Minnesota Twins third baseman Royce Lewis is absent from the team's starting lineup for Friday's series opener at Target Field against the visiting San Francisco Giants. Brooks Lee will man third base and bat cleanup against Giants right-hander Jordan Hicks. Lewis has gone 0-for-9 with a strikeout in his first three games of the 2025 season after being activated from the injured list on Tuesday due to a hamstring strain he suffered in spring training. The 25-year-old former first overall pick in 2017 has quickly developed an injury-prone label but has high-end power from the right side, making him valuable in all fantasy leagues. Lewis should be back for Game 2 of the series against San Fran on Saturday. Lee's .253/.309/.387 slash line doesn't say much, and he's gone 7-for-30 (.233) with three doubles and two RBI in seven games in May. He has never faced Hicks early in his MLB career.

Kansas City Royals outfielder Drew Waters will take a seat for Friday's series opener against the visiting Boston Red Sox at Kauffman Stadium. Waters has been a regular all across KC's outfield this year but will get a day to rest after starting each of the team's last five contests. Jonathan India is in left field and batting leadoff, Kyle Isbel is in center and hitting ninth, and Mark Canha is in right field and in the seven-hole against Red Sox right-hander Hunter Dobbins. The 26-year-old Waters is hitting a strong .286 (24-for-84) on the season in 25 games played, but his counting stats have been lacking for fantasy managers in deeper leagues. Waters is sitting on just one home run with eight RBI, 10 runs scored and three stolen bases. Nobody in KC's starting lineup has ever faced Dobbins, who will be making only his fourth big-league appearance.

Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager and outfielder Evan Carter are both out of Friday's series opener in Detroit against the Tigers and tough left-hander Tarik Skubal. Josh Smith is starting at shortstop and is hitting seventh, while Sam Haggerty is patrolling center field and batting leadoff. Fantasy managers should be on the lookout for more news on Seager, as he was also out in Thursday's series finale against the Boston Red Sox. This will be his second straight missed game. Smith is hitting over .300 on the year for Texas but is an easy DFS fade at the bottom of the lineup in a tough lefty-lefty matchup. Haggerty will be making his debut with the Rangers after going 1-for-15 in eight games for the Seattle Mariners in 2024. Even in the leadoff spot, he's not much to look at for DFS. Smith is 0-for-3 in his career against Skubal, while Haggerty is just 0-for-1.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have placed infielder Enmanuel Valdez (shoulder) on the 10-day injured list with left shoulder inflammation. The team did not specify when the 26-year-old suffered this injury. Over his last six contests, Valdez has held a .136/.136/.182 slash line with just one extra-base hit (a double). However, prior to this recent skid, Valdez was enjoying a solid start to the campaign, where he held a .232/.338/.420 slash line with three doubles, two triples, two home runs, and a 13:11 K:BB. During this 25-game stretch, he tallied 11 RBI and scored seven runs. Under the hood, he has generated a solid .340 xwOBA with a .264 xBA, which are both above the average marks. While he is sidelined, fantasy managers should expect Jared Triolo to see an uptick in playing time.

Cincinnati Reds outfielder Jake Fraley (calf) is starting in right field and batting eighth for the Reds in Friday's series opener against the hosting Houston Astros and right-hander Hunter Brown at Daikin Park. Fraley will return to the starting lineup for the first time since suffering a minor calf injury on Tuesday against the Atlanta Braves. The 29-year-old left-handed hitter hasn't really gotten going so far in 78 at-bats in 2025, hitting just .205/.319/.359 with three home runs, nine RBI, 12 runs scored and three stolen bases. He's gone 2-for-22 in his last 10 games, making him pretty unattractive in his return to the starting lineup for DFS purposes. Fraley has faced Brown just once in his career and has recorded a hit. When healthy, Fraley rests regularly against lefty pitchers, limiting his upside in deep-mixed and NL-only leagues.