Cincinnati Reds relief pitcher Emilio Pagan secured his fourth save of the season on Saturday, pitching a perfect ninth inning in the Reds' 5-;2 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. With closer Alexis Diaz (hamstring) sidelined, Pagan has stepped up as Cincinnati's primary ninth-inning option, converting all four of his save opportunities. He has allowed just one earned run over 7.1 innings, showcasing a 1.23 ERA and a 0.82 WHIP. With his role as the Reds' closer becoming more solidified, fantasy managers in need of saves should turn to Pagan if he is available. He should retain value until Diaz returns, and even then he could push for saves given Diaz's struggles last season.

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Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Bryan Woo delivered a stellar performance on Saturday, tossing seven innings of one-run ball and earning his second win of the season in a 9-2 drubbing of the Texas Rangers. Woo allowed six hits and a walk while striking out seven. The 25-year-old now owns a stellar 2.84 ERA and 0.95 WHIP through three starts and is a must-start option in fantasy right now. His next start should come next week against the Blue Jays, and fantasy owners should have Woo in their lineups across the board for that one.

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Atlanta Braves catcher Sean Murphy led his team to victory on Saturday, smashing two solo homers in a 5-4 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. Murphy ended the day 2-for-4 with the pair of homers, two runs scored, and two RBI. He has shown his power since his return from the IL, knocking three homers in just four games. We have seen Murphy play at a high level for fantasy before, and it wouldn't be surprising to see him become a must-start catcher again. He is worth an add in deeper leagues and possibly some standard-size leagues as well.

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Chicago Cubs first baseman Michael Busch had a big day at the dish on Saturday, going 4-for-6 with a homer, four runs scored, and three RBI. The Cubs demolished the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday afternoon, and Busch played a big part in that. The 27-year-old sophomore is off to a nice start this season, hitting .300 with a .926 OPS. If he can continue to build on last year, Busch should be a decent fantasy option in all formats. His only issue right now is that he isn't quite playing every day, but with more games like Saturday's that should figure itself out quickly.

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Chicago Cubs catcher Carson Kelly continued his torrid start to the season on Saturday, going 3-for-3 with two homers. Kelly added three runs, three RBI, and two walks to round out his day. The 30-year-old backstop is now up to an incredible .417 AVG and 1.613 OPS to go with four homers, eight runs scored, and 13 RBI. While he isn't currently playing every day, if Kelly continues to hit anywhere close to the level he has so far he could quickly find himself playing more often. That being said, he should only be rostered in two catcher leagues while he is splitting catcher duties.

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The Denver Post's Patrick Saunders reports that Colorado Rockies second base prospect Adael Amador will be called up from Triple-A Albuquerque for Sunday's series finale at Petco Park against the San Diego Padres, according to a source. The corresponding roster move will likely be outfielder Tyler Freeman (oblique) going on the 10-day injured list after he was scratched from Saturday's lineup after tweaking his oblique in the batting cage. The 22-year-old Amador is considered Colorado's No. 7 prospect, per MLB Pipeline, and will hopefully boost what has been a dormant Rockies offense early in 2025. He was hitting .275/.408/.450 with two homers, fur RBI, three steals and nine runs in 49 plate appearances at Triple-A. Amador should see regular playing time at second for the Rockies. Although he hit just .171 in his MLB debut last year, it was in just 10 games. His power/speed upside could play immediately in mixed fantasy leagues.

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Chicago Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki (wrist) left Saturday night's game against the Dodgers with right-wrist pain after two at-bats, in which he grounded out and lined out. He was replaced by pinch-hitter Miguel Amaya, who stayed in the game as the team's designated hitter in place of Suzuki. Hopefully, the issue is nothing major since Suzuki has gotten off to a great start to the year. He is hitting .292 through his first 17 games with four home runs, 15 RBI, and a .413 wOBA. Any time he has to miss would be a big blow to the Cubs' offense, which has been very productive so far this season. Stay tuned for more updates on the nature and severity of Suzuki's wrist issue.

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Minnesota Twins third baseman Jose Miranda will be headed to Triple-A after a slow start to the season and a costly mistake on the basepaths on Saturday. Miranda went just 6-for-36 (.167) in his 12 games before being sent down. On Saturday, he singled as a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning and thought he was forced out at second base. However, second baseman Colt Keith didn't touch the base, and Miranda was called safe. Miranda didn't realize the call, though, and started walking back to the dugout before getting to second base himself, allowing Keith to tag him to kill the potential rally. Whether it was that mistake or his lack of performance in the early part of the season that forced the issue, the 26-year-old will head back to Triple-A and can be dropped in almost all formats.

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Minnesota Twins second baseman/third baseman Brooks Lee (back) is expected to be activated from the 10-day injured list on Sunday before the Twins wrap up their series with the Tigers. Lee will take the roster spot of Jose Miranda, who was optioned to Triple-A on Saturday after a tough start to the season. Lee had a solid spring training and looked ready for an everyday role in the infield before landing on the 10-day injured list with lower back tightness. He only hit .221 with three homers and three stolen bases in 50 games in the majors last year but hit .331 with eight homers in the minor leagues in 2023. He went 3-for-13 with one walk on his rehab assignment, but the Twins are moving him quickly back into the lineup since they're looking for answers on offense after struggling to a 4-11 start to the season.

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Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Max Scherzer (thumb) continues to be day-to-day as he works his way back from an issue with his thumb. He left his first Blue Jays' start with a lat strain which he told reporters was "100 percent" related to his thumb issue. On Friday, Scherzer e had additional imaging done in Baltimore, and everything looked normal, according to manager John Schneider. He continues to throw on flat ground but remains without a timetable to return. It looks like his return is still a ways away, but the fact that there is no structural damage is a positive sign that the issue isn't developing into anything worse that could keep him on the shelf even longer.

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Colorado Rockies outfielder Brenton Doyle (quad) was just heating up lately at the plate, but he missed the team's last two games in San Diego with a slight quad issue. The Rockies are hoping the issue clears up in a day or two and that he can avoid the injured list. He was going to be replaced in center field on Saturday by Tyler Freeman, but Freeman tweaked his oblique injury in the batting cage before the game. Without Freeman, Mickey Moniak got the call in center field on Saturday and could continue to get more playing time. If either outfielder needs time on the IL, one prospect who could join the team is Adael Amador from the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes. Doyle's injury has over-stretched the Rockies' already-thin offense, making them a very favorable matchup to target on the road away from Coors Field.

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Kansas City Royals first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino smashed his second home run of the season on Saturday as part of a nice 3-for-4 performance that picked his batting average up to .212 with a .291 wOBA. Vinnie P. has started the season slowly for the Royals but had a big day Saturday. His fourth-inning blast was the only run the team could put on the board against Luis L. Ortiz, though, and ultimately, the Royals lost to Cleveland, 6-3. Both teams are hovering right around .500, headed into the series finale on Sunday, where the Royals will look to avoid the road sweep. Pasquantino will hope this home run is the start of a power surge since he had just a 30.2% hard-hit rate coming into Saturday's game after posting over a 40% hard-hit rate in each of the last three seasons.

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Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Jonathan Aranda went a perfect 3-for-3 on Saturday afternoon in Tampa Bay, with a solo home run in the ninth inning, three RBI, and a pair of walks. His heroics weren't quite enough, though, as the Rays fell to the Braves, 5-4. The 26-year-old lefty is still stuck in a platoon sometimes, but he has made the most of his chances and is now 14-for-37 (.378) on the season with two home runs, six doubles, seven RBI, and a .488 wOBA. He looks like he's on his way to a breakout season now that he's healthy. He should remain a key contributor to Tampa's offense going forward, especially against right-handed pitching.

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Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Jackson Jobe spun six scoreless innings against the struggling Twins to earn the first victory of his MLB career. Jobe pitched well in his first two starts but got a pair of no-decisions against the Mariners and White Sox while allowing five earned runs in nine innings with seven strikeouts. He was much better on Saturday in Minneapolis and needed only 87 pitches to record 18 outs in his first quality start and his first MLB win. The Tigers have won nine of their last 11 games to climb to the top spot in the AL Central, and Jobe will look to build on this victory when he takes the mound next Thursday at home against the Royals.

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Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Luis L. Ortiz had struggled in spring training and in his first two starts of the year, but he was much sharper on Saturday against the Royals, allowing just one run on one hit in 5 2/3 innings while stacking up 10 a career-high strikeouts and issuing just two walks. He threw exactly 100 pitches in his outing and improved to 1-2 on the year with a still-elevated 6.06 ERA and 4.63 FIP. He had 16 whiffs, a 36% Whiff percentage, and a 34% CSW percentage. He will look to build on his successful home debut as he returns to face his former team in Pittsburgh on Friday in his next start.

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Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz provided all the offense the Reds needed in their 5-3 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. He went 1-for-4 with a two-out grand slam off of Pirates' starter Andrew Heaney in the third inning. The 23-year-old switch-hitter is hitting .237 (14-for-59) with three home runs and three stolen bases through his first 15 games of the season. He isn't quite firing on all cylinders yet, but his grand slam was enough to deliver the win for his team on Saturday and move the team to within one win of .500 as they look to close out a sweep of their division foe on Sunday afternoon.

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Houston Astros starting pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. (elbow) was impressive on the mound during his rehab start with Triple-A Sugar Land on Saturday. The right-hander struck over five batters over four shutout innings during this outing. McCullers allowed one hit and one walk, but was perfect outside of that. He threw 42 of his 61 pitches for strikes and appears to be headed in the right direction. The expectation is that McCullers will probably need to make at least one more rehab start. Hopefully, McCullers can get back on the big league mound by the end of April.

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Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Richard Fitts (shoulder) was removed early during Saturday's game against the Chicago White Sox. This is a shame as Fitts was in the middle of an excellent performance before being forced to exit due to shoulder pain. The plan is for Fitts to return to Boston on Sunday to undergo additional imaging on his shoulder to determine the severity of the injury. Before he went down, Fitts tossed five scoreless innings, allowing two hits, and striking out five batters. The expectation is that the Red Sox will give an update on his status in the coming days.

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Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Brandon Woodruff (shoulder) made his first rehab start with Triple-A Nashville on Saturday. This was the first time that Woodruff has been on the mound since having shoulder surgery last year. He tossed 3 2/3 innings, allowing two earned runs, and striking out five batters. He threw 66 pitches and 44 of them for strikes as he topped out at 95.1 mph on his fastball. The 32-year-old will likely still need to make a few more rehab appearances before rejoining the Brewers rotation. The hope is that Woodruff can return to the big league rotation by the end of April or early May.

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Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Colin Rea is likely to take the mound against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday, according to manager Craig Counsell. The Cubs are looking to fill a void in the starting rotation with Justin Steele (elbow) landing on the injured list. This team is also without Javier Assad (forearm) so Rea seems to be the most logical next choice. Rea has made three appearances out of the bullpen for the Cubs, but could be a short term option in the rotation. He registered a 4.29 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, and 135/43 K/BB ratio across 32 games (27 starts) with the Milwaukee Brewers last season. Rea could be a viable rotational piece, but isn't someone to be considered a strong streaming option against the Dodgers lineup.

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