Boston Red Sox outfielder Alex Verdugo has been batting eighth in the lineup against a string of left-handed starters, but that hasn't stopped him from producing. On Friday, against the Baltimore Orioles, Verdugo with 3-for-4 with two runs scored. Verdugo has slashed .355/.418/.477 over his past 30 games, and while he has only two homers and one steal in that time, he's managed to score 19 runs and drive in 16 more. He's no fantasy superstar, but he's a very safe contributor across the board.

Boston Red Sox first baseman Bobby Dalbec homered yet again Friday night, continuing to turn around the narrative on his young career. He now has 23 homers on the season, as he went 1-for-3 with a walk to go with the solo shot against the Orioles. He's now homered 12 times in his last 30 games, with a .326/.415/.837 slash line in that span. Fantasy managers who had faith in Dalbec are being rewarded, as he's among the hottest hitters in the league right now and simply must be in lineups down the stretch of the fantasy season. He's also significantly raising his profile for 2022, as he must be in the conversation as a top-10 to top-15 first baseman.

Boston Red Sox outfielder Hunter Renfroe drove in three runs against the Baltimore Orioles Friday, going 1-for-4 with a double, a walk, and a run scored. Renfroe has just three hits in 27 at-bats over his last seven games, but he's been a consistent power threat all season with 28 homers and a .500 slugging percentage. Regularly slotting into the top half of the Boston batting order, he should be in fantasy lineups for the stretch run.

Boston Red Sox relief pitcher Matt Barnes was reinstated from the COVID list prior to Friday night's game against the Baltimore Orioles. He pitched the eighth inning, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out two batters in a scoreless inning. Barnes was removed from the closer role before testing positive for COVID, so fantasy managers should not expect him to receive save changes right away. He does not need to be held on rosters for the time being, but with the bullpen roles in flux, Barnes is worth keeping an eye on as he was extremely effective for the first half of the year.

Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Chris Sale came off the COVID list to start Friday's game against the Baltimore Orioles and he pitched very well, allowing just one run on two hits and no walks with one strikeout in five innings. With this win, Sale now has a 4-0 record to go with a 2.40 ERA and 1.23 WHIP in 30 innings across six starts this season. With Boston looking to maximize his participation with a playoff spot on the line, he should be an excellent fantasy play the rest of the season.

Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Hyun Jin Ryu struggled in his start on Friday, allowing five runs in two innings pitched in the club's 7-3 loss to the Twins. The veteran pitched into the third frame, but after a single, double, and back-to-back homers, he was ultimately yanked without recording an out. His line finished with him allowing five hits and a walk with two strikeouts in the brief 48-pitch effort as he seen his record drop to 13-9 on the year. Ryu has mostly struggled in the second half which has led to his ERA and WHIP climb to 4.34 and 1.21, respectively. He'll be a borderline start in his next matchup versus the Rays next week.

Kansas City Royals third baseman Adalberto Mondesi isn't starting on Friday. Kansas City will take on the Seattle Mariners and right-handed starter Chris Flexen but will do so with Mondesi on the bench. The infielder is hitting .266 with a .301 on-base percentage, six home runs, and nine stolen bases in 85 plate appearances this season. Hanser Alberto is starting at third base in his place and is batting ninth against the Mariners. In 235 plate appearances, Alberto is hitting .266 with a .286 on-base percentage, two home runs, and two stolen bases this season. You're probably better off looking elsewhere for streaming help at third base.

Tampa Bay Rays designated hitter Nelson Cruz isn't in the lineup on Friday. The Rays will take on the Detroit Tigers and right-handed starter Casey Mize but will do so with one of their best hitters on the bench. Cruz is hitting .273 with a .343 on-base percentage, 31 home runs, and three stolen bases in 539 plate appearances this season. Austin Meadows, who generally starts in the outfield, is hitting fourth and starting at designated hitter against Detroit. It'll be Randy Arozarena, Kevin Kiermaier, and Brett Phillips starting from left to right in the outfield on Friday. Phillips could be worth a look as a streaming option for managers in deeper leagues where on-base percentage is part of the scoring. In 265 plate appearances this season, the 27-year-old is batting .214 with a .312 on-base percentage, 12 home runs, and 14 stolen bases. Phillips is hitting seventh against the Tigers on Friday.

Tampa Bay Rays catcher Mike Zunino isn't in the starting lineup for Friday's game against right-hander Casey Mize and the Detroit Tigers. Zunino is batting .203 with a .291 on-base percentage and 31 home runs in 344 plate appearances this season. It'll be Francisco Mejia catching and batting ninth on Friday. Mejia is batting .251 with a .307 on-base percentage and six home runs in 245 plate appearances for the Rays this year. Fantasy managers are probably better off looking elsewhere for streaming help at catcher.

New York Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez is on the bench for Friday's game against the Cleveland Indians. Sanchez is batting .206 with a .311 on-base percentage and 21 home runs in 402 plate appearances this season. Kyle Higashioka will get the start instead against Cleveland's starter, right-hander Zach Plesac. Higashioka, who is hitting ninth on Friday, is batting .178 with a .251 on-base percentage and 10 home runs in 187 plate appearances this season. Fantasy managers in search of streaming help behind the plate are probably better off looking elsewhere.

New York Yankees first baseman Luke Voit isn't in the lineup on Friday for a matchup with the Cleveland Indians and right-hander Zach Plesac. Voit is batting .246 with a .332 on-base percentage and 10 home runs in 229 plate appearances this season. Instead, Anthony Rizzo starting at first base and batting second against Cleveland on Friday. Rizzo has now started at first base in six of New York's last seven games. Meanwhile, including Friday's contest, Voit has started just three of New York's last seven games. It's certainly not an ideal situation at this point in the season for fantasy managers who drafted Voit. The first baseman's playing time will be worth monitoring in the season's final weeks.

Oakland Athletics starting pitcher James Kaprielian will transition to a bullpen role with Daulton Jefferies making the start on Saturday versus the Angels, according to Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle. Kaprielian had a strong first half for Oakland, but he's hit a wall recently, pitching to a 6.51 ERA since July 27. The rookie right-hander had pitched more than double the innings he threw in both 2019 and 2020 so perhaps fatigue set in and a move to the bullpen could help Kaprielian as the A's battle for a Wild Card spot. Jefferies is an intriguing prospect, but he's made just one start this season and doesn't figure to go deep into the game on Saturday, making him a desperation streamer in the deepest of fantasy leagues. Kaprielian is droppable in redraft leagues.

Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Dietrich Enns (2-0) allowed one run on three hits and a walk while striking out three over four innings in Thursday's 5-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers. He earned his second win of the season. The 30-year-old followed opener Louis Head and threw four strong innings to pick up the win. Dietrich continues to deliver in September, owning a 0.82 ERA, 0.72 WHIP, and a 12:1 K: BB over 11 innings in 2021. The southpaw will likely follow an opener next week and can be used as a streamer in most leagues.

Tampa Bay Rays infielder Yandy Diaz went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and a walk during Thursday's 5-2 win over the Detroit Tigers. He smacked a leadoff home run in the bottom of the first inning to give the Rays a 1-0 lead. It was his 11th long ball of the season. The 30-year-old has now logged multi-hit efforts twice over his last five games. Diaz is slashing .255/.356/.382 with 11 home runs, 53 RBI, and 57 runs scored over 497 plate appearances in 2021. The Rays infielder remains a strong option in OBP formats and can be used as a streamer in most leagues.

Tampa Bay Rays catcher Mike Zunino went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run during Thursday's 5-2 win over the Detroit Tigers. He blasted a two-run shot in the sixth inning to extend the Rays lead 5-2. The 30-year-old has now homered in back-to-back games. Zunino is slashing .203/.291/.554 with 31 home runs, 59 RBI, and 58 runs scored across 344 plate appearances in 2021. The 2021 All-Star continues to be an elite source of power as four of his seven hits in September have been home runs. Zunino remains a strong starting option in most league formats.

Texas Rangers starting pitcher Kolby Allard missed his previous start due to a non-COVID related illness. The organization decided to have him piggyback right-hander Glenn Otto who started Thursday's game against the Houston Astros. Allard didn't fare well in his outing and allowed five earned runs, four walks, and registered four strikeouts in 3 2/3 innings. It's uncertain if the Rangers plan on moving Allard back to the rotation or doing more outings like this. Regardless, Allard isn't going to be a fantasy option down the stretch.

Texas Rangers starting pitcher Glenn Otto cruised through three innings during Thursday's game against the Houston Astros. It looked like Otto was going to have a bounce back game until the fourth inning. He allowed seven runs that inning and finished with seven hits allowed, four walks, and three strikeouts in 3 1/3 innings of work. Things didn't get better for Texas after that and they dropped this game 12-1. Otto has put together two straight horrendous performances. It's not going to get easier for him against the New York Yankees in his next matchup. Fantasy managers can go ahead and stay far away from him.

Los Angeles Angels infielder Jack Mayfield had a four-RBI game during Thursday's 9-3 win over the Chicago White Sox. He went 1-for-4 with a bases-loaded double, an RBI groundout, a run, and two strikeouts. Mayfield is slashing .202/.260/.384 with nine home runs and two stolen bases across 71 games thus far. He can be left alone in almost every league, especially during an ice-cold month of September in which he's posted a .487 OPS. At the most, Mayfield's a deep league streaming option against lefties, who he's slugging .423 against this year.

Baltimore Orioles outfielder Austin Hays made his one hit count in Thursday's 3-2 extra-innings win over the Yankees, going 1-for-5 with an RBI single to win the game and a strikeout. Hays came to the plate in the bottom of the 10th inning with one out and the bases loaded. With the infield in, he was able to chop a 3-1 offering through the left side of the infield to bring the winning run to the plate. The 26-year-old has had a fantastic September, slashing .293/.339/.690 with six home runs and 15 RBI. The O's upcoming matchups aren't the best, but Hays is a viable option as a spark plug for fantasy managers' lineups late in the season.

Baltimore Orioles first baseman/outfielder Ryan Mountcastle went 1-for-5 with a solo home run and two strikeouts in Thursday's 3-2 extra-innings win over the Yankees. Mountcastle demolished a sixth-inning Jordan Montgomery pitch over the center-field wall for his 29th HR of the season. The 24-year-old now holds the O's record for most HR by a rookie. He has ended up being a fantasy contributor after a slow start to the season and owns a .261/.311/.496 slash line with 81 RBI. It looks like Mountcastle will definitely be a fantasy asset down the stretch for this season and potentially for many more to come.