
New York Mets outfielder Jose Siri is starting again in center field and is batting ninth on Tuesday against the division-rival Miami Marlins and right-hander Sandy Alcantara at loanDepot Park. Siri has made the last three starts in center for the Mets after Tyrone Taylor opened the first two games of the season as the team's center fielder. In his first two games for the Mets early on, Siri has a double, RBI, stolen base, one walk and three strikeouts in seven plate appearances. Taylor also has only one hit with two strikeouts in nine plate appearances in his three games for the Mets. Expect the Mets to continue to mix and match in center field with both Siri and Taylor, limiting the fantasy appeal of both players to mainly NL-only leagues. Because of Siri's high whiff and strikeout rates, Taylor will probably be the safer fantasy bet offensively.

New York Mets infielder Brett Baty is on the bench for Tuesday's contest in Miami against the Marlins at loanDepot Park. Luisangel Acuna will make the start at the keystone and will hit eighth against right-hander Sandy Alcantara. Baty did not play on Opening Day last Thursday against a left-hander but then made three straight starts against righties, going 1-for-9 with a double and three strikeouts at second base. Acuna made the start at shortstop on Monday night with Francisco Lindor out for the birth of his son, but he'll slide back to second on Tuesday. On most days moving forward with Jeff McNeill (oblique) on the injured list to start the season, Baty will be on the strong side of a platoon at second for the Mets against right-handed pitching. Acuna, the younger brother of Braves superstar Ronald Acuna Jr., has just one hit and a stolen base in his first nine plate appearances in 2025 over four games.

Texas Rangers catcher Kyle Higashioka is behind the plate again and will hit eighth on Monday against the Cincinnati Reds and right-hander Carson Spiers at Great American Ball Park, with Jonah Heim retreating to the bench. Through the team's first six games of the 2025 season, Higashioka and Heim have split the catching duties down the middle with three starts apiece. Heim has four hits (two homers) and two RBI in 10 at-bats so far, while Higashioka has gone 2-for-7 with a double and an RBI in his first two starts. The near-even split behind the dish should continue and will keep both catchers fresh throughout the year. However, it's also bad news for both players' fantasy ceiling at the weak catcher position. Higashioka is coming off a career-best year in San Diego with 17 homers and 45 RBI, but fantasy managers can't expect that kind of output again if he's in a timeshare.

Minnesota Twins second baseman Edouard Julien (illness) is making his first start of the 2025 season on Tuesday on the road in Chicago against the division-rival White Sox at Rate Field. Julien will serve as the designated hitter and bat eighth against right-hander Shane Smith, who will be making his major-league debut. Although this will be Julien's first start of the year due to an illness he's been dealing with, the 25-year-old had three at-bats off the bench on Monday and has gone hitless with two strikeouts. Most of the Canadian's playing time should come at second base again for the Twins this year, but at best, he'll be in more of a platoon situation, limiting his fantasy appeal to deeper formats. In his second year with the Twins in 2024, Julien slashed just .199/.292/.323 with eight home runs, 21 RBI and six steals in 94 games played.

Washington Nationals outfielder Dylan Crews will head to the bench for Tuesday's contest against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre. Alex Call is starting in right field in his place and will hit eighth against Blue Jays right-hander Jose Berrios. The Nationals are giving Crews an early mental break after the former second overall pick in 2023 out of LSU has started his first full year in the big leagues by going 0-for-15 at the plate with a steal, run scored, one walk and 10 strikeouts in his first four games. While it's still early, fantasy managers hoping Crews would contribute nicely across most categories this year have to be at least a little bit concerned. Call will be making his season debut on Tuesday after hitting .343 (34-for-99) with three homers, 14 RBI and five steals in just 30 games for Washington a season ago. Call has never faced Berrios in his career.
