Texas Rangers outfielder Evan Carter, first baseman Jared Walsh and infielder Josh Smith are all starting on the bench on Thursday against the visiting Oakland Athletics and left-hander JP Sears. Carter is by far the biggest fantasy name of the trio. The 21-year-old youngster will take his second game off of the season. After really impressing in his first 23 regular-season games for the Rangers before helping them win the World Series last fall, Carter has been sluggish at the plate early on in 2024, going 7-for-37 (.189) with a home run, three RBI, and a steal. The good news is he's walked (nine times) more than he's struck out (six times) in his first 11 games. Rookie Wyatt Langford is in left and hitting third, Ezequiel Duran is at first and batting sixth, and Davis Wendzel is at third and hitting seventh for Texas on Thursday against Sears.

Houston Astros first baseman Jose Abreu and outfielders Chas McCormick and Jake Meyers are all sitting out on Thursday against the Kansas City Royals in the series finale. Jon Singleton is at first base and batting sixth, Mauricio Dubon is in center field and batting ninth, and Yainer Diaz is serving as the designated hitter and hitting fifth in the order versus Royals right-hander Brady Singer. Just like last year, the 37-year-old Abreu has been ice-cold offensively in the early going for the 'Stros, going 3-for-37 (.081) with no home runs, one RBI and 13 strikeouts in his first 41 plate appearances. He could use a day off. If the veteran first baseman continues to struggle, Houston could give him more frequent days on the bench. None of Singleton, Dubon or Diaz have ever faced Singer in their careers.

The Oakland Athletics announced on Thursday that they placed outfielder Brent Rooker (abdominal) on the 10-day injured list (retroactive to April 8) and selected infielder/outfielder Max Schuemann from Triple-A Las Vegas in a corresponding move. The team also moved right-hander Luis Medina (knee) to the 60-day injured list. Rooker is dealing with a costochondral cartilage injury in his abdomen after leaving Sunday's game early. It's unclear if the 29-year-old will be ready to return to the A's when he's eligible. After his first All-Star selection in 2023, Rooker is off to a slow start this year with a .200 average (6-for-30), but he does have two homers and five RBI in eight games. Until Rooker is able to return, Tyler Nevin figures to benefit from more playing time in Oakland, either in the outfield or at first base.

Arizona Diamondbacks shortstop Blaze Alexander went 2-for-2 with his second home run of the season in Wednesday's 5-3 win over the Rockies and also drew a walk. The 24-year-old has hit safely in four straight games now and is showing well at the plate in his debut, going 10-for-29 (.345) with two home runs, four RBI, five runs scored, one stolen base, and a 4:9 BB:K in 33 plate appearances. The youngster is filling in for injured Geraldo Perdomo, who is expected back in about a month, but Alexander provides a little more pop than Perdomo. If he continues to hit well it might be hard to get him out of the lineup when Perdomo returns, but he could potentially DH as well. Alexander is also eligible at second base in Yahoo leagues which gives managers additional flexibility.

Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Christian Yelich hit his fifth home run of the season on Wednesday in a 7-2 win over the Reds. Yelich got his first start at designated hitter this season in the game, and the home run was his only hit of the day, going 1-for-4 with two RBI, a run scored, and a walk. Yelich is coming off probably his best statistical season since 2019, and looking to follow that up with another strong showing in 2024. His five home runs are one off of the league lead while hitting .316 with 11 RBI, seven runs scored, and two stolen bases. Expect the former MVP and 2x All-Star to continue to produce across multiple categories and provide fantasy managers a safe floor throughout the season.