The Houston Astros have placed right-handed pitcher Hunter Brown (shoulder) on the 15-day injured list with a right-shoulder strain. According to Matt Kawahara of The Houston Chronicle, this transition is retroactive to April 2. In a corresponding move, the Astros promoted Christian Roa from Triple-A Sugar Land. Brown made his last outing on March 31 against the Boston Red Sox. In this start, the ace looked like his dominant self, logging six innings of one-run ball with just one hit and two walks. He struck out eight hitters. In his season debut, Brown tossed 4 2/3 innings with four hits, four walks, no runs, and nine punchouts. While Brown remains on the shelf, the Astros could turn to right-hander Spencer Arrighetti, who was unable to crack the team's Opening Day roster.

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Minnesota Twins outfielder Byron Buxton (forearm) is back in Sunday's lineup against the visiting Tampa Bay Rays and right-hander Nick Martinez, according to MLB.com. Buxton will serve as the designated hitter and will bat second for the Twins. The 32-year-old oft-injured veteran was removed from Friday's game against Tampa after being hit in the forearm by a pitch, and he was held from the lineup on Saturday as a precaution. Buxton thankfully avoided any structural damage in his arm and will return to action for the series finale. He will most likely return to outfield duties early next week. Fantasy managers may want to keep Buxton on their benches on Sunday, though, given his slow start at the plate in 2026. He's hitting just .154/.207/.269 with an RBI, one walk, and nine strikeouts in a small sample size of seven games. The good news is Buxton has a good history against Martinez, as he's hit .400 against him with two home runs and three RBI in 10 career at-bats.

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Philadelphia Phillies left-hander Jesus Luzardo was dominant on Saturday in his first win of the 2026 season against the Colorado Rockies, allowing just one earned run on five hits while walking none and striking out 11 in 6 2/3 innings of work at Coors Field in Denver. It was a nice bounce-back outing early on for the 28-year-old southpaw, as he was greeted harshly in his season debut last week by the Texas Rangers, allowing six runs in six innings. Fantasy managers should have had Luzardo in their starting lineups on Saturday against the Rockies despite his rough opening start. In his dominant outing, he generated 23 swinging strikes. The former third-round pick by the Washington Nationals in 2016 is a high-upside strikeout arm on one of the best teams in baseball, giving him plenty of fantasy appeal in his third year in Philly. Fantasy managers will want to keep him active in his next scheduled outing against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

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Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that shortstop Mookie Betts's (oblique) MRI exam showed a right-oblique strain after he was pulled from Saturday's game early against the Washington Nationals, according to Jack Harris of The California Post. Roberts thinks the injury occurred on a check swing during his at-bat on Saturday. Betts will go on the 10-day injured list, and infielder Hyeseong Kim will replace him on the active MLB roster. It's unclear when the 33-year-old former MVP will be able to return from the Dodgers, but fantasy managers shouldn't expect him to be back at the end of his 10-day IL stint. Oblique injuries can be tricky to recover from and often take around a month. With Betts out, veteran Miguel Rojas is expected to see most of the playing time at the 6, although he offers very little fantasy baseball appeal offensively. Betts has gotten off to another slow start in 2026 in his first eight games, batting .179 (5-for-28), although he does have two home runs and seven RBI in 32 plate appearances.

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Seattle Mariners infielder Brendan Donovan (groin) is dealing with some soreness in his groin area and underwent imaging on Saturday, according to Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times. The Mariners hope to have a better idea on his situation when the medical staff examines the results of his tests. For now, he's being considered day-to-day after leaving Friday's game early against the Los Angeles Angels. The 29-year-old did not play in Saturday's game against the Angels and will most likely be held out of the series finale on Sunday, too, but this doesn't appear to be a serious injury for the Mariners' new infielder. In his first eight games with Seattle this year, Donovan has gone 10-for-27 (.370) with two home runs, two doubles, four RBI, four runs scored, a stolen base, four walks, and six strikeouts in 33 plate appearances. Donovan doesn't have a ton of power for fantasy managers, but he can be useful in points leagues as a counting-stat aggregator as an everyday player in the Mariners' strong lineup.

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The Chicago Cubs placed right-hander Cade Horton (forearm) on the 15-day injured list (retroactive to April 4) with a right-forearm strain on Sunday, according to Taylor McGregor of Watch Marquee Sports. In a corresponding move, the team recalled left-hander Riley Martin from Triple-A Iowa. Horton suffered a forearm strain in his outing on Friday against the Cleveland Guardians. It's unclear if the 24-year-old will be ready to return from the IL when he's eligible on April 19. It's a tough break for the former seventh overall pick in 2022 out of Oklahoma early on in 2026. In his two starts before his arm injury, Horton had allowed two earned runs on four hits (one homer) while walking two and striking out four in 7 1/3 innings pitched. Hopefully, he'll be back in Chicago's starting rotation before the end of April. In the meantime, either Colin Rea or Javier Assad will take Horton's spot in the Cubbies' rotation.

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Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Emerson Hancock was excellent once again on the mound during Friday's outing against the Los Angeles Angels. Hancock tossed six scoreless innings with nine strikeouts in his season debut. He carried over that success into Friday's outing versus the Angels. Hancock tossed 6.2 innings, allowing one run while striking out six in the loss. It has been an outstanding beginning to the season for Hancock. The right-hander is only in the rotation because Bryce Miller (oblique) is currently on the 15-day Injured List. It's going to be difficult for the Mariners to pull Hancock out of the rotation with the way he's pitching right now. He's lined up to pitch against the Houston Astros on Friday. Hancock should be rostered in most 12-team formats ahead of that matchup.

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Arizona Diamondbacks relief pitcher Paul Sewald notched his third save of the season versus the Atlanta Braves on Saturday. Sewald needed 21 pitches to work a scoreless ninth, which included two strikeouts. The veteran right-hander is now 3-for-3 in save situations with four scoreless innings over five total appearances. It seems likely that the D-Backs stick with Sewald as the closer going forward. The 35-year-old is an experienced option with 89 career saves and appears to be the most trustworthy option at the moment. Fantasy managers in need of saves or a reliever should consider adding Sewald.

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Tampa Bay Rays relief pitcher Edwin Uceta (shoulder) was able to throw a live batting practice session on Friday. The right-hander is currently working his way back from right shoulder soreness. He's expected to throw again on Tuesday before hopefully starting a minor league rehab assignment. Once he's healthy, Uceta could immediately slide into the closer role for the Rays. Griffin Jax has already blown two saves and could be on a short leash if he continues to struggle. Uceta could be worth stashing for fantasy managers searching for saves. The hope is that Uceta will be able to make his season debut in late April.

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Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Zack Wheeler is slated to make two more rehab starts, according to Phillies manager Rob Thompson. The plan is for Wheeler to start on Wednesday with Triple-A Lehigh Valley and make another start after that. The veteran right-hander is currently working his way back from thoracic outlet syndrome surgery. He was hit around for five runs during his second rehab start on Friday. The overall results don't matter as much as Wheeler building up his stamina. Barring any setbacks, Wheeler should be able to rejoin the Phillies rotation in late April. Fantasy managers better make sure to stash Wheeler on their IL if he's available in your league.

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Miami Marlins outfielder Owen Caissie is off to a hot start to begin his Marlins career. The 23-year-old was traded to Miami this offseason in a deal that sent Edward Cabrera to the Chicago Cubs. Through eight games with his new team, Caissie is slashing .320/.357/.640 with two home runs and nine RBI. That includes a walk-off home run in his third game with the team. The future is bright for the former second-round pick, and he's expected to see regular playing time in Miami. He's quickly becoming a hot pickup in fantasy leagues given his red-hot start to the season. He should cool down at some point, but Caissie is worth rostering in most 12-team formats right now.

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Marlins' C Liam Hicks scored 31.5 fantasy points going 7-for-16 with two home runs and nine RBIs in five games this week. Hicks is owned only in 0.1% of mixed leagues.

Miami's 2B Xavier Edwards had a slash line of .526/.571/.789 going 10-for-19 with 2 RBIs in five games this week. Edwards is owned only in 44.2% of mixed leagues.

White Sox's 2B Luisangel Acuna had three stolen bases and a .267 average in five games this week. Acuna is owned only in 1.9% of mixed leagues.

Royals' LF Kyle Isbel scored 28.5 fantasy points going 9-for-16 with two home runs and five RBIs in five games this week. Isbel is owned only in 0.0% of mixed leagues.

White Sox's 3B Miguel Vargas scored 30.0 fantasy points going 5-for-16 with a home run and six RBIs in five games this week. Vargas is owned only in 4.0% of mixed leagues.

Phillies' SP Jesus Luzardo recorded 11 strikeouts in 6.2 innings getting the win in a 2-1 win over Colorado on Saturday, Apr. 4.

Cardinals' RF Jordan Walker had five RBIs going 3-for-4 with a home run in a 11-6 loss to Detroit on Saturday, Apr. 4.

Kansas City Royals reliever Lucas Erceg has converted both save opportunities while posting a 1.13 WHIP and one strikeout across 2 2/3 scoreless innings in 2026. The Royals placed closer Carlos Estevez (foot) on the 15-day injured list with a foot contusion. Estevez had velocity concerns heading into the year and was lit up for six earned runs in only one appearance this season. With Estevez on the injured list, Erceg has locked down Kansas City's closer role and becomes a must-add off the waiver wire for fantasy managers searching for saves. The 30-year-old was terrific last season, owning a 2.64 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, and 48:18 K :BB with two saves and 23 holds over 61 1/3 innings for the Royals last season. Erceg is rostered in 51% of Yahoo Fantasy leagues and is currently third on RotoBaller's Week 2 waiver wire rankings.

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Seattle Mariners top shortstop prospect Colt Emerson (foot) exited Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader at Triple-A Tacoma after fouling a ball off his right foot. He stayed in the game initially, but was replaced in the next half inning. Emerson will go under further evaluation to determine the extent of the injury and is considered day-to-day for now. The 20-year-old signed an eight-year, $95 million extension with the Mariners on Tuesday and is expected to be promoted to the big leagues soon. However, if he misses any significant time, the injury could delay his call-up to the show. Despite Emerson signing a long extension, J.P. Crawford will remain Seattle's starting shortstop for the time being. Fantasy managers should continue to stash Emerson due to his high upside and above-average power.

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