Baltimore Orioles first baseman Ryan Mountcastle will receive a day of rest in Thursday's series finale against the visiting division-rival Boston Red Sox at Camden Yards. The left-handed-hitting Ryan O'Hearn will start at first base and bat cleanup for the O's versus right-hander Tanner Houck. Mountcastle has started five of the team's first seven games in the early going and has gone 5-for-20 at the plate with a double, RBI, three runs scored, one walk and four strikeouts in 21 plate appearances. O'Hearn is much better against right-handed pitchers and is swinging a hot bat early on, going 6-for-15 with two doubles and two runs scored in four games played. He's worth taking a serious look at for DFS contests on a small Thursday slate against Houck, who he's hit .375 against with a solo home run in eight career at-bats.

New York Yankees left-hander Carlos Rodon (forearm) underwent X-rays, which thankfully came back negative, after taking a line 115.5 mph line drive off his right forearm off the bat of second baseman Ketel Marte in Wednesday's loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks in the Bronx. Despite that and the fact that the 32-year-old's fastball velocity was noticeably down on a cold night at Yankee Stadium, Rodon was able to retire the last 10 batters he faced. He ultimately allowed four earned runs on three hits while walking four and striking out five over six innings on 96 pitches. Rodon didn't look nearly as dominant as he did on Opening Day last Thursday against the Brewers when he struck out seven and gave up just one run in 5 1/3 innings, but the biggest takeaway from Wednesday is that he should be fine physically going into his third start of 2025.

Kansas City Royals outfielder Drew Waters went 4-for-5 at the plate and hit for the cycle during their victory over Triple-A Louisville on Wednesday. Waters led the Omaha offense in this contest as he tallied five RBI, which was highlighted by a three-run inside-the-park home run. Waters was competing for a depth role in the Kansas outfield during spring training but was unable to win a spot on the roster. This was a nice breakout outing for the 26-year-old as he did not tally a hit in each of his first two contests of the Triple-A regular season. Last summer, Waters appeared in just seven games for the Royals and tallied just three hits. Through 334 career games at Triple-A, Water has posted a solid .269/.352/.447 slash line. He is worth monitoring in AL-only formats as he could eventually earn a spot in the Kansas City outfield later in the season.

Seattle Mariners catching prospect Harry Ford had a productive evening at the plate on Wednesday as he went 1-for-2 with two walks. He tallied an RBI single in the second frame, crossed home plate three times, and even swiped a bag. Throughout his first three contests at the top level of the minor leagues, the 22-year-old backstop has held a .333/.538/.333 line. He has tallied at least one hit in each contest and has held a strong 4:1 BB:K. Last season, Ford had some growing pains at Double-A as he posted a modest .249/.377/.367 slash line across 116 contests. He tallied 26 doubles, seven long balls, and swiped 35 bags. This was a sharp decline from the .257/.410/.430 line he held during the 2023 season at High-A. Fantasy managers should continue to monitor Ford's progression as he could be in the mix for a second-half MLB debut if he continues to produce with the Tacoma Rainiers.

Minnesota Twins catcher Christian Vazquez will retreat to the bench for Thursday's contest against the visiting Houston Astros at Target Field. Ryan Jeffers will do the catching for right-hander Joe Ryan and will bat eighth against right-hander Hunter Brown. Vazquez and Jeffers continue to alternate playing time behind the dish for the Twins early on in 2025, which makes the 34-year-old veteran unattractive to fantasy managers outside of two-catcher or AL-only leagues. The Puerto Rican backstop has played in three games so far and is hitless in his 10 plate appearances with no walks and a strikeout. Meanwhile, Jeffers has gone 4-for-15 with an RBI, run scored, two walks and two strikeouts in four games. Jeffers offers slightly more offensive upside, but neither catcher should excite fantasy managers all that much. Jeffers has two hits in 10 career at-bats versus Brown.