

Detroit Tigers veteran Kenta Maeda (illness) has been placed on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to May 8, with a viral infection, In a corresponding move, the Tigers recalled outfielder Akil Baddoo from Triple-A Toledo. The veteran Maeda is 1-1 with a 6.75 ERA and 1.40 WHIP in seven starts covering 30 innings. He pitched on May 7 against the Cleveland Guardians with poor results, going only two innings and surrendering seven earned runs on five hits and three walks. Baddoo likely will be a reserve outfielder during his stay on the roster. It appears that the Tigers will recall right-hander Matt Manning to take Maeda's upcoming Monday start against the Miami Marlins.


San Diego Padres first baseman Jake Cronenworth is out of the lineup on Saturday for the Padres tilt against the Los Angeles Dodgers. With James Paxton on the mound, and Cronenworth struggling deeply against lefties, the Padres will start Luis Arraez at first base in his place. While Cronenworth has been excellent this season with an .841 OPS, that drops to just .437 when facing lefties. This decision would appear to simply be platoon-based and shouldn't raise any concerns with fantasy managers. Expect Cronenworth to be back in the lineup on Sunday when the Los Angeles Dodgers start right-hander Walker Buehler.


Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Nick Lodolo will look to bounce back after a rough outing vs Baltimore when he faces the San Francisco Giants on Saturday night. Lodolo has only had two real hiccups in his five starts this season with both of those hiccups (Philadelphia, Baltimore) being strong against lefties. The San Francisco Giants rank 18th against lefties with a 98 wRC+, just below league average. Lodolo should be able to perform a little stronger against San Francisco than those two. Fantasy managers should feel fine with him in their lineups on Saturday and DFS players should target the left-hander as well.


Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Cole Ragans will aim to notch his third straight quality start on Saturday when he takes the hill against the Los Angeles Angels. Ragans has been living up to the potential the Royals were looking for when they traded for him last season. The lefty ranks third in K/9 among American League starters who have thrown at least 20 innings with an 11.39 K/9 behind only Garrett Crochet and Jack Flaherty. The lefty should continue to dominate and may even have room for improvement as his 3.38 ERA and 2.35 FIP suggest he could be even better. Fantasy managers and DFS players will want to target the lefty Saturday against the struggling Los Angeles Angels, who are only hitting for a .217 BA over the last seven days.


Baltimore Orioles relief pitcher Craig Kimbrel has been removed from his normal role as Orioles closer. Orioles manager Brandon Hyde told reporters Saturday that he talked with the 35-year-old Friday afternoon about the change in plans. Hyde said he intends to take it day-by-day and that he's not sure when Kimbrel will return back to the closer role, hinting that this move may be more temporary. "We need him to be Craig Kimbrel and we need him to be the lockdown guy he's been for his entire career," the Orioles manager stated. Kimbrel had failed to convert four of his last five save opportunities before the change on Friday night, when he threw a perfect seventh inning. Fantasy managers will want to keep an eye on Kimbrel over the next couple weeks, but should be looking for other closers if Kimbrel was their starting closer.
