Boston Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers (shoulders) has been playing with discomfort in both of his shoulders for quite a while, and manager Alex Cora decided to give him two days in a row off on Tuesday and Wednesday. The plan is for Devers to return either on Thursday in the series finale at Fenway Park against the division-rival Toronto Blue Jays or for Friday's series opener at Comerica Park against the Detroit Tigers. He tweaked his left shoulder swinging in the cage in spring training and then had a hard landing on his right shoulder while diving for a ground ball at Coors Field on July 23. "He's not getting worse but he's not getting any better," said Cora. "If he needs two or three [days off], we'll do it. We have to take care of him. And I think it's smart to do." Fantasy managers will want to get Devers back in their starting lineups when he's active again.

Boston Red Sox right-handed reliever Liam Hendriks (elbow) looked strong in his fourth minor-league rehab appearance on Wednesday night, throwing a scoreless inning for Triple-A Worcester, giving up no hits while walking one and striking out one. Hendriks will make a fifth rehab appearance again on Friday and is trending in the right direction to make his Red Sox debut in the first or second week of September. The 35-year-old veteran is making his return from Tommy John surgery and should be able to give the BoSox plenty of experience in a late-inning setup role down the stretch in front of closer Kenley Jansen as they push for a wild-card spot in the American League. The Aussie reliever has been an All-Star three times in his 13-year career and holds 116 career saves under his belt.

Boston Red Sox middle infielder David Hamilton (fingers, hand) left Wednesday's win over the Toronto Blue Jays early with discomfort in his left fingers/hand. When Hamilton put down a bunt in the eighth inning, the pitch hit some of the fingers on his left hand and he was eventually replaced by Mickey Gasper at second base when the Red Sox took the field in the top of the ninth inning. Manager Alex Cora didn't have an immediate update on Hamilton following the game, so fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day for now. Don't be surprised if Hamilton isn't in the lineup for Thursday's contest at Fenway Park against the division rivals. The 26-year-old went 0-for-4 with a run scored in the 3-0 win. Hamilton has been a regular in 2024 for Boston at the keystone due to Vaughn Grissom's ongoing injury issues, and he's responded with 33 stolen bases in 294 at-bats.

Boston Red Sox right-handed reliever Lucas Sims (lat), who has been inconsistent since joining the Red Sox last month, was shut down on Aug. 27 with a right-lat strain. Manager Alex Cora said the team will have a better idea if the righty will return this year in around 10 days. "He's moving, he's working out and all that stuff," said Cora. "Obviously it bothers him when he reaches out. Hopefully [we'll] re-evaluate in 10 days and see where we're at." The 30-year-old was placed on the 15-day injured list on Tuesday. Since the Red Sox acquired him from the Cincinnati Reds at the trade deadline, he has allowed nine runs while walking seven and striking out seven in 10 innings of work. In 54 relief outings in 2024, Sims is 1-6 with a bloated 4.57 ERA, a 1.46 WHIP, one save and a 47:27 K:BB in 45 1/3 innings. Sims hasn't ben on the fantasy radar at all.

New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez, third baseman Mark Vientos and outfielder Harrison Bader are all retreating to the bench for Thursday's series finale against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Luis Torrens is doing the catching and batting ninth, Jose Iglesias is at the hot corner and hitting seventh, and Brandon Nimmo is in center field and batting third against D-backs right-hander Ryne Nelson. Nimmo is obviously the most attractive DFS play of the trio in the three-hole and he has two hits in four career at-bats against Nelson. Alvarez has hits in both of his last two games, but he could use a break after going just 2-for-24 with 10 strikeouts in his last eight games since Aug. 20. Vientos has taken advantage of Brett Baty's continued disappointment to post his first 20-homer season in 2024. Bader will get some rest despite homering in each of the last two games.