Chicago Cubs outfield prospect Kevin Alcantara went 1-for-4 with a three-run homer in a 6-5 loss against Triple-A St. Paul. Alcantara had been struggling a tad since the calendar flipped to August, with three hits in 16 at-bats to go with seven strikeouts, but belted a homer off left-handed starter Kendry Rojas on Thursday to break the slight cold streak. There has been a noticeable difference in his performance against left-handed pitching compared to right-handers, with a 1.007 OPS against lefties and a .732 OPS against righties. The sample is much smaller, with only 76 plate appearances against southpaws and 231 against righties, but he's seen them quite well this year. The 6'6" outfielder has some swing and miss flaws with a strikeout rate north of 30 percent, but has also flashed an intriguing power and speed skillset with 14 homers and nine steals on the year.

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Miami Marlins left-handed pitching prospect Robby Snelling allowed five hits and a walk while striking out 11 across six scoreless innings as he picked up the win against Triple-A Nashville. Snelling mowed through hitters with his fastball and curveball combo in Thursday's outing, generating 22 whiffs in total on 50 swings. The 21-year-old tied his season high in punchouts and has struck out a whopping 29 batters over his last three starts in 18.2 innings. Coming to Miami in the Tanner Scott deal at last year's trade deadline, Snelling has been much better this season after posting a 5.15 ERA across Double-A and Triple-A in 2024. He pitched most of 2025 at Double-A before being promoted on July 10. For the season, he owns a 3.06 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, and a 119:27 K:BB ratio in 100 innings between the two levels.

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New York Mets right-handed pitching prospect Brandon Sproat picked up the win against Triple-A Charlotte, allowing three runs on three hits and two walks while striking out four in six innings. Sproat wasn't quite as dominant in this outing as he'd been previously, but still limited damage effectively and pitched well enough to earn the win. It's been an incredible stretch for the right-hander dating back to June 28, allowing only six runs (five earned) in that span, which comes out to a 1.15 ERA to go with 43 strikeouts in 39 innings. Leading up to that point, it had been a real struggle for Sproat as he held a 5.95 ERA and a 43:32 K:BB ratio in 62 innings. The 24-year-old has flipped his season around and will look to finish out the season on a high note.

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St. Louis Cardinals left-handed pitching prospect Quinn Mathews allowed only two hits and a walk while striking out nine across seven scoreless frames on Thursday against Triple-A Durham. This dominant outing was the lefty's longest start of the season, and he matched his season high for strikeouts. He generated 21 whiffs on 50 swings, with his changeup doing a lot of heavy lifting, accounting for 13 of them. Mathews doesn't throw very hard, and the walks have been an issue for him this year. His command will be an area to monitor as he progresses. It's been a mixed season overall for the 24-year-old, holding a 3.63 ERA, 1.58 WHIP, and a 72:50 K:BB ratio in 62 innings at Triple-A.

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Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Bryce Miller (elbow) completed his second rehab start with Triple-A Tacoma on Thursday, allowing four runs on four hits and two walks with five strikeouts in 3 innings, reports Tim Booth of The Seattle Times. He threw 66 pitches with 47 strikes. Most of the damage came from three home runs, and this obviously wasn't the most impressive rehab performance. Still, it's encouraging to see him toss 66 healthy pitches, and his fastball velocity was completely back to normal, with a 95.9 mph average on his four-seamer. The 26-year-old could potentially make his next start in the majors, however, Seattle may feel he needs one more rehab start to get back up to speed.

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Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Bryan Reynolds went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and a walk in Thursday's 7-0 win over the Reds. This ended a massive power drought for the 30-year-old, who hadn't homered since June 29. He's been one of the biggest disappointments in fantasy this season, slashing just .239/.298/.382 with 11 home runs, 54 RBI, and 42 runs. While his expected batting average of .273 and expected slugging percentage of .476 suggest that he is getting unlucky, he's running out of time to turn his season around. The veteran does have a history of going on extended hot and cold streaks that can last months at a time, so maybe this is the start of what will be a great August.

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Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Esteury Ruiz was demoted to Triple-A on Thursday. He'll rejoin the Oklahoma City Comets after spending a little over a month in the big leagues, where he slashed .190/.261/.333 with one home run, two RBI, two runs, and four steals in 23 plate appearances. He very rarely played full games, and he hadn't started a game since July 29. While the 26-year-old does possess game-changing speed, he hasn't been able to hit enough to earn a spot in the majors. The Dodgers are expected to call up prospect Justin Dean to take his place on the roster.

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Atlanta Braves catcher Drake Baldwin went 3-for-5 with two home runs and five RBI in Thursday's 8-6 win over the Marlins. These were his first two home runs since July 9th, but he has still been effective over the past month overall. He is slashing .287/.356/.484 with 13 home runs, 46 RBI, and 29 runs in 281 plate appearances on the season. He does sit against lefties oftentimes, but Atlanta has shown they are willing to start both Baldwin and fellow backstop Sean Murphy against righties, with Marcell Ozuna becoming a part-time player as a side effect. The 24-year-old is the future at catcher for the Braves and is hitting well enough to be considered a top-12 fantasy catcher, despite the platoon.

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Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes turned in his latest standout performance in a 7-0 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Thursday. Despite allowing a career-worst seven hits, Skenes tossed six scoreless innings with eight strikeouts against no walks to improve to 7-8 on the season. The 23-year-old right-hander has now held the opposition without an earned run in a jaw-dropping 10 of 24 starts in 2025. His 1.94 ERA leads the majors, while he ranks third in innings (144) and WHIP (.92), and has posted 162 strikeouts against 34 walks. The NL Cy Young hopeful will make his next start against the division-rival Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday. Skenes has faced them twice this season with mixed results. He held the Brewers to one earned run over six innings on May 23, but they got to him for four earned runs in four frames on June 25.

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Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Alek Manoah (elbow) threw three innings in his first Double-A rehab start on Thursday. Manoah allowed two earned runs on five hits with three walks and two strikes on 64 pitches (36 starts). The results weren't great, but it's a notable step forward for the former All-Star as he continues in his rehab from elbow surgery. He went under the knife in June 2024 after making just five appearances a season ago and hasn't pitched in the bigs since. The Jays are hopeful that Manoah will make it back later this month, but barring injuries, it seems unlikely the first-place club will insert him into the rotation upon his return. Toronto has received good production from the starting quintet of Jose Berrios, Kevin Gausman, Max Scherzer, Chris Bassitt, and Eric Lauer.

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The Tampa Bay Rays will place outfielder Jonny DeLuca (hamstring) on the 10-day injured list on Friday with a left-hamstring issue, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports. DeLuca suffered the injury in a 5-4 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday and had to leave early after going 1-for-3 with a triple. He'll now head to the IL for the second time this year after missing over three months with a strained right shoulder. The 27-year-old speedster has appeared in just 20 games this season, but he has hit an effective .333/.356/.456 with four RBI, five runs scored, and six stolen bases in 59 plate appearances. The Rays could call up outfielder Tristan Peters or Everson Pereira from Triple-A Durham to take DeLuca's roster spot, according to Topkin.

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Seattle Mariners first baseman Josh Naylor (shoulder) left Thursday's 4-3 win over the Chicago White Sox with shoulder soreness and is considered day-to-day, manager Dan Wilson told reporters. The Mariners pulled Naylor after he grounded out in the bottom of the third inning, replacing him at first base with Donovan Solano. Naylor ended the game 0-for-2, but he has been highly productive since joining the Mariners in a trade with the Arizona Diamondbacks on July 24. In 13 games since then, Naylor has gone 12-for-46 (.260) with three homers, six RBI, eight runs scored, and a surprising 10 stolen bases. The 28-year-old now has his first 20-steal season (21) and has slashed a solid .289/.355/.451 with 14 HRs, 65 RBI, and 57 runs over 445 plate appearances. Fantasy managers should check back Friday to see if he's in the lineup to open a series against the Tampa Bay Rays.

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Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Jose Alvarado is scheduled to begin a minor league rehab assignment with Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Thursday. Alvarado has been out since the middle of May due to an 80-game suspension for breaking the performance-enhancing substance policy. He's currently eligible to return on August 19, so he'll begin ramping up in the minor leagues. Alvarado has a 2.70 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, and a 25/4 K/BB ratio with seven saves in 20 appearances with the Phillies this season. He was splitting up the closing duties with Jordan Romano before getting suspended. Now, Alvarado is basically useless in fantasy formats with the Phillies adding Jhoan Duran at the trade deadline. Fantasy managers shouldn't bother adding Alvarado.

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Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Jose Urquidy (elbow) is scheduled to take the mound for a rehab start with Single-A Lakeland on Thursday. Urquidy threw a scoreless inning during his first rehab outing on Sunday. He figures to see a slightly larger workload this time around. If everything goes well, Urquidy should continue to ramp up his activities. The right-hander is working his way back from Tommy John surgery from last year. The hope is that he can contribute to the Tigers rotation at some point before the end of the regular season. He's not someone worth stashing in fantasy leagues right now.

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Atlanta Braves catcher Sean Murphy is out of the starting lineup ahead of Thursday's game against the Miami Marlins. This appears to be a routine rest day for Murphy who has started in four straight games. During that span, Murphy only has one hit, so he could use a rest day to get himself back on track. In his absence, Drake Baldwin will do the catching with Marcell Ozuna taking over the designated hitter spot on Thursday. Fantasy managers should adjust their lineups accordingly ahead of first pitch.

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Cincinnati Reds catcher Tyler Stephenson is out of the starting lineup ahead of Thursday's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. This appears to be a routine rest day for Stephenson who has been in a mini slump lately. Over the last three games, Stephenson is 1-for-9 at the plate with one home run, one RBI, and two walks. Stephenson has played quite a bit lately, so he deserves a rest day. Jose Trevino will take over the catching duties and bat eighth versus right-hander Paul Skenes on Thursday.

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Atlanta Braves catcher Sean Murphy is out of the starting lineup ahead of Thursday's game against the Miami Marlins. This appears to be a routine rest day for Murphy who has started in four straight games. During that span, Murphy only has one hit, so he could use a rest day to get himself back on track. In his absence, Drake Baldwin will do the catching with Marcell Ozuna taking over the designated hitter spot on Thursday. Fantasy managers should adjust their lineups accordingly ahead of first pitch.

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Seattle Mariners first baseman Josh Naylor (undisclosed) was forced to make an early exit from Thursday's game against the Chicago White Sox. Naylor looked uncomfortable during his at-bat in the third inning and appeared to be grabbing his side. He grounded out to end the inning and was removed from the contest. Donovan Solano took over first base when the Mariners took the field during the next half inning. Naylor finished this game 0-for-2 at the plate. The expectation is that Naylor will undergo further examination to determine the severity of the issue. It's not exactly clear what's going on right now, so fantasy managers should check back after the game.

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Athletics left-hander Jacob Lopez was at the top of his game in the team's 6-0 shutout win over the hosting Washington Nationals on Thursday in a matinee game in D.C. Lopez didn't allow a run in 7 2/3 innings while allowing only three hits, walking none and striking out a season-high 10 batters. The 27-year-old southpaw has been up and down in his first year with the A's, but he's been downright fantastic of late, throwing 17 straight scoreless innings in his last three starts. Before that, though, Lopez had an ERA over 7.00. With the dominant outing on Thursday against Washington, Lopez has his season ERA down to 3.59 on the year in 18 appearances (14 starts) while striking out 94 and walking 30 in 77 2/3 innings pitched. For the strikeout upside alone, he's worth starting again in deeper leagues his next time out, which is scheduled to come against the Rays.

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Atlanta Braves left-hander Chris Sale (ribs) threw a successful 30-pitch simulated game on Thursday and didn't have any issues, and if he feels good on Friday, the next step will be a minor-league rehab assignment, according to David O'Brien of The Athletic. Barring a setback once Sale begins throwing in minor-league games, the 36-year-old veteran southpaw should be ready to return from the 60-day injured list on Aug. 19. He is recovering from a fractured left rib cage that has kept him sidelined since the middle of June. Fantasy managers should be stashing Sale in an IL spot in all leagues in the meantime. Before getting hurt, the former first-rounder had gone 5-4 with a 2.52 ERA (2.69 FIP) and 1.16 WHIP with 114 strikeouts and 26 walks in 89 1/3 innings over his 15 starts in his 15th big-league season. Injuries continue to be an issue, but Sale has been strong when he's been available.

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