St. Louis Cardinals right-handed pitcher Ryan Fernandez (hip) was unable to pitch on Thursday due to hip tightness. Instead, Phil Maton was deployed in the eighth inning. Fantasy managers should continue to monitor his status as he should contend for a high-leverage role when healthy. Last season, Fernandez made his MLB debut and tossed 66 2/3 innings to the tune of a 3.51 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Across this stint, he tallied an impressive 71 punchouts but struggled to command his pitches as her served up walks at a high 11.2 percent rate. The 26-year-old also generated a solid 3.54 xERA and a .221 xBA, which were both above the average marks. While Fernandez remains sidelined, fantasy managers should expect Maton, Chris Roycroft, and JoJo Romero to be the primary setup options in St. Louis.

Tampa Bay Rays catcher Danny Jansen (rib) is in Friday's starting lineup. Jansen will be behind the dish and bat sixth against Colorado left-hander Kyle Freeland. Jansen was sidelined at the end of spring training due to a pulled muscle in his rib cage. However, the 29-year-old was able to progress enough and will not miss Opening Day. Earlier in the offseason, the Rays signed Jansen to a one-year deal worth $8.5 million to be the primary backstop. Before the injury, Jansen tallied three round-trippers with a .320/.452/.640 slash line with two doubles and two long balls across 11 contests in the Grapefruit League. Last season, Jansen posted a modest .205/.309/.349 slash line with nine long balls. He is worth a look in DFS competitions facing Freeland, who posted a 5.24 ERA last season.

St. Louis Cardinals pitching prospect Tink Hence (rib cage) is starting the 2025 season at Triple-A Memphis on the seven-day injured list with a right rib-cage strain, according to president of baseball operations John Mozeliak. The team's No. 3 prospect, per MLB Pipeline, will now miss the start of the minor-league season, but it's unclear exactly how much time he might miss. The right-hander was drafted by St. Louis in the second round of the 2020 draft and has some of the best stuff among young pitching prospects. However, the 6-foot-1, 195-pounder hasn't been able to stay healthy so far on the farm and has yet to reach the 100-inning mark due to various arm ailments. Last year in 20 starts for Double-A Springfield, Hence had a nice 2.71 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, 109 strikeouts and 26 walks in 79 2/3 innings but missed notable time with a shoulder injury. If he continues to struggle to stay healthy, perhaps he'll be moved to a relief role.

Houston Astros infielder Brendan Rodgers is making a second straight start over Mauricio Dubon on Friday at second base and will bat eighth against the visiting New York Mets and right-hander Tylor Megill at Daikin Park. All signs pointed to Dubon seeing most of the playing time at the keystone to open the 2025 season after the Astros decided to move All-Star Jose Altuve to left field full time, but so far it's been Rodgers at the keystone in Houston. The 28-year-old former Rockies second baseman went hitless in four plate appearances with one walk in the team's Opening Day win over the Mets on Thursday. The Astros may actually prefer the oft-injured Rodgers at the keystone to begin the season, but if he's not producing, Dubon could get his opportunity sooner than later. Rodgers had extreme home/road splits while with Colorado and should only be rostered in AL-only fantasy leagues for the time being.

Baltimore Orioles right-hander Grayson Rodriguez (elbow) is throwing a bullpen session on Friday before the team's contest against the division-rival Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre. Rodriguez is beginning to ramp up his throwing program after being shut down in early March in spring training due to right-elbow inflammation. Rodriguez will need a full build-up and basically has to repeat spring training, so fantasy managers should expect him to miss at least the first month of the regular season. A lat strain in August of last year put a damper on what had been a breakout season up to that point as well. Before his lat injury in 2024, the 25-year-old had gone 13-4 with a 3.86 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 130:36 K:BB in 20 starts over 116 2/3 innings. Rodriguez should be stashed in all fantasy formats.