New York Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez (hand) was scheduled to catch right-hander Kodai Senga's bullpen session on Friday and take batting practice in the cages, according to manager Carlos Mendoza. Alvarez is recovering after needing surgery to fix a fractured hamate bone in his left hand, but it's unclear when he might be able to return to make his 2025 season debut. Until the 23-year-old is able to return, Luis Torrens will continue to serve as the Mets' starting catcher, with Hayden Senger serving as the backup. When healthy, Alvarez is the Mets' primary backstop, and the Venezuelan catcher showed plenty of promise by hitting 25 home runs and driving in 63 back in 2023. A torn UCL in his left hand set him back a year ago, though, and he was able to hit only 11 homers in 100 games played. He's a top-12 fantasy catcher when healthy.

New York Mets left-hander Sean Manaea (oblique) said that he's feeling good after receiving a platelet-rich plasma injection in his strained right oblique on Tuesday. Manaea still has a ways to go, but the fact that he's feeling better is certainly good news. Still, the 33-year-old needs to be fully built up again after dealing with his oblique injury for most of spring training. It means that fantasy managers won't be able to rely on the veteran southpaw until May, at the earliest. It's also probably fooling to expect the former first-rounder to be as good as he was in his first year with the Mets in 2024 when he went 12-6 with a 3.47 ERA (3.83 ERA) and 1.08 WHIP with 184 strikeouts and 63 walks in 32 innings covering a career-high 181 2/3 innings pitched in the regular season. A lower arm slot led to his sinker being more effective late in the season, but can he maintain that good form after this injury?

New York Yankees right-handed reliever Scott Effross (hamstring) suffered a setback with his hamstring injury, according to manager Aaron Boone. Effross is now in a holding pattern instead of advancing to face live hitters. Effross suffered a Grade 2 left-hamstring strain in his first outing of spring training back on Feb. 25 and will now miss even more time. The fact that the 31-year-old hasn't even progressed to facing live hitters means we most likely won't see him make his 2025 season debut until sometime in May. Injuries have become a big problem for Effross, as he didn't pitch at all in 2023 and made just three relief appearances for the Yankees in 2024, allowing two earned runs on three hits while walking two and striking out two in 3 1/3 frames. New York probably isn't holding their breathe for him to contribute much in their bullpen.

The Washington Nationals are waiting to decide on who their starter will be on Sunday against the Arizona Diamondbacks, but MASN's Mark Zuckerman reports that if rookie right-hander Brad Lord isn't needed out of the bullpen before then, he could make his first career start. Lord, who is considered the team's No. 22 prospect per MLB Pipeline, made the Opening Day roster for the first time and has allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits while walking two and striking out none in two innings in his first three major-league appearances. The reason the Nats need a starter for Sunday's series finale against Arizona is because right-hander Michael Soroka (biceps) landed on the injured list on Friday. If Lord makes the start this weekend, fantasy managers will want to stay away since he won't be efficiently stretched out to go very deep in that contest.

The Texas Rangers have placed starting pitching prospect Jack Leiter (finger) on the 15-day injured list due to a blister. In a corresponding move, the Rangers promoted veteran left-handed pitcher Patrick Corbin from Triple-A Round Rock. Leiter was able to earn a spot in the starting rotation out of camp. After struggling during his first taste of the big leagues last summer, Leiter was able to start turning the corner in 2025. Across his first two outings, the former second overall pick logged 10 innings of one-run ball. He allowed six hits and held a stellar 1:10 BB:K. Fantasy managers should continue to stash Leiter on an injured reserve spot on their roster as Leiter should rejoin the rotation once cleared to return. Corbin will likely earn a temporary spot in the rotation but should not be targeted in any formats as he held a high 5.62 ERA across 174 2/3 innings last season.