New York Mets designated hitter J.D. Martinez (body) will not join the team for their upcoming series against the Atlanta Braves, according to manager Carlos Mendoza. The veteran slugger is reportedly dealing with general body soreness and will get the next few days off. Martinez was signed late in the offseason and seems to be getting back into game shape, but the process is taking longer than expected. While there are some injury concerns, the 36-year-old should be able to provide solid power for fantasy teams whenever he makes his debut.

Kansas City Royals left-handed reliever William Smith was brought in for the ninth inning on Friday night with the club holding a 2-1 lead over the visiting Chicago White Sox, but the veteran southpaw was pulled after allowing a hit and walking one in favor of James McArthur, who ended up picking up his first save. Smith did pick up a strikeout and the hold, but it's not a good sign that manager Matt Quatraro gave him the quick hook after he allowed a double and a walk after his strikeout. The 34-year-old wasn't a high-end fantasy baseball closer to begin with, but Smith might already be losing his hold on the closer gig in Kansas City after the first week. Smith already has allowed six earned runs in three innings with a blown save and two losses, so fantasy managers scrounging for saves in the early going should consider picking McArthur up off the waiver wire.

Texas Rangers second baseman Marcus Semien had himself a day in Friday's 10-2 blowout win over the division-rival Houston Astros, getting a hit in all three of his at-bats and bashing a three-run home run during the sixth inning. Semien smacked one 395 feet to deep left center to make the score 10-0 and get the rout fully underway. It was the first homer of the campaign for the 33-year-old fantasy stalwart, who is now slashing .333/.471/.481 with eight RBI and six runs scored across 27 ABs thus far in 2024. Hitting atop one of the most dynamic offenses in baseball, Semien has led MLB in plate appearances in three of the past four years and should serve as head-to-head gem in all fantasy formats. Dating back to 2023, Semien is batting .393 with four bombs, nine RBI, and 14 runs scored in his last 14 games against the Astros and gets Houston three more times this series.

Houston Astros first baseman Jose Abreu has been dropped down in the lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Texas Rangers. The 37-year-old is regressing rapidly as he is having a horrible start to the season. So far, Abreu is slashing .105/.190/.105 with zero RBI and a 6/1 K/BB ratio in 21 plate appearances. On Friday, Abreu will fall to the seventh spot in the batting order against left-hander Cody Bradford. Fantasy managers should expect Abreu to pick it up somewhat, but it's unlikely that he holds steady fantasy value.

Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Kevin Kiermaier (back) was scratched from Friday's lineup against the New York Yankees with lower-back tightness. With Kiermaier now out, Daulton Varsho is moving to center field and will bat eighth, while Davis Schneider moves to left field and will hit fifth against Yankees right-hander Marcus Stroman. Cavan Biggio enters the lineup at second base and will hit sixth. The 33-year-old Kiermaier should be considered day-to-day for now, but fantasy managers shouldn't be surprised if the veteran outfielder misses more than just one day with this injury. On top of now being hurt, he has just one hit in his first 20 plate appearances in 2024 over six games with an RBI, stolen base and six strikeouts for Toronto.

New York Mets designated hitter J.D. Martinez will head to a minor-league affiliate, and there's a possibility that he joins the team in Atlanta for the start of a series against the division-rival Braves early next week. Martinez wasn't included on the team's Opening Day roster after signing with the club late in spring training. The 36-year-old veteran slugger stayed behind in extended spring training to get his swing right, but it appears he's getting close to making his debut with the team. To start the year, D.J. Stewart has been serving as the Mets' primary designated hitter, but Martinez will eventually take over those duties to give first baseman Pete Alonso more protection in the lineup. If you're looking to add a little more thump to your fantasy team and Martinez is available, pick him up and stash him now.

Texas Rangers second baseman Marcus Semien collected two hits, both singles, and an RBI in Wednesday's 4-1 win over the Rays. It was Semien's third multi-hit performance in six games, however, he went hitless in the other three games. The 33-year-old is now 6-for-24 (.250) on the young season, with five RBI, three runs scored, and a 5:3 BB:K. The 2x All-Star is still searching for his first home run of the season, but he does have one extra-base hit (a double) so far. It's still very early, but for what it's worth, Semien has an xBA of .318. Look for him to have fewer hitless performances in the future, and surely that first long ball is not far behind.

Cleveland Guardians designated hitter Jose Ramirez went 2-for-4 with two RBI, two runs scored, and a walk on Wednesday in an 8-0 win over the Mariners. Ramirez now has three multi-hit games in his first seven, hitting .273 (9-for-33) with six RBI and eight runs scored. Fantasy managers who invested in him as the first third baseman off the board are expecting 20-plus stolen bases from the veteran, however, and he's yet to record one so far in 2024. It's still early of course, and the Guardians are one of the few teams active Thursday, so we'll see if he gets on the board. He'll face the Twins' Pablo Lopez whom he's seen 13 times before, going 4-for-13 (.308) with a triple and no strikeouts in his career against the righty.

Former American League Cy Young winner Dallas Keuchel is signing a minor-league deal with the Seattle Mariners on Tuesday. The plan will be for the veteran left-hander to report to Triple-A Tacoma. The 36-year-old southpaw won the Cy Young award all the way back in 2015 with the Houston Astros and hasn't made an All-Star team since 2017. Last year in 10 appearances (six starts) for the Minnesota Twins, Keuchel went 2-1 with a 5.97 ERA (4.56 FIP) and 1.67 WHIP with 18 walks and 25 strikeouts in 37 2/3 innings pitched. There's no guarantee that he'll make it back to the big leagues in Seattle, so fantasy managers in all leagues can probably leave Keuchel to the waiver wire. In his 12 big-league seasons, Keuchel has fanned just 6.9 hitters per nine innings, too, so there will be very little upside if he's making starts for the M's in 2024.

Chicago White Sox catcher Max Stassi (hip) is starting his minor-league rehab assignment with Triple-A Charlotte on Tuesday night. Stassi is working his way back from a hip ailment that landed him on the injured to begin the 2024 regular season, but he could make his debut with the White Sox as early as this weekend if he looks good in the minors. The 33-year-old backstop missed all of last year due to a hip injury and a personal issue and was traded in the offseason from the Los Angeles Angels to the White Sox. When healthy, he'll serve as the team's backup to Martin Maldonado. Currently, Korey Lee is serving as Chicago's No. 2 to begin the year with Stassi on the IL. Unless Maldonado misses time with injury in 2024, Stassi is off the fantasy radar outside of two-catcher, AL-only leagues.

Los Angeles Dodgers relief pitcher Ryan Brasier will take the ball as the opener for Tuesday's game against the San Francisco Giants. The right-hander will get the starting nod in what appears to be a bullpen game for the Dodgers. The expectation is that Brasier will pitch one or two innings before handing it off to the rest of the pen. Ryan Yarbrough and Michael Grove figure to pitch the bulk of the innings on Tuesday. This is a situation to be avoided by fantasy managers.

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher James Paxton faced off against the San Francisco Giants for his first start as a Dodger on Monday. Paxton threw five scoreless innings, giving up four hits while showing spotty control with five walks in addition to five strikeouts. Despite his spotty control, he kept the Giants off the board while also earning himself the win as the Dodgers scored nine runs in the game. Paxton should have another start this week against the Chicago Cubs. Paxton is worth starting in all leagues, as he plays for a stacked Dodgers team and should pick up a lot of wins for fantasy squads on the cheap.

Houston Astros first baseman Jose Abreu (hand) is back in the starting lineup on Monday to take on right-hander Bowden Francis and the Toronto Blue Jays. The veteran missed Sunday's series finale against the New York Yankees with hand soreness after being plunked on the hand by a pitch on Saturday. It was a rough first series at the plate for the 37-year-old, as Abreu went hitless with one walk and three strikeouts across 13 plate appearances against the Yankees. It's a disappointing start after Abreu endured the worst season of his career at the plate in 2023, hitting just .237 with 18 home runs, albeit with 90 RBI, across 141 appearances in his first season with the Astros. His fantasy stock has plummeted, and age could be rearing its ugly head for the former White Sox star.

Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Kevin Gausman allowed one run on two hits across 4 1/3 innings of work during Sunday's 9-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. The right-hander struck out six batters without issuing a walk. Gausman was on a strict workload limit for this one, exiting the game after tossing 69 pitches. Despite that, the 33-year-old looked like his dominant self in his season debut. Gausman should be able to go deeper into the game during his next start against the New York Yankees. He remains a high-end fantasy starter for the rest of the season.

Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Kevin Kiermaier is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Tampa Bay Rays. The 33-year-old started the first three games of the season for Toronto, going 1-for-10 with one RBI and a walk. Kiermaier was battling a knee injury during Spring Training, but he seemed no worse for wear throughout the weekend. Daulton Varsho will slide over to centerfield in his absence while Davis Schneider will start in left. Kiermaier remains nothing more than a depth option in AL-Only or deep league formats.

Houston Astros first baseman Jose Abreu (hand) is out of the starting lineup on Sunday against the visiting New York Yankees after he was hit by a pitch on his hand on Saturday, according to manager Joe Espada. The skipper said that Abreu should be available off the bench on Sunday in the series finale. With Abreu down, Jon Singleton will get the start at first base and will bat sixth for the Astros against right-hander Clarke Schmidt. Abreu's injury doesn't sound all that serious, so consider him day-to-day for now. Fantasy managers will want to check back on Monday to see if he's back in the lineup for the series opener at home against the Toronto Blue Jays. Through the first couple of games in 2024, the 37-year-old slugger is hitless in 12 plate appearances, so perhaps the day off on Easter will do him some good.

Toronto Blue Jays manager John Schneider told reporters on Saturday that ace Kevin Gausman (shoulder) will start on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Rays. Gausman was slowed this spring by shoulder fatigue. Gausman was 12-9 with a 3.16 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, and 237 strikeouts in 2023. The 33-year-old veteran had a successful bullpen session on Friday and has been given the go-ahead to start on Sunday. This pushes Bowden Francis to Monday against the Houston Astros. If all goes well on Sunday for Gausman, he will face the New York Yankees next weekend. Gausman should be put back into all fantasy lineups as soon as possible, although he'll be pretty risky in DFS. Gausman hopes to be among the top-five starting pitchers again now that he is healthy.

Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Kevin Gausman (shoulder) threw a bullpen session at Tropicana Field on Friday. Manager John Schneider said on Thursday that there will likely be no decision on when Gausman makes his season debut until Saturday. The 33-year-old veteran will either make his 2024 debut on Sunday against the Tampa Bay Rays or on Monday for the first game of a series versus the Houston Astros. Neither matchup is particularly nice for Gausman to make his season debut after missing valuable time in spring training with right-shoulder fatigue. The Blue Jays ace looked excellent in an exhibition game on Monday, but we would still encourage DFS gamers to fade Gausman in his first start of 2024.

Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos is hitting in the seven-hole for Friday's season opener versus the Atlanta Braves and right-hander Spencer Strider. The veteran largely hit somewhere in the top four in the lineup for much of the 2023 season but was moved down into the seven-hole more frequently in September. Nonetheless, it was a bounce-back season for the 32-year-old who hit .272 with 29 home runs while setting career highs with 106 RBI and 11 stolen bases. It was the third time in his career he has reached the century mark in RBI while his previous career-high in steals was seven in the 2022 season. The increase in stolen base attempts sure boosts his fantasy value but fantasy managers should brace for a few less steals in 2024.

Houston Astros right-handed reliever Ryan Pressly picked up the loss in Thursday's 5-4 Opening Day defeat to the visiting New York Yankees. He entered in the seventh frame in a 4-4 tie and allowed an earned run on two hits (a leadoff double to Aaron Judge) while walking one and striking out one. The 35-year-old veteran is off to a bad start after losing a lot of his fantasy appeal in the offseason when the team signed left-hander Josh Hader to be their new closer. The former 11th-round selection by the Boston Red Sox in 2007 has made two All-Star teams in his 12-year MLB career and saved 31 games for the Astros in 2023 while posting a 3.58 ERA and 1.07 WHIP in 65 1/3 regular-season innings. Despite no longer being the closer in Houston, Pressly still has plenty of value in holds leagues.