughout the offseason.

The 57-year-old Sanders has largely been out of the public eye in recent months, save for an appearance at Big 12 media days earlier this month when he acknowledged Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark for repeatedly checking in on him and praised Colorado athletic director Rick George.

Sanders deflected questions about his health at Big 12 media days and previously had not publicly offered any specifics. In July his son, Deion Jr., posted a video on social media in which Deion Sanders is heard saying he was dealing with a health issue and that “I ain’t all the way recovered.”

In the video he was seen stepping into an ice bath as well as shooting a basketball and a walk with his daughter. Sanders said in May he had lost about 14 pounds as he had limited contact around the program during the team’s spring and summer workouts.

Sanders has previously dealt with serious health issues. He has had bouts with blood clots in his legs, had two toes amputated in 2022 and emergency surgery in June 2023 to treat the persistent clots, including one in his thigh in one leg and several just below his knee in his other leg.

On the field, Sanders is set to begin his third season at the school. With his son, Shedeur, at quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter, college football’s most accomplished two-way player in the modern era, the Buffaloes finished 9-4 last season with an Alamo Bowl appearance. Sanders’ son Shilo, a safety for the Buffaloes for the past two seasons, has also moved on to the NFL, along with several high-profile players on offense.

The top storyline on the field for the Buffaloes is the battle to replace Shedeur behind center. In two seasons, Sanders completed 71.8% of his passes for 7,364 yards with 64 touchdowns.

It will be the first season Deion Sanders doesn’t coach a high school or college team with Shedeur at quarterback.

Seventeen-year-old true freshman Julian Lewis, a five-star recruit and No. 2 player in the 2025 ESPN 300, and Kaidon Salter, who started 24 games in four seasons at Liberty, will compete for the job.

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Guardians’ Clase on leave over gambling probe

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Guardians' Clase on leave over gambling probe

Cleveland Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase on Monday was placed on non-disciplinary paid leave through Aug. 31 as part of Major League Baseball’s investigation into sports gambling, the second Guardians pitcher to be caught up in the inquiry.

Guardians right-hander Luis Ortiz remains on non-disciplinary paid leave after originally being placed there July 3 after unusual gambling activity on two pitches he threw for balls, sources told ESPN. Ortiz’s leave was later extended to Aug. 31.

In a statement, the Guardians said “no additional players or club personnel are expected to be impacted” by the investigation. The investigation, a source confirmed, has not turned up information tying other players with the team to sports gambling.

Clase, 27, is a three-time All-Star and two-time winner of the Mariano Rivera Award as the best relief pitcher in the American League. He finished third in AL Cy Young voting last year when he posted a 0.61 ERA over 74.1 innings. In 47.1 innings this season, Clase has a 3.23 ERA and has already allowed more hits this year (46) than last (39) while striking out 47 and walking 12.

His ties to the investigation that started following a June 27 alert from IC360, a firm that monitors betting markets for abnormalities, are unclear. Sportsbooks and gambling operators were alerted after a spike in action on Ortiz’s first pitch in the bottom of the second inning against the Seattle Mariners on June 15 and in the top of the third inning against the St. Louis Cardinals on June 27, according to sources. In both cases, unusual amounts of money were wagered on the pitches being a ball or hit-batsman from betting accounts in New York, New Jersey and Ohio, according to a copy of the IC360 alert obtained by ESPN. Both pitches wound up well outside the strike zone.

At the All-Star Game in mid-July, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said while he still supports legal gambling because of the transparency regulation offers, he was concerned about so-called microbets, such as ones that offer action on individual pitches.

“There are certain types of bets that strike me as unnecessary and particularly vulnerable,” Manfred said. “I know there was a lot of sports betting, tons of it that went on illegally and we had no idea, no idea what threats there were to the integrity of the play because it was all not transparent,” he added. “I firmly believe that the transparency and monitoring that we have in place now, as a result of the legalization and the partnerships that we’ve made, puts us in a better position to protect baseball than we were in before.”

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