Seattle Mariners right-handed pitcher Luis F. Castillo was optioned to Triple-A Tacoma following their contest on Wednesday afternoon against the Houston Astros. Castillo was given two starts during his brief stint in the big leagues but will now head back to the top level of the minor leagues to continue his development. On Wednesday, Castillo stumbled as he allowed six hits and four runs (three earned) with five walks across four innings of work. Castillo also logged four 2/3 innings in the major leagues last season and did not allow a run. The 30-year-old was initially promoted to provide depth in the rotation with George Kirby (shoulder) on the IL. Fantasy managers should monitor the Seattle rotation as they could promote Emerson Hancock to fill the spot in the rotation.

St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Willson Contreras is 5-for-49 with 22 strikeouts to begin the season, but manager Oliver Marmol has elected to keep him at the top of the lineup in the early going, usually in the two-hole. The Athletic's Katie Woo writes that Marmol is weighing the possibility of moving Contreras down, though, given his slow start. The skipper prefers to switch between left-handed and right-handed hitters as much as possible in the lineup to make it difficult for opposing managers to game plan. Nolan Arenado is planted in the cleanup spot, and there are no other right-handed batters the Cardinals can use at the top of the order to break up lefties Lars Nootbaar and Brendan Donovan. When catcher Ivan Herrera (knee) returns, he could be an option at No. 2. But until then, the Cardinals and fantasy managers are hoping Contreras can turn things around quickly at the plate.

Toronto Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk is being rested for Thursday's series finale at Fenway Park against the division-rival Boston Red Sox in the series finale. Tyler Heineman will catch right-hander Chris Bassitt and will bat eighth against Red Sox right-hander Walker Buehler. It shouldn't be surprising that Kirk is on the bench for this one after catching the entire 11-inning win over Boston on Wednesday night. The 26-year-old has gone 10-for-40 with a double, two RBI, three runs scored, no walks and six strikeouts in his first 10 games this year as Toronto's primary backstop. Fantasy managers setting DFS lineups should be able to do better than Heineman at catcher. The 33-year-old veteran does have six hits (one homer) in his first 14 at-bats this year, but he'll have little upside in the nine-hole. Heineman is hitless in just two career at-bats against Buehler.

Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is not in the team's starting lineup for Thursday's series finale against the division-rival Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. Will Wagner will make the start at first base and bat fifth against Red Sox right-hander Walker Buehler. This will be Guerrero's first day off of the 2025 season after he started the year going 15-for-52 (.288) with three doubles, four RBI, six walks and 10 strikeouts in 13 games played. While the 26-year-old has hit well, he still hasn't cleared the fences for his fantasy managers. That will hopefully happen this weekend in Baltimore against the division-rival Orioles. Until then, fantasy managers will need to move Vladdy to their benches on Thursday. Wagner has gotten off to an 8-for-30 start in 10 games with two doubles and two RBI for Toronto. He has never faced Buehler in his career.

Miami Marlins outfielder Jesus Sanchez (oblique) and right-hander Declan Cronin (hip) will start their minor-league rehab assignments with Triple-A Jacksonville on Thursday night, according to the team. Sanchez is finally ready to return to game action after suffering a strained left oblique in mid-March during spring training. If the 27-year-old doesn't suffer any setbacks with the Jumbo Shrimp, he could be activated from the injured list to make his 2025 debut at some point next week. When healthy, Sanchez should be Miami's starting right fielder and can be useful in mixed fantasy leagues due to his power/speed combination. When he makes contact, he hits the ball as hard as anyone in the league. However, Sanchez will need to hit the ball in the air more and strikeout out less in order to achieve his first 20-homer season in 2025.