José Caballero DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Jose Caballero (foot) is returning to the starting lineup on Saturday afternoon when the Rays face the New York Mets. The 28-year-old fouled a ball of his foot on Thursday but received negative results on his X-rays. Fantasy managers should continue to monitor his status but seeing him return to the lineup quickly suggests this injury was not serious. Last season, the 28-year-old logged a career-high 139 contests with the Tampa Bay Rays. He held a .227/.283/.347 with 24 doubles and nine home runs. Caballero flashed elite speed as he swiped 44 bags, which were the most in the American League. However, with the Rays bringing Ha-Seong Kim (shoulder) in the offseason, Caballero may see a decrease in playing time and will only carry value in deeper AL-only formats.

Tampa Bay Rays manager Kevin Cash said that infielder Jose Caballero (foot), who suffered a bruised left foot in Thursday's Grapefruit League game against the Detroit Tigers, was "moving around much better" during a workout in camp on Friday and could return to a spring training contest on Saturday. Caballero fouled a ball off his left foot on Thursday and was removed as a precaution, and it sounds like he'll be just fine after X-rays came back negative. The Panamanian infielder led the league with 44 stolen bases and 16 times caught stealing in 2024 in his first year with Tampa, but his fantasy value is on the decline this year, mainly because he's likely ticketed for a utility infield role for the Rays now that prospect Junior Caminero will be an everyday player in 2025. Still, Caballero can be a late-round target for his speed in AL-only leagues.

The X-rays came back negative on Tampa Bay Rays infielder Jose Caballero (foot). Caballero was lifted from Thursday's Grapefruit League contest after fouling a ball off his left foot. However, the infielder was able to avoid a serious injury and should be viewed as day-to-day. Fantasy managers should expect the team to exercise caution with him and may opt to rest him for a few days. Last summer, the 28-year-old logged a career-high 138 games at the MLB level. Caballero held a .227/.283/.347 line with just nine home runs. However, he provided his fantasy value with his speed as he stole 44 bags, which was the most in the American League. Fantasy managers should expect Caballero to operate in a depth role this season as the Rays signed Ha-Seong Kim (elbow) to be the primary shortstop. However, given his speed and strong defensive play, he should still find himself in the starting lineup quite often.

Tampa Bay Rays infielder Jose Caballero (foot) fouled a ball off his foot in Thursday's Grapefruit League game against the Detroit Tigers and left the contest, according to the Tampa Bay Times' Marc Topkin. Caballero will surely go for testing to determine whether he's dealing with a serious injury, so stay tuned for more news later on Thursday. The 28-year-old native of Panama led the league with 44 stolen bases and was also caught a league-leading 16 times while slashing .227/.283/.347 with nine home runs, 44 RBI and 53 runs scored in 139 games and 483 plate appearances in his first season with the Rays. He's mainly attractive to fantasy managers for his positional versatility and his wheels on the basepaths. With Junior Caminero expected to be a regular starter in 2025, it's possible that Caballero becomes more of a utility infielder in 2025, which would obviously be a big hit to his fantasy value.

Tampa Bay Rays infielder Jose Caballero and outfielder Jonny DeLuca are both out of the starting lineup on Saturday at Tropicana Field against the division-rival Toronto Blue Jays. Taylor Walls will make the start at the 6 for Tampa and will hit ninth, while Jose Siri starts in center field and bats seventh against Blue Jays rookie right-hander Yariel Rodriguez. Caballero does lead the league with 44 stolen bases (and also 14 times caught stealing), but he has only nine home runs and 44 RBI on the year in 133 games in his first year in Tampa and has struggled at the plate of late. The 28-year-old Panama native has gone 11-for-49 (.225) in 18 games in September with no homers, two doubles, three RBI, seven steals and 17 strikeouts in 53 plate appearances. Walls and Siri have four combined at-bats against Rodriguez this year and have gone hitless.