Manny Machado DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado (calf) is back in the starting lineup ahead of Sunday's game against the Atlanta Braves. Machado made an early exit on Saturday due to calf tightness, but he appears to be ready now. He'll cover third base and bat third against right-hander AJ Smith-Shawver. Machado started off the season with two hits, but has been hitless since then. Fantasy managers shouldn't be concerned about Machado considering he hit nearly 30 homers and knocked in over 100 runs last season. Fantasy managers can safely get Machado back in their lineups on Sunday.

San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado (calf) was forced to exit early during Saturday's game against the Atlanta Braves. Machado appears to have tweaked his calf while swinging the bat. As a precaution, Machado was removed from Saturday's game and Jose Iglesias replaced him at the hot corner. The expectation is that Machado will undergo further testing to determine the severity of the injury For now, fantasy managers should consider Machado as day-to-day, but no one should be shocked if he's forced to miss time. Fantasy managers should get an update on his status at some point this weekend.

San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado (back) is back at third base and is hitting cleanup on Tuesday for the split-squad Cactus League game against the division-rival San Francisco Giants. Machado was scratched from a spring training game a week ago due to some back tightness, but after resting up, he's feeling better and is ready to return to the field. It's a good sign he's also being allowed to play defense in his return, so Machado should be ready to go later this month for Opening Day, barring a setback with his back. Although he's on the wrong side of 32, Machado has been extremely consistent and has 30-plus home runs in seven of the last the last 10 full seasons. Although he hit just 29 bombs a year ago, he drove in 100-plus runs for the fourth time in his career and has at least 600 plate appearances in 10 of his 13 MLB seasons. Machado is RotoBaller's No. 6-ranked fantasy third baseman.