New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge (abdomen, oblique) "should be good to go" for Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Pittsburgh Pirates following an off day on Tuesday, according to manager Aaron Boone. Judge has been dealing with an abdomen/oblique issue this spring while he also noted that he is still bothered by a toe injury he suffered when crashing into the outfield wall last season. The superstar hasn't seen much spring action his far, hitting only .143 without a homer across six appearances and 16 trips to the plate. He was a monster at the plate again in the 2023 season, hitting .267 with 37 home runs and a 1.019 OPS across just 106 games and 458 trips to the plate. When healthy, he is one of the very best assets fantasy baseball has to offer.

Minnesota Twins reliever Jhoan Duran (oblique) will begin the season on the injured list due to a moderate oblique strain, according to president of baseball operations Derek Falvey. The fireballer has endured a rough spring as he sports an 11.57 ERA with four strikeouts and 10 hits allowed across five appearances and 4 2/3 innings of work. He also sports a 2.36 WHIP, although he has not allowed a home run. However, the 26-year-old has been nothing short of stellar in his young big-league career, working to a tidy 2.15 ERA alongside a dynamite 25.3% K-BB% across 116 appearances through his first two seasons. He has averaged a whopping 101.3 mph on his four-seam fastball in that time and is one of the top closers in fantasy baseball despite what could be a minimum stay on the injured list to begin the season.

Free-agent right-hander Michael Lorenzen threw 70 pitches on Sunday, getting up and down four times while also hitting 94 to 96 mph with his fastball on the radar gun, according to a report viewed by The Athletic. The 32-year-old veteran remains without a team with Opening Day quickly approaching, despite the fact that he threw a no-hitter with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2023. If Lorenzen does sign with a team soon, he should be pretty stretched out despite not facing actual competition in spring training. Both the Chicago White Sox and New York Yankees have obvious needs in their starting rotations and have reportedly been considering signing Lorenzen. The former first-rounder of the Reds in 2013 out of Fullerton made his first career All-Star team in 2023 but struggled late in the year and was demoted to the bullpen in Philadelphia.

Los Angeles Dodgers two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani (elbow) has been cleared to start a throwing program later this week, six months after having his second elbow surgery. Dr. Neal ElAttrache, who performed Ohtani's surgery last Sept. 19, said that if Ohtani "goes along with the throwing program as we have it scheduled," he could begin throwing to hitters in late September. However, manager Dave Roberts reiterated that the team doesn't expect Ohtani to pitch until 2025. The skipper did acknowledge the possibility that the Dodgers could consider playing Ohtani in the field later this year if his arm has recovered enough. The 29-year-old Japanese superstar played a total of 8 1/3 innings in the outfield in his six seasons with the Angels (all in 2021), so it's unlikely we'll see him in the outfield much, if at all, later in 2024.

The Cleveland Guardians reassigned first base prospect Kyle Manzardo to minor-league camp on Monday. The team also reassigned catcher Bryan Lavastida and outfielder Petey Halpin. According to MLB Pipeline, Manzardo is the team's No. 2 prospect behind only outfielder Chase DeLauter. The 23-year-old will begin the year in the minors, but he should make his MLB debut at some point in 2023 after hitting .381/.458/.476 in 13 Cactus League games this spring. He projects to be the team's first baseman of the future, but he has struggled in the minors against left-handed pitching and is currently blocked at the cold corner in Cleveland by Josh Naylor. Despite the fact that Manzardo won't open the year on the Opening Day roster in the big leagues, he should be rostered in all dynasty/keeper leagues.