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Angels signed RHP Hector Neris to a minor league deal.
Neris elected free agency after Atlanta designated him for assignment, and has a new home a couple weeks later. The 35-year-old will likely need to pitch in a few games with Triple-A Salt Lake, but it’s not hard to see him being an option in the Angels’ bullpen in the coming weeks. Not a fantasy-relevant one, but an option nevertheless.
Will Smith is not in the Dodgers’ starting lineup for Thursday night’s tilt against the Athletics.
It appears to be nothing more than a routine night off for the hard-hitting backstop. Dalton Rushing will start behind the plate in his place and will bat seventh against A’s right-hander Osvaldo Bido on Thursday evening.
ESPN’s Jordan Raanan expects Jaxson Dart to sit his entire rookie year if “all goes well.”
The problem with that otherwise sensible opinion, of course, is that it is extremely unlikely “all goes well” with Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston on a roster that found itself picking at No. 3 overall last month. If the Giants are genuinely serious about redshirting Dart for a year, it will be easier than most places because of the presence of two veteran quarterbacks instead of just one, but coach Brian Daboll and GM Joe Schoen both have their jobs on the line. That almost equals “break rookie glass.” Teams have become more amenable to sitting blue-chip rookie QBs in recent years, but we would be stunned if Dart fails to make 2025 starts.
Brandon Lowe went 3-for-5 and clobbered a pair of two-run homers on Thursday afternoon, helping to power the Rays to an 8-3 victory over the Blue Jays in Toronto.
Lowe got the Rays on the board before an out had been recorded in the ballgame, ambushing a first-pitch fastball from Kevin Gausman for a 399-foot (105.6 mph EV) two-run blast, giving the Rays an early lead that they would never relinquish. Lowe then put the exclamation point on the victory with a 429-foot (109.1 mph EV) two-run blast off of Jose Urena in the ninth inning. With his three-hit attack, the 30-year-old second baseman is now hitting .220/.272/.373 to go with seven homers and 24 RBI.
Josh Lowe returned to the Rays’ starting lineup with a bang on Thursday, going 3-for-5 with a homer and a pair of runs scored in a victory over the Blue Jays.
Lowe led off the game with a single off of Kevin Gausman and then rode home on Brandon Lowe’s two-run blast. The 27-year-old outfielder then crushed one over the fence himself in the fifth inning — a 408-foot (105.7 mph EV) solo shot off of Gausman — increasing his club’s lead to 5-2. He also singled in the ninth inning but the Rays couldn’t cash him in. As long as he remains healthy, he’ll be a valuable fantasy contributor atop the Rays’ lineup.
Kameron Misner went 1-for-4 and swatted a solo home run on Thursday as the Rays out-slugged the Blue Jays in Toronto.
Misner tagged Blue Jays’ right-hander Kevin Gausman for a 417-foot (109.7 mph EV) in the fourth inning, increasing the Rays’ advantage to 4-2. That would be his only hit in four at-bats on the afternoon. For the season, the 27-year-old outfielder is now slashing .256/.305/.436 with four homers, 13 RBI and three stolen bases in 128 plate appearances on the season.
Zack Littell pitched well in Thursday’s victory over the Blue Jays, giving up three runs on eight hits over his 7 1/3 innings of work.
Littell recorded only two strikeouts on the afternoon while issuing one base on balls. All of the damage done against him came via the long ball — with Addison Barger, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Nathan Lukes swatting solo home runs against him. Littell got six whiffs on 87 pitches on the day, registering a CSW of 28 percent. Now 3-5 on the season, he’ll bring a 4.31 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and a 32/10 K/BB ratio (54 1/3 innings) into Tuesday’s showdown against the Astros.