Colorado Rockies shortstop Ezequiel Tovar (hip) took ground balls and hit on the field at Coors Field on Wednesday before the team's contest against the visiting Detroit Tigers. After progressing slowly from his left-hip contusion, Tovar is now doing baseball activities on the field and appears to be making progress. A short minor-league rehab assignment could be on tap soon, so it's possible that the 27-year-old infielder will be ready to return to the big-league roster by mid-May. Until that happens, the Rockies will continue to move forward with a combination of Kyle Farmer and Alan Trejo manning the shortstop position in Denver. Tovar is one of the last-place Rockies' better players, but the Venezuelan infielder was hitting just .212/.257/.303 with a rough .560 OPS and no home runs in his first 66 at-bats for the team before injuring his hip.

Chicago Cubs closer Ryan Pressly faced eight hitters without recording an out and allowed nine runs (eight earned) in the extra-inning loss to the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday night. Pressly had his right knee drained on April 22, which briefly limited his availability. And in recent weeks, the Cubs have used the 36-year-old sparingly, as he's pitched just twice since April 27. "Everything's fine," Pressly said. "Body felt great. Like I said, didn't do my job tonight. Everybody else did." After his poor performance on Tuesday, he has a 7.62 ERA, 1.92 WHIP, five strikeouts and four saves in 13 innings in 2025. Pressly has struck out only five of the 62 batters he's faced so far, which should have fantasy managers plenty worried about his ability to retain the ninth-inning job all year. The Athletic's Patrick Mooney mentions Porter Hodge as a late-inning reliever with more classic swing-and-miss stuff.

The New York Mets signed free-agent left-hander Colin Poche to a minor-league deal on Wednesday. Poche will report to Triple-A Syracuse and give the Mets some left-handed relief depth after they lost veteran A.J. Minter (lat) for the rest of the season. The Washington Nationals cut the 31-year-old veteran southpaw after he allowed 12 runs (11 earned) on 10 hits (one homer) while walking 12 and striking out 10 in just 8 1/3 relief innings in 13 appearances this year. Poche missed 2020 and 2021 due to injury but was much better the last three years with the Tampa Bay Rays, sporting a 3.27 ERA (4.16 FIP), A 1.13 WHIP, 10 saves, 158 strikeouts and 59 walks over 156 2/3 relief frames. A bounce-back is possible as he remains in the National League East, but Poche is off the fantasy radar for now.

Cincinnati Reds right-hander Hunter Greene (groin) left his start early on Wednesday against the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park due to a right-groin injury, according to The Cincinnati Enquirer's Charlie Goldsmith. It's a shame that Greene had to leave early, as he already had thrown three shutout innings with no walks and six strikeouts. Fantasy managers should check back for an update after the Reds put Greene through some post-game tests. For now, the 25-year-old's next start will be in question in what would be an excellent matchup next Tuesday against the Chicago White Sox, and he could be forced to the 15-day injured list as well. The former first-rounder has been a must-start in fantasy in 2025, as he entered Wednesday's start with a 4-2 record, 2.53 ERA, 0.82 WHIP and 55 strikeouts in 42 2/3 innings over seven starts.UPDATE: Greene will undergo an MRI exam on Thursday morning before the team decides what to do next. Both Greene and the Reds have suggested it might not be severe. However, the pitcher said, "I don't know. I'm not a doctor."

Chicago Cubs right-handed reliever Ryan Brasier (groin) is scheduled to start his minor-league rehab outing with an appearance for Triple-A Iowa on Wednesday night. Brasier allowed one run in his lone inning of work in Tokyo, Japan, against the Los Angeles Dodgers to kick off the 2025 regular season, but he hasn't pitched since due to a strained left groin. The 37-year-old veteran is now ready to resume pitching in games, though, so he should be able to return to Chicago's less-than-stellar bullpen by mid-May. Brasier missed time due to a calf injury last year but was mostly solid when he was on the mound for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 29 outings (four starts), posting a 3.54 ERA and 0.96 WHIP with 25 strikeouts and only five walks in 28 innings. Because he's not a big strikeout guy, he's unlikely to become a closing option for the Cubs later this season.