Welcome back to another week of Rumor Roundup where we dive into all the recent talk, transactions, and trends from around the league balancing both fantasy baseball implications and real-world baseball analysis through the lens of a front office.
Injury Updates
The following notable players have started rehab assignments this week:
- OF Kyle Stowers (MIA)
- RHP Kutter Crawford (BOS)
- LHP Patrick Sandoval (BOS)
- INF Anthony Seigler (BOS)
- LHP A.J. Minter (NYM)
- INF Miles Mastrobuoni (SEA)
- RHP Andrew Walters (CLE)
- RHP Edwin Uceta (TB)
The Diamondbacks transferred INF Jordan Lawlar to the 60-day IL. This comes as a blow for Lawlar, as the 23-year-old was starting to find success at the major league level in 2026, slashing .333/.400/.556 with a 171 wRC+. Arizona also placed 1B Carlos Santana on the IL.
The Phillies activated RHP Orion Kerkering from the IL. He’s allowed two hits and a walk over two scoreless innings thus far.
The Astros placed RHP Cristian Javier (grade 2 shoulder strain) on the 15-day IL and transferred RHP Ronel Blanco (elbow) to the 60-day IL. Javier was not pitching like himself to start the year, posting a 12.54 ERA and -10% K-BB rate in 2026.
The Marlins placed OF Griffin Conine on the IL. He mashed 2 HR and posted a 165 wRC+ through 11 games this year.
RHP Jeremiah Estrada has been placed on the IL by the Padres after his velo has seen a noticeable regression (-3 mph).
OF Seiya Suzuki has been activated off the IL by the Cubs. He went 1-for-3 with a walk in his season debut. I expect him to play a major role in overturning calls via ABS this year.
Twins’ INF Royce Lewis is headed to the IL again, this time with a left knee sprain.
Additional notable IL placements:
- The Guardians placed Gabriel Arias on the IL.
- The White Sox placed LHP Chris Murphy on the IL.
- The Tigers placed OF Parker Meadows on the IL.
- The Astros placed OF Jake Meyers on the IL.
Recent Transactions
The Angels DFA’d veteran infielder Jeimer Candelario. Since posting a 118 wRC+ in 2023, the 32-year-old has slashed just .204/.263/.389 with a .271 xwOBA and 26% K rate over 574 plate appearances. He struck out 8 times in 18 at-bats this season prior to his release. Vaughn Grissom has been activated off the IL.
The Mets have DFA’d LHP Richard Lovelady. While his 3.68 ERA in 7.1 innings this year seems fine, the 30-year-old is due for some regression — a 6% K-BB rate, 4.92 FIP, 95% zCon, and .328 xwOBA are all clear indicators. In exchange, the Mets have promoted veteran RHP Craig Kimbrel. He posted a 4.10 FIP in 12 innings last season and most recently tossed a scoreless inning in A-ball with the organization.
The Yankees DFA’d RHP Cade Winquest. He features a 7-pitch mix headlined by a 95 mph four-seamer (15″ iVB / 5″ HB) that turned in a .280 xwOBA and 35% chase rate in camp.
RHP Kyle Nicolas was promoted to the Reds’ bullpen. I’m a big believer in Nico — his four-seamer is electric (~98 mph with 17″ iVB) and he features two offerings that have massive whiff potential.
LHP Nick Raquet was dealt to the Orioles via the Cardinals in exchange for INF Brayden Smith. The soft-throwing lefty was shelled in his only big league inning this year, but did post a 2.24 ERA/3.14 FIP in 2025 (MiLB). Smith posted a 107 wRC+ in A-ball last year for Baltimore.
RHP Yoniel Curet was DFA’d by the Phillies and immediately becomes one of the more intriguing available names on the market. The former top prospect has dealt with a fair share of BB% concerns, but boasts an intriguing pitch mix and above average whiff-ability.
RHP Shane Smith was surprisingly optioned to Triple-A after turning in an 18% BB rate through less than 10 IP of work to start the year.
Feature image by Michael Packard (@CollectingPack on Twitter) | Photo by Brandon Sloter/Icon Sportswire
