Atlanta Braves outfielder/designated hitter Jorge Soler (hamstring) ramped up his activities a bit with his running on Thursday, and barring a setback, he could return to the starting lineup on Friday in the series opener against the division-rival Washington Nationals at Truist Park. Soler has been out of the team's lineup since injuring his left hamstring last Wednesday, but the 32-year-old right-handed slugger should rejoin the lineup this weekend. The fact that he appeared as a pinch-hitter on Tuesday is a sign that the Braves feel confident he won't need a trip to the injured list. Ramon Laureano is starting in right field again on Thursday and is batting fifth in the series finale against the division-rival Philadelphia Phillies and left-hander Cristopher Sanchez. Soler has hit .261 (12-for-46) with four home runs and 11 RBI in 15 games since being acquired in a trade with the San Francisco Giants at the deadline.

Oakland Athletics shortstop prospect Jacob Wilson (hamstring) is getting closer to a potential return to the big leagues. Wilson played seven innings at shortstop on Tuesday with Triple-A Las Vegas and a full game as the designated hitter on Wednesday, going a combined 2-for-6 with an RBI, run scored and two walks for the Aviators. The 22-year-old has gone 4-for-11 at the plate in his four rehab games with Vegas. He's scheduled to play again on Thursday, and if he plays a full nine innings at shortstop, the A's may have seen enough to reinstate him from the 10-day injured list. The team's top prospect, per MLB Pipeline, has enough offensive upside to be worth a stash in at least deep-mixed fantasy leagues to close out the year. The out-of-contention A's were ready to give Wilson regular playing time at the 6 before he injured his hamstring after recording his first big-league hit in his first career at-bat in late July.

Baltimore Orioles right-hander Zach Eflin (shoulder) sounds pretty confident that he'll be ready to return from the 15-day injured list when he's first eligible on Sept. 1. When asked if he'll be ready after 15 days, he said, "Absolutely. As I stand today, yeah, for sure. I'm not even remotely focusing on rehab starts." Eflin said his right shoulder already feels "10 times better" than it did earlier this week. The 30-year-old was put on the IL on Tuesday with inflammation in his right shoulder, but as things sound now, he won't need any rehab assignments before returning to the O's rotation. Eflin's fantasy managers are surely hoping he's right in his assessment of his injury and his timeline for a return. In his first four starts with Baltimore since being acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays, Eflin has a 2.13 ERA with only two walks and 25 strikeouts in 25 1/3 innings.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have no immediate plans to shut rookie right-hander Paul Skenes down. "There is no immediate plan to shut him down. There has never been any immediate plans to shut him down. How we monitor that, whether it's an innings limit or a workload limit per game, we'll be thoughtful about that," manager Derek Shelton said. While the Pirates continue to say they don't have any plans to shut down the 22-year-old phenom, they previously said they will consider shortening his outings. Last year's first overall pick out of LSU has already thrown more innings in 2024 than he did all of last year combined between college and in the minors. Skenes has been as advertised, going 7-2 with a 2.30 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 121 K's in 98 innings over his first 16 MLB starts. However, fantasy managers should expect some kind of restrictions down the stretch, especially if the Bucs are officially eliminated from playoff contention.

Toronto Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette (calf) has started running at the team's spring training complex in Dunedin, Fla., according to manager John Schneider. Bichette will join the Blue Jays at Fenway Park and stick with them through their road trip as he works his way towards a minor-league rehab assignment. Running full speed and running the bases will likely be the last couple boxes Bichette needs to check before getting the green light for a rehab assignment. The 26-year-old began hitting and fielding recently as well as he works his way back from a strained right calf that landed him on the injured list to begin the second half of the season. Bichette won't rejoin the big-league squad until early September, at which point he'll have limited time to turn around what has been one of the most disappointing seasons for a high-end fantasy name. Rookie Leo Jimenez has been seeing most of the starts at the 6 in Bichette's absence.