Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Reynaldo Lopez continued his impressive season by earning his fourth victory of the season on Thursday versus a tough Baltimore Orioles lineup. The right-hander earned his eighth quality start of the season by tossing six scoreless innings of two-hit ball. He also issued one walk in the process of striking out eight batters. Lopez has been one of the biggest success stories this season and his conversion back to a starting pitcher has been a big success thus far in 2024. As good as Lopez has been, managers should be aware that the 69 1/3 innings he has thrown this more is already more than he has tossed in any season since 2019, a season in which he threw 184 innings. As big of a success story that he's been this season, managers should consider if his arm will be able to hold up for a full season as he makes for a good sell-high candidate. Next up for Lopez will be a date against a favorable Detroit Tigers offense on Tuesday.

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Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Joe Ryan improved his record to 5-5 by defeating the Oakland Athletics on Thursday. Ryan tossed seven innings and allowed three hits, two runs, one walk and recorded five strikeouts. All of Ryan's runs came off a Tyler Soderstrom two-run homer in the top of the fourth inning. The right-hander has been putting together a strong season on the hill and remains a consistent option near the top of managers rotations. Ryan will carry a 3.24 ERA into his next start versus the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday. Managers shouldn't hesitate to start Ryan when it's his turn in the rotation.

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Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Brandon Pfaadt put together a quality start to earn his third victory of the season versus the Los Angeles Angels on Thursday evening. Pfaadt went six innings and allowed six hits, one run, and three walks. He also recorded eight strikeouts in the contest. Pfaadt has had a rollercoaster of a season as he struggled in April, but got back in track in May, only to start June off on a sour note before Thursday's start. When Pfaadt is going well, he offers managers a good source of strikeouts. Moving forward, Pfaadt will look to keep the momentum going when he squares off versus the Washington Nationals on the road in the favorable matchup.

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Chicago White Sox relief pitcher Tanner Banks earned his second save of the season in an extra-innings contest versus the Seattle Mariners. Banks came on in the bottom of the 10th inning to lock down the victory and sent Tyler Locklear and Josh Rojas to the bench with strikeouts before getting Luke Raley to pop-out to end the contest. Banks has appeared to be second in command behind Michael Kopech for the closer job, but regardless, Banks doesn't hold much value without that title and even so, the White Sox save chances are few and far between. He can safely remain on the waiver wire moving forward.

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In his first outing since returning from the injured list, New York Mets closer Edwin Diaz earned his second victory of the year. Diaz pitched the top of the ninth inning as the Mets were down 2-1 at the time and recorded a strikeout in what was otherwise a clean frame of work. The veteran would be awarded with the victory when outfielder J.D. Martinez hit a walk-off two-run home run off Tanner Scott in the bottom of the ninth inning. Diaz missed the previous 15 games with a shoulder impingement, but looked like his old self on Thursday. Moving forward, Diaz should remain one of the best closer options in the game.

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Miami Marlins outfielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and stolen base in Thursday's loss versus the division rival New York Mets. Chisholm's home run came in top of the seventh inning to give the Marlins a 2-0 lead at the time, but it would not be enough to secure a victory. Chisholm is hitting .254 with 10 homers, 33 RBI and 15 stolen bases on the season and most importantly has maintained his health this season by playing in 67 of 68 games. A healthy Chisholm has shown he can help across the board, but managers also may want to see what the trade market is like as he hasn't over 97 games since the 2021 campaign.

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Chicago White Sox first baseman Andrew Vaughn went 2-for-5 with a solo home run and two RBI in Thursday's victory versus the Seattle Mariners. The homer was his second in three games for the first baseman that has been swinging a hot bat of late. Vaughn was pretty much invisible for much of the season, but he has been on fire of late with 15 hits over his last 41 at-bats to go along with four homers and six RBI. On the season, Vaughn is now hitting .227 with eight homers and 25 RBI. Vaughn makes for a fine add for managers looking for a hot bat to insert into their lineup, but long-term, Vaughn doesn't hold much value.

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Minnesota Twins shortstop prospect Brooks Lee (back) went 3-for-6 with a home run for Triple-A St. Paul on Thursday. In his sixth game back from injury, the 23-year-old launched his first homer of the season. In those six games with St. Paul, Lee is hitting .333 with a .907 OPS and four RBI. The No. 2 overall prospect for the Twins told MLB.com that his game is about hitting for average, but the home run is a welcome sign. Between three levels last year, Lee hit 16 homers with 84 RBI and a .275 batting average. If Lee can demonstrate he is back to full health at Triple-A, a promotion could be in the cards at some point this season. His plus-hit tool should play at the big-league level, making him a high-priority add if and when he does get the call.

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Texas Rangers starting pitcher Tyler Mahle (elbow) threw 20 pitches off the mound on Wednesday. Mahle, 29, underwent Tommy John surgery last season as a member of the Minnesota Twins before signing with the Rangers this offseason. Mahle still has a long way to go, but it Wednesday was a big step forward for the right-hander in what should be a lengthy recovery. Mahle doesn't have a clear timetable for his eventual return, but he is unlikely to help managers much this season and should be a name for managers to remind themselves of in 2025 drafts.

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Seattle Mariners first baseman Tyler Locklear went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Thursday's extra-inning loss versus the Chicago White Sox. The home run would be the first of Locklear's big-league career. Locklear got the call on June 9 to replace injured first baseman Ty France (heel) and has started four of five games in that time. Manager Scott Servais said that Locklear was called up to play and he should continue to see regular starts with France sidelined. France is expected to return next week, but Locklear could keep a spot on the roster with a good showing. For now, Locklear is a dart throw in deeper mixed leagues and it will be worth monitoring his playing time when France returns.

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St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado (hand) is back at third base and is batting cleanup for the Cardinals for the series opener on Friday against the division-rival Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field in a matinee affair. Arenado was hit by a pitch on Thursday, but X-rays came back negative, and he won't miss any time at all. The 33-year-old veteran wants to get right back in there with the way he's been swinging the bat lately. In the last five games, Arenado has gone 8-for-20 (.400) with two doubles and two RBI after mostly underwhelming to begin the 2024 campaign. He's slashing .260/.315/.380 overall with six homers and 31 RBI in 250 at-bats. Fantasy managers will want to get him back in their starting lineups this weekend. Arenado has never faced Cubs left-hander Jordan Wicks in his career.

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New York Yankees outfield prospect Everson Pereira (elbow) will undergo internal brace surgery, per Andy Martino of SNY. Pereira will undergo a similar procedure that fellow prospect Jasson Dominguez had done last fall. This unfortunate news will end Pereira's 2024 season quite early, and he should be expected to return early in the 2025 campaign as this operation requires a much shorter recovery than Tommy John surgery would need. The 23-year-old made his major league debut last season and held a .151/.233/.194 slash line and posted a .265/.346/.512 line through 40 games at Triple-A this season. MLB Pipeline ranks the outfielder as the number five prospect in the Yankee system, and he should contend for a spot on the Opening Day Roster next spring.

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White Sox's SP Garrett Crochet recorded 13 strikeouts in 7 innings in a 3-2 win over Seattle on Thursday, Jun. 13.

Tampa Bay's SP Taj Bradley recorded 11 strikeouts in 7 innings with the win in a 3-2 win over the Cubs on Thursday, Jun. 13.

Diamondbacks' CF Joc Pederson had five RBIs going 2-for-4 with a home run in a 11-1 win over the Angels on Thursday, Jun. 13.

Baltimore Orioles starting pitcher Cade Povich bounced back in a big way in Wednesday's win over the visiting Atlanta Braves, throwing six scoreless innings with six strikeouts without factoring into the decision. After busting for fantasy managers with six runs allowed in his first big-league start on Thursday against the Toronto Blue Jays, Povich looked more the part of a top prospect with Wednesday's effort against a struggling, but still dangerous lineup. With the O's seemingly running with a six-man rotation at the moment, the 24-year-old left-hander tentatively projects to toe the rubber during next Wednesday's showdown on the road against the division-rival New York Yankees. Despite the bounce-back showing, Povich would still be hard to trust in the Bronx.

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Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Trea Turner (hamstring) ran the bases before Wednesday's game against the Boston Red Sox, which is one of the last major hurdles in his rehab program. Turner still needs to test out a few other aspects of baserunning, which he will do over the next few days. When asked if Turner is targeting a return during the club's upcoming homestand, manager Rob Thomson said: "I think so, yeah. And if it's sooner than that, that's great." This narrows down Turner's return timeline from a strained left hamstring, as it sounds like he'll either be ready as early as this weekend against the Baltimore Orioles or early next week when the Phillies return home for Monday's series opener against the San Diego Padres. The 30-year-old two-time All-star was returning early-round fantasy numbers before going down, batting .343 (47-for-137) with two home runs, nine RBI, 27 runs scored, and 10 stolen bases over 33 games.

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St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Sonny Gray generated a solid outing in Wednesday's victory over the division-rival Pittsburgh Pirates, posting a quality start in his eighth win of the season. Gray fanned nine Pirates over seven innings of one-run ball on Wednesday, and it was the second time he lasted at least seven frames this year. The 34-year-old star right-hander has been his usual reliable self during his debut season in St. Louis, taking a 3.01 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, and 91:20 K:BB over 68 2/3 innings for the Cardinals into his next scheduled start on the road against the last-place Miami Marlins on Monday. Fantasy managers who got a bit of an injury discount back when he was hurt during draft season have to be loving the returns during the first half of the year, with Gray striking out batters at the highest clip of his career while keeping his control intact.

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Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Bryce Miller dominated the visiting Chicago White Sox on Wednesday, fanning eight over seven two-hit innings for a no-decision. The M's may not have provided enough run support for their starter to grab the win in Wednesday's walk-off triumph, but that doesn't change how good Miller was in this one. The 25-year-old former top prospect will bring a rock-solid 3.48 ERA and 0.98 WHIP with 80 strikeouts and 24 walks over 82 2/3 innings for Seattle into his next slated appearance against the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field on Monday. Miller has the potential to develop into a higher-end fantasy asset over time, but he needs to keep the hard contact down more consistently to reach the next level.

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Tampa Bay Rays shortstop prospect Carson Williams (hand, wrist) left Wednesday's game for Double-A Montgomery in the second inning. Williams was hit on the right hand/wrist earlier in the contest and initially remained in the ballgame before being yanked. There is currently no update on the extent of the injury, but more should be known on Thursday. Per MLB Pipeline, Williams is the Rays' No. 2 prospect, and he has backed that up by hitting .295 with 10 homers, 27 RBI and 15 stolen bases in 49 games. At age 20, the Rays are in no rush to promote Williams, but pending his health, he could see a promotion to Triple-A Durham this summer with a potential big-league debut on tap for the 2025 campaign. He remains a strong hold in dynasty leagues moving forward and is a name for redraft managers to keep in mind for the future.

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