St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado (elbow) is not in the team's starting lineup for Thursday's Negro Leagues tribute at Rickwood Field in Alabama against the San Francisco Giants. Veteran Brandon Crawford will make the start at third base in Arenado's absence and will bat seventh against Giants right-hander Keaton Winn. Arenado was hit by a pitch on his elbow in Wednesday's contest, and while X-rays returned negative for any significant damage to his arm, he's not aiming to return to the starting lineup until Saturday's game against the Giants after an off day on Friday. Like many of St. Louis' hitters in 2024, Arenado has disappointed most of his fantasy managers this year, but he's been slightly better in June by hitting .270 (17-for-63) with a homer, three doubles, six RBI and a stolen base in 17 games played. Crawford is nearing the end of his career and is a poor DFS replacement at the hot corner.

Baltimore Orioles infielder Jordan Westburg (hip) is back in the starting lineup for Thursday's series finale in the Bronx against the division-rival New York Yankees and right-hander Luis Gil, playing second base and batting sixth in the order. Ramon Urias will get another start at third base and will bat out of the nine-hole. Westburg bruised his left hip in Tuesday's game and missed the contest on Wednesday. The 25-year-old has been a lineup regular for the O's this year at either second or third base, and he's hitting a useful .277/.331/.502 with an .833 OPS, 11 home runs, 42 RBI, six stolen bases and 37 runs scored in 253 at-bats in a strong Orioles lineup. He's cooled off a bit in June, though, going 15-for-64 (.234) with three homers, three doubles, two triples, eight RBI, one steal and 14 strikeouts in 16 games.

Minnesota Twins outfielder Max Kepler (neck) left the game early on Thursday against the Tampa Bay Rays with neck spasms. Kepler appeared to get hurt while sliding head-first into first base. He was replaced by Manuel Margot in left field, with Trevor Larnach moving to right field. Before leaving the contest early, Kepler went hitless in his lone at-bat to drop his season average to .251. Until we know more about the 31-year-old's status, he should be considered day-to-day. Fantasy baseball managers will want to check back to see if he's back in the starting lineup for Friday's series opener in Oakland against the Athletics. If Kepler's injury is serious enough to force him to the injured list, Margot would likely be the biggest beneficiary in Minnesota's outfield. In addition to his injury, Kepler has struggled in June, going 11-for-57 (.193) with two homers, eight RBI and 17 K's in 15 games played.

Washington Nationals right-hander Josiah Gray (elbow) will make another minor-league rehab start next week, this time with Triple-A Rochester. In his latest rehab start for Double-A Harrisburg on Wednesday, Gray got up to 79 pitches and got through five innings, allowing two earned runs on three hits while walking three and fanning five. If the 26-year-old makes it out of his next rehab appearance unscathed, it's likely that his next start will come in the big leagues for the Nationals. The former second-rounder in 2018 by the Cincinnati Reds only made two starts before landing on the injured list and went 0-2 with a 14.04 ERA and 2.40 WHIP while striking out nine in 8 1/3 frames. His elbow may have been the culprit, though, so fantasy managers shouldn't completely dismiss him after he made his first All-Star appearance in 2023.

Colorado Rockies left-hander Kyle Freeland (elbow) will come off the 60-day injured list this weekend and make the start on Sunday against the visiting Washington Nationals, according to manager Bud Black. In his third and final minor-league rehab start for Triple-A Albuquerque on Tuesday, Freeland allowed two earned runs on two hits while walking four and striking out four in four innings of work. The 31-year-old southpaw only threw 67 pitches in that outing, so fantasy managers considering streaming him right away in deeper leagues should be very hesitant to do so. The start will also be at hitter-friendly Coors Field, and Freeland wasn't effective at all earlier this year before his injury, going 0-3 with a brutal 13.21 ERA, 2.55 WHIP and only nine strikeouts in 15 2/ innings over his four starts. At best, Freeland is a deep-league streaming option away from Coors in the right matchups.