Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Gavin Stone appears to have a leg up on the fifth rotation spot after manager Dave Roberts announced that fellow starter Emmet Sheehan would start the season on the IL. Michael Grove could be in the mix as well. As for Stone, he pitched well in the minors up through the 2022 season, but in 2023 he had a 4.74 ERA and 17.2% K-BB% across 19 Triple-A starts, and wasn't particularly effective in his four MLB starts either. Nevertheless, there's some value in pitching for the Dodgers who should provide plenty of run support. Stone has made three spring appearances so far (two starts), allowing three hits, one earned run, and one walk while striking out four over five and two-thirds innings pitched (1.59 ERA).

Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Jameson Taillon was scratched from what would have been his spring debut on Saturday. The veteran pitcher experienced tightness in his lower back during his mound warmup. Manager Craig Counsell said that they will see how he feels Sunday before taking any next steps, but at this point, they're hoping it was just a spasm and they don't believe he'll need to go for imaging on his back. The former first-round draft pick had some very clean starts last season, but also had his share of blow-up games too, which led to a 4.84 ERA (4.34 SIERA), 1.28 WHIP, and 15.1% K-BB%. He's already going after the 300th pick in fantasy drafts, so any delay to his regular season would of course depress his value even further.

Chicago Cubs non-roster invitee and outfielder David Peralta is expected to make his spring debut with his new club on Tuesday. The 36-year-old had flexor tendon surgery in the offseason and signed a minor league deal with the club. He played his first several seasons in the majors with the Diamondbacks and the last year and a half with the Dodgers. He had a somewhat productive campaign in 2023 as a part-time player, but he's a long way from his best and most fantasy-relevant season of 2018 where he had a .368 WOBA and 130 wRC+.

After a season that fell short of expectations, the New York Mets are reportedly open to tinkering with the lineup, including potentially moving outfielder Brandon Nimmo down from the leadoff spot. The lefty had a bit of a power surge last season, smacking a career-high 24 home runs. If he can maintain that power he could provide some protection in the lineup for Pete Alonso, but it's uncertain who would fill the void at the top if they were to make the change, although they do have three intriguing options in Jeff McNeil, Francisco Lindor, and Starling Marte. The case could be made, however, that each of them has their own issues that render them not viable at the top of the order. Regardless, the former first-round draft pick should continue to be an on-base machine, with a career .380 OBP. Being at the top of the lineup would provide him more at-bats and would boost his run totals, but he'd presumably be in line for more RBI opportunities if moved down. He doesn't steal many bases, so the move might be a wash for fantasy purposes. As it stands, the 30-year-old is going off draft boards around pick 189, but RotoBaller ranks him higher, at 174 overall.

Houston Astros designated hitterYordan Alvarezwent 2-3 with a solo HR and two runs against the Washington Nationals on Saturday. The solo shot was his first homer of the spring. With the two-hit game on Saturday, Alvarez increased his batting average to .400 with a 1.071 OPS in 15 at-bats. He is expected to hit second in Houston's order this year after primarily hitting from the three spot in 2023. ATC projects Alvarez to be very productive yet again with 39 HR and 107 RBI with a .296/.397/.593 slash line. With an NFBC ADP of 14.7, Alvarez will be a crucial part of fantasy managers' rosters and is a surefire top-15 pick heading into 2024 fantasy drafts.