Indians 2B Jason Kipnis (shoulder) is expected to come off the DL on Tuesday. Great news, right?
If you're in a weekly lineup league, that answer is maybe. The Indians want both Kipnis and Michael Brantley (shoulder) to DH upon their returns to the lineup, and according to manager Terry Francona, Kipnis "certainly can be activated, but he's not ready to play second." It's hard to tell how many games Kipnis will play this week, so if you can hold off from activating him, you should probably do so.
In other news ...
Miguel Cabrera had two hits on Saturday, and two more (including a home run) on Sunday. Looks like he's back to normal.
Red Sox OF Hanley Ramirez is "not expected to play tonight, but his return is getting close," according to the Boston Herald. Maybe Ramirez should get some extra rest, as fill-in Jackie Bradley Jr. is 14-for-26 with three homers, 13 RBI and 12 runs scored over his last six games. Bradley did hit pretty well (.854 OPS) at Triple A this season, so maybe he's turned a corner. And maybe he'll be on the bench later this week in favor of Ramirez and Rusney Castillo. It would be nice to recommend JBJ as a fantasy free-agent target, but his path to playing to playing time is unclear.
Cardinals OF Randal Grichuk left Sunday's game due to elbow tightness, and will be examined today.
After being scratched from his last start due to back spasms, Sonny Gray will take the mound tonight for the A's. Gray will try to stave off a sweep at the hands of the Orioles, who have gotten five homers apiece in the past week from Adam Jones and Chris Davis.
Remember Derek Holland? He might be back on the mound Wednesday for the Rangers. Holland has been on the DL since April 11 due to a strained shoulder, and made just five starts in 2014 because of a knee injury.
Brewers SP Jimmy Nelson had another strong outing on Saturday, and has a 1.99 ERA in six starts since the All-Star break, with 39 strikeouts against 12 walks in 40 2/3 innings. Nelson is owned in just 44.9 percent of FOXSports.com leagues.
Cardinals SP Adam Wainwright (Achilles) is working toward a return before the end of the season. It seems like a longshot, though.
Rookie Bryan Mitchell - not CC Sabathia - will start for the Yankees tonight. It sounds like the Yanks want to give Ivan Nova (finger) an extra day of rest, so Sabathia and Nathan Eovaldi will both get pushed back one day.
Streaming starter weekend review: Robbie Ray was shaky on Friday, Jon Niese was just OK on Saturday, and Wei-Yin Chen was solid in a Sunday win. Today's pick is Padres rookie Colin Rea (owned in 0.8 percent of FOXSports.com leagues) against the undermanned Braves, who hope to get Freddie Freeman back from the DL on Wednesday. Here's a scouting report on Rea, who has had a solid season in the minors and will make his second big-league start tonight.
DFS advice (based on 50/50 games, salaries from DraftKings): Using Rea ($4,800) at SP2 gives you plenty of SP1 options, and lets you spend on big bats. I'll go with Michael Wacha ($10,100), who has averaged 26.4 DK points over his last three starts ... The Brewers look like a solid stacking option against Marlins rookie Justin Nicolino. Braun, Lucroy, Segura, Khris Davis, etc. ... If Padres 2B/3B Cory Spangenberg ($2,500) is atop the lineup again, give him a good look ... Mike Trout ($5,000) is a must-start against Carlos Rodon, right? ... Speaking of Angels, OF Shane Victorino ($2,600) has been batting leadoff vs. LHP, because he has a .354 wOBA against them this season (.378 career).
See you back here tomorrow morning.
