San Francisco Giants first baseman Wilmer Flores (shoulder) is starting at first base and is batting fifth on Monday against the division-rival Los Angeles Dodgers and left-hander James Paxton. Flores was initially held out of the lineup after injuring his shoulder in the series finale against the San Diego Padres on Sunday, but the team's updated lineup has Flores in there. The 32-year-old Venezuelan veteran had a strong 2023 campaign in the Bay Area by hitting .284/.355/.509 with an .863 OPS, a career-high 23 home runs and 60 RBI in 126 games played and he's off to a 2-for-9 start with two RBI and three runs scored in the first four games of the 2024 season. Flores has just six career at-bats against Paxton and is searching for his first hit against the lefty.

San Francisco Giants left-hander Blake Snell will throw a simulated game at Dodger Stadium on Wednesday and then make his Giants debut next Monday, April 8, at home against the Washington Nationals, according to manager Bob Melvin. It will be a great matchup for last year's National League Cy Young winner in his first start of 2024. The 31-year-old two-time Cy Young winner signed with the Giants late in spring training, which is why he wasn't ready to be in the team's Opening Day starting rotation. He'll get going next week, though, and should be in starting fantasy lineups in all single-season leagues as a strong No. 2 starter with plenty of strikeout upside. Start him with confidence against the Nats.

San Francisco Giants outfielder Mike Yastrzemski is back from paternity leave on Monday but isn't in the starting lineup against the division-rival Los Angeles Dodgers. Yastrzemski was doing early hitting on the field with the team on Monday. Before going on paternity leave, the 33-year-old went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts on Opening Day last Thursday in the loss to the San Diego Padres. Yaz has had trouble staying healthy in the big leagues and is a strict platoon outfielder due to his struggles against lefties. He also hasn't hit for a very high average the last couple years, which really limits his fantasy appeal to NL-only leagues and in DFS in the right matchups. Yastrzemski hit .233/.330/.445 with 15 homers and 43 RBI in 106 games played in 2023.

Kansas City Royals infielder Michael Massey (back) is progressing well and is playing in simulated games in Arizona and is on track to go on a minor-league rehab assignment this week, according to manager Matt Quatraro. Massey started the 2024 season on the 10-day injured list due to lower-back tightness that he experienced at the end of spring training, but Massey should be able to make his debut for the Royals sooner than later as long as everything goes well on his rehab assignment. In his first full MLB season for the Royals in 2023, Massey slashed .229/.274/.381 with 15 home runs, 55 RBI, six stolen bases and 42 runs scored in 461 plate appearances. He'll be an option for fantasy managers in AL-only leagues when he returns to KC.

Miami Marlins left-hander Braxton Garrett (shoulder) is scheduled to throw three innings or 50 pitches at extended spring training on Tuesday. If Garrett comes out of that session without any setbacks, he could be ready to embark on a minor-league rehab assignment. He's trying to recover from a left-shoulder impingement since early in spring training, which has caused him to open the 2024 season on the injured list. If the 26-year-old southpaw avoids setbacks on his minor-league rehab assignment, he could make his season debut in Miami's starting rotation before the end of April. After going 9-7 with a 3.66 ERA and 1.15 WHIP with 29 walks and a career-high 156 strikeouts in 159 2/3 innings for the Fish last year, Garrett has appeal for rotation depth in deep-mixed fantasy leagues when he's healthy.