I usually have a fairly extended intro here, but we're keeping it short today. There's a ton of information from this weekend's action we need to cover, and, I'll be honest: I couldn't even get to everything I wanted to write about in today's newsletter, despite writing about, among other things, 21 different starting pitcher performances. 

So, let's not waste any more time. We've gotta get those lineups set for Week 5, plus I've got a recap of (almost!) everything you need to know from this weekend.

One thing I was reminded of this week while reading Vlad Selder's excellent "Trust The Gut" column over at FTNFantasy.com Sunday: The Rockies and Astros are playing a "home" game for the Rockies in Mexico City this weekend. Now, before you bemoan the loss of a Coors Field series for your Rockies and Astros hitters, note that Estadio Alfredo Harp Helú is actually an even more hitter-friendly environment than Coors; in 2023, the Padres and Giants had 10 players combine for 11 homers in one game. That stadium is over 7,500 feet above sea level, even higher than Coors Field, with a much smaller outfield. Strongly consider sitting Ronel Blanco (and Hunter Brown, Cal Quantrill, and Austin Gomber, though that goes without saying) for this week.

As a result of that, the Astros only play five games this week. The games against the Rockies in a launching pad should help, but if you've been starting someone like Chas McCormick or Jeremy Pena, they're fairly easy sits. 

In a nice twist, we didn't have any devastating, Fantasy-landscape-altering injuries to deal with this weekend, which means I didn't have to spend thousands of words talking about injury replacements in my weekly waiver-wire column. It was a welcome change of pace for 2024. Here are the top waiver-wire targets for each position: 

• C: Ivan Herrera, Cardinals (22%)  
• 1B:  Nate Lowe,  Rangers (55%)  
• 2B: Jonathan India, Reds (60%)
• 3B: Junior Caminero, Rays (67%)
• SS: Vaughn Grissom, Red Sox (37%) 
• OF: Andy Pages, Dodgers (34%), Daulton Varsho, Blue Jays (57%), Bryan De La Cruz, Marlins (45%)
• SP: Edward Cabrera, Marlins (69%), Ryan Weathers, Marlins (31%), Yariel Rodriguez, Blue Jays (41%)
• RP: Kirby Yates, Rangers (56%)

For more deep-league targets, plus my thoughts on each of those players and more, head here. 

Best hitter matchups for Week 5:

1. Yankees OAK4, @MIL3
2. Padres @COL4, PHI3
3. Red Sox @CLE3, CHC3
4. Orioles @LAA3, OAK3
5. Twins CHW4, @LAA3

Worst hitter matchups for Week 5:

1. White Sox @MIN4, TB3
2. Diamondbacks @STL3, @SEA3
3. Dodgers @WAS3, @TOR3
4. Phillies @CIN4, @SD3
5. Nationals LAD3, @MIA3

Top sleeper hitters for Week 5:

1. Ryan Mountcastle, OF, Orioles (73%) @LAA3, OAK3
2. Anthony Rizzo, 1B, Yankees (76%) OAK4, @MIL3
3. Ezequiel Tovar, SS, Rockies (76%) SD4, HOU2
4. Alex Verdugo, OF, Yankees (54%) OAK4, @MIL3
5. Bryan De La Cruz, OF, Marlins (28%) @ATL3, WAS3

You can check out Scott's two-start pitcher rankings here, too. He ranks every projected two-start pitcher for the upcoming week, tiering them from must-starts to no-thanks. 

Top sleeper pitches for Week 3

1. Christopher Sanchez, Phillies (79%) at CIN, at SD
2. Michael Wacha, Royals (75%) vs. TOR, at DET
3. Jack Flaherty, Tigers (75%) at TB
4. Edward Cabrera, Marlins (62%) vs. WAS
5. Brandon Pfaadt , Diamondbacks (70%) at STL, at SEA

Good pitching

Luis Castillo, Mariners @COL: 7 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 9 K – Wait … no … you didn't … you didn't actually sit Luis Castillo, did you? Apparently Castillo was benched in 21% of CBS Fantasy leagues, despite dominating in his last start, presumably because he had an ugly ERA and a start against the Rockies in Coors Field coming in. But here's the thing: You don't sit Luis Castillo. I mean, I dunno, maybe if he struggles for like two months straight and has the Dodgers or Braves , or something? But the Rockies? Because he had three mediocre starts  – where he still had 18 strikeouts to four walks, mind you? We know better than that, folks. And if you don't know, now you know, and that goes for every elite starter out there. 

Justin Verlander, Astros vs. WAS: 6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 4 K – I didn't watch this start and think, "Okay, great, I've got an ace the rest of the way, now." But I didn't expect to see that from Verlander. What I say was a guy who threw strikes, generated a bunch of weak contact, and had good-enough stuff. He's a top-30, maybe top-24 SP if he stays healthy, and that's enough. 

Nick Lodolo, Reds vs. LAA: 6.1 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 6 K – To look like an ace, Lodolo is always going to need a bit of good luck on his side, and he looked like an ace in this one. He gave up nine batted balls of at least 98.9 mph, but none of those balls left the yard and four of them turned into outs, while only two turned into extra bases. You can't expect that kind of luck on balls in play every time out, but Lodolo is also racking up whiffs and strikeouts at a huge pace right now, and when he's doing that, the good starts are going to be really good. There will be some blow-up starts moving forward, but I'm starting him in all leagues right now. 

Jordan Montgomery, Diamondbacks vs. SF: 6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 K – He looked like Jordan Montgomery, and with that team surrounding him, that should be enough to make him close to a must-start pitcher. That might sound like damning with faint praise, but just scroll down to Blake Snell's line to see how much "he looked like Jordan Montgomery" was not a given. 

Jack Flaherty, Tigers @MIN: 6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 10 K – Flaherty has gone at least six innings in all four starts so far this season, with a quality-start in three of four. He took advantage of the whiff-happy Twins for 18 strikeouts over the past two, and he's faced just about the softest schedule possible so far – his other two starts were against the White Sox and Athletics – so if you wanted to call him a "sell-high candidate" I probably wouldn't argue. But it's not a "sell-at-all-costs" situation, because I do think the combination of (slightly) increased velocity and simplified approach – Flaherty has largely gone with a three-pitch approach, ditching his pretty terrible cutter and sinker – should still lead to an improved Flaherty moving forward. 

Brayan Bello, Red Sox @PIT: 6 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 7 K – Of the Red Sox bevy of seemingly breakout pitchers, Bello is probably the one I'm buying least. At least as a potential high-upside contributor in the way I think Tanner Houck and Kutter Crawford might be. But Bello's combination of quality-of-contact suppression and good command has carried over from last year, and it does give him a pretty high floor. I just don't buy him as a potential ace. 

Nestor Cortes, Yankees vs. TB: 7 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 9 K – I can't really identify what was different about Cortes in this one, a gem, compared to his previous start, a much more forgettable turn against the Guardians . His velocity was up about 0.5 mph in this one, but he threw his four-seamer and cutter about 80% of the time in each, with nearly all of his swings and misses coming off these two pitches, naturally. It might be random variance, or a slim margin for error, or some other equally uninspiring explanation. All I know is, while Cortes' strikeout rate isn't quite where it was in 2021 and 2022, he still looks a lot more like that guy than he did last season. That's good news, even if I can't quite explain why he was better this time around. 

Spencer Turnbulll, Phillies vs. CHW: 7  IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K – Taijuan Walker is going to make at least one more rehab start, and then it sounds like he might return from his shoulder soreness next weekend. And, unfortunately, that might spell the end of Turnbull's time as a viable Fantasy contributor. That being said, manager Rob Thomson was asked about Turnbull's future in the rotation after this start, and when asked if Walker's return meant Turnbull would be going to the bullpen, Thomson said, "No, it's not clear cut." That's not exactly a strong, clear denial, but it gives us hope that Turnbull and his new sweeper – four whiffs on 11 swings here – can continue to make an impact. 

Triston McKenzie, Guardians vs. OAK: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 6 K – This was by far McKenzie's best start of the season, and yet I remain unmoved. Yeah, you should be able to give us five good innings against the A's. He did lean heavily on his slider here, throwing it 42% of the time and garnering seven of his 10 whiffs with the pitch, but I just don't know if there's another level here. Despite the good start, I'm totally fine dropping McKenzie right now. 

Tyler Anderson, Angels @CIN: 7 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 2 K – When it comes to a pitcher like Anderson, it's never quite clear what the difference between the good version and the bad version is. He relies so much on inducing weak contact and avoiding walks, and while he's doing one of those well, his walk rate for the season is up to 9.2%; nearly twice what it was during his excellen 2022 season. Anderson is better than he looked in 2023, but I don't see much reason to buy him as anything more than what our pal Nick Pollack over at PitcherList calls a "Toby." He's fine to have around and equally fine to drop for someone more exciting. 

Alec Marsh, Royals vs. BAL: 5.2 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K – Marsh has pitched well this season, but I don't think anyone could have seen this coming against the Orioles. Except … well … he already did it to them once before and now has 12.2 innings of shutout ball against them. It was a good start, and he's done well to post a 3.22 ERA through four starts, but I see very little to get excited about here. 

Clarke Schmidt, Yankees vs. TB: 5.1 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 7 K – For the most part, I think the story is the same for Schmidt, though he does have more strikeout upside than either Anderson or Marsh. Schmidt is doing a much better job against left-handed hitters than we've ever seen before, and if he could sustain that, it might be huge; he has a .670 OPS allowed vs. RHB in his career, compared to an .862 mark against lefties. But we're talking about just 37 PA right now vs. lefties, so I'm skeptical. 

Bad Pitching

Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Dodgers vs. NYM: 6 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 9 K – His fastball is getting absolutely crushed right now. That's where the problems begin and end for Yamamoto, who throws in the mid-to-high-90s, and right in the middle of the strike zone: 

He's racking up big whiff numbers and generating weak contact with his other pitches, but the fastball is just a huge problem right now. I don't think it'll remain a problem moving forward, because command should be a strength for Yamamoto. It's been a frustrating ride so far, but if anyone's selling at a discount, I'm buying. 

Cole Ragans , Royals vs. BAL: 1.2 IP, 9 H, 7 ER, 0 BB, 4 K – For the most part, I think Ragans just kind of got BABIP'ed in this one. He gave up hits on five different batted balls with an exit velocity of 81.1 mph or lower, and while it wasn't entirely bad luck – softly hit line drives can still be dangerous to your health as a pitcher – I don't see too much ready for concern. Here's one, if you are looking: Ragans is throwing his slider just 10% of the time and getting pretty poor results on it, and that pitch's growth was a big part of why he was so successful after getting to the Royals last season. We'd sure love to see him have a better feel for it, and he clearly didn't have it in this one, throwing it just four times. 

Blake Snell, Giants vs. ARI: 4.2 IP, 9 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 3 K – If you want to bench Snell until he figures it out, I definitely can't blame you. What I will say is, you absolutely should not drop nor trade Snell, now matter how frustrated you get. Remember, he had a 5.40 ERA on May 19 last season before running off a 23-start stretch with a 1.20 ERA. This is who Snell has always been, and you'll regret it if you give up on him too soon. 

Joe Ryan, Twins vs. DET: 5.1 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 6 K – The weird thing about this one is what Ryan didn't struggle with: He gave up zero homers and has still allowed just two through 22.2 innings of work. This is just one of those starts, I think. I'm not worried. 

Garrett Crochet , White Sox @PHI: 3 IP, 5 H, 7 ER, 2 BB, 3 K – So the thing about being primarily a two-pitch pitcher is that when you don't have one of those pitches, you might just get rocked. Crochet didn't get a single whiff on 13 sliders, so he had to use his cutter a season-high 28% of the time. The cutter is a good pitch, but he's probably a bit easier to pick up when you have to sit on 90 and 96 mph and don't have to worry as much about 83 with bite coming in. I'm mostly willing to write this one off as an especially poor one-off, but it does highlight that Crochet is probably one of the better sell-high candidates in Fantasy right now, given his pending innings limitations. 

Mackenzie Gore, Nationals: 4 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K – I'm not panicking about Gore, who I still like a lot thanks to his improved changeup and increased fastball velocity. But I will say, I think he's a pretty obvious sit for Week 5 against the Dodgers coming off this start. Of course, I probably would've sat him even if he pitched like an ace in this one, because it's the Dodgers. 

Gavin Stone , Dodgers vs. NYM: 3.1 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 5 BB, 1 K – I want to believe in Stone, but I'm just not sure he's got the stuff to succeed as a major-leaguer without exceptional command. His changeup is legitimate, and maybe he can get away with throwing it even more than his current 29.2% usage rate. But I just don't have much faith in the rest of the arsenal, and I'm starting to think that maybe his struggles last season weren't just the result of a pitch-tipping issue. Right-handed pitchers with very good changeups and middling arsenals otherwise just aren't great bets, as it turns out. He's not a must-drop; he is a "can-drop," though. 

Kyle Harrison, Giants vs. ARI: 4 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 5 K – You might be able to finagle a quality start out of matchups with the Nationals and Marlins while throwing 70% fastballs, but that's not gonna fly against the DIamondbacks right now. I just don't see very much to be optimistic about with Harrison right now, and he's a pretty easy drop for me. 

Hitters

Elly De La Cruz , Reds – I mean, this is what the ceiling looks like. Through 23 games, De La Cruz is on pace for 42 homers, 70 steals, and 140 runs – basically what Ronald Acuña managed last season. And I've seen plenty of victory lapping about how the "haters" were "wrong" about De La Cruz, which I think is interesting; even the biggest De La Cruz skeptic (and I was certainly not that) probably expected him to have more than six homers and 10 steals this season, so I'm not sure how "wrong" anyone can be about him yet. Which is just to say, while I've moved De La Cruz ahead of the likes of Austin Riley, Rafael Devers, and Franisco Lindor based on his hot start, my opinion hasn't really changed on him much. The rest of his story is still unwritten, obviously. 

Ketel Marte, Diamondbacks – I just want to take a moment to shout out the guy I think is the most underrated hitter in baseball. He's hitting .330/.377/.564 in the early going, and while I don't expect him to keep quite that pace up, it's worth noting that that is basically what he managed in 2019. It's not totally out of the question, in other words. 

Nico Hoerner,Cubs – This was both a promising and disappointing weekend for Hoerner. He went 8 for 19 across four games against the Marlins, and even moved back into the leadoff spot Sunday with Ian Happ out of the lineup. And yet he still hasn't even attempted a single stolen base yet this season. I can excuse a cold start, though he's also suddenly hitting .318 in March. But, with no steals, it's still a profile that is kind of hard to get excited about. 

Bullpen

Joel Payamps, Brewers – Payamps blew the save on Friday, coming in with two out and two on to hit a batter and walk the tying run in. But then he came back out for the ninth inning in Sunday's game with a lead and got a strikeout for his third save. Going right back to him after the blown save tells us what the Brewers think about him, I think. He's the guy to have here ahead of Abner Uribe for the time being. 

Tanner Scott, Marlins – It's been a bumpy ride, but he closed out both wins over the Cubs this weekend. He still may lose the job for performance reasons in the future, but it's not happening right now. 

Reed Garrett, Mets – So, this is one for those of you in saves-plus-holds leagues, because Garrett is off to an absolutely absurd start. He got the ninth for a save Saturday, but I don't think that's likely to happen more than a few more times, what with Edwin Diaz here. But Garrett has yet to allow an earned run this season with 21 strikeouts in 10.2 innings of work. He's going all-in on his slider, sweeper, and splitter, and he's just overwhelming hitters right now. That's a useful player in any category-based format for ratios and strikeouts help, but he's a must-roster player in S+H. 

Cubs manager Craig Counsell indicated Sunday that Adbert Alzolay isn't currently the team's closer and that he'll take the role on a day-to-day basis. Hector Neris and Mark Leiter are the most likely names to be in the mix, with Neris picking up his first save in game two of Saturday's doubleheader. 

Triston Casas was placed on the IL with a left rib strain, with Red Sox manager Alex Cora indicating he is concerned about the possibility of a lengthy absence here, unfortunately. 

Francisco Alvarez needs surgery to repair a torn UCL in his left thumb. He's expected to miss 6-8 weeks, which is a huge bummer given his breakout potential. 

Cora also said Rafael Devers could return to action Tuesday against the Guardians. He missed this weekend with a bone bruise in his left knee.

Spencer Strider suggested he could be back on the mound early next season after doctors found that his ligament was in "surprisingly good" shape during surgery. Apparently he didn't have a torn UCL; a bone spur broke off and was causing the pain and damage to his UCL. All in all, it sounds like close to a best-case scenario for a pitcher who just had season-ending surgery. 

Framber Valdez threw a 30-pitch bullpen session Saturday, his first time throwing off a mound since being diagnosed with elbow inflammation.

Walker Buehler needs at least one more rehab outing before returning to the Dodgers rotation. He struggled in his last outing on Thursday, allowing two runs and four walks in just 2.2 innings of work. 

Max Scherzer will likely make his first rehab start Wednesday. He didn't experience any issues after throwing 40 pitches in a simulated game Friday, and could be back in the Rangers rotation sometime in May – and potentially not in late-May. 

Cristian Javier was placed on the IL with neck discomfort and will be sidelined the next couple weeks. Spencer Arrighetti was recalled, but he hasn't shown enough to suggest he matters for Fantasy yet. 

Jhoan Duran (oblique) will start a rehab assignment at Triple-A on Tuesday, and I'd expect him to be down there at least a week before he comes back. But it should be relatively soon if he avoids a setback. 

Bryan Woo made a rehab start at Triple-A Sunday, throwing three scoreless innings with five strikeouts. He started the season on the IL with right elbow inflammation, and his velocity was down a little more than 1 mph in this one, which isn't too concerning. 

Merrill Kelly was scratched from his start Sunday due to shoulder soreness. He returned to Arizona after receiving an MRI. Torey Lovullo hopes a trip to the IL won't be necessary, but we'll need to see the MRI results before saying for certain, so I wouldn't start him this week. 

Bryce Elder is expected to be called up to start Monday against the Marlins

3 starts at Triple-A: 3.31 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 18 K over 16.1 IP. He's 15% rostered, and while my expectations aren't super high, I could see him being a viable streamer against Miami. 

Ian Happ was removed Friday with left hamstring tightness. He missed Saturday and Sunday as well, and I'd try to avoid starting him this week if I can help it. 

Blue Jays top pitching prospect Ricky Tiedemann underwent an MRI on his left elbow Thursday. He was limited to just 44 innings last year because of shoulder and biceps problems, so we'll cross our fingers and hope for the best for one of the most electric pitching prospects in the minors right now. 

The Rangers optioned Jack Leiter back to Triple-A on Friday after his rough debut Thursday.

Victor Scott was optioned to Triple-A on Sunday. Rough start to his career, batting .085 with 15 strikeouts over 65 plate appearances. I still think there's significant upside here, but he'll need to prove himself at Triple-A before we see him again. 

Frankie Montas exited Sunday's start after getting hit with a comebacker. X-rays came back negative, but he's likely to miss his next start.

DJ LeMahieu will begin a minor-league rehab assignment Tuesday. He's been on the IL with a non-displaced fracture in his right foot, and his appeal has taken a hit since the spring with Anthony Volpe seemingly cementing himself as the team's leadoff hitter. 

JD Martinez could join the Mets as soon as Friday.

Other players who went on the IL this weekend:

• AJ Puk with left shoulder fatigue.
• DL Hall with a left knee sprain.
• Ryne Nelson with an elbow contusion.
• Kyle Freeland with a left elbow strain.
• Anthony Rendon with a hamstring strain.
• Gio Urshela with a right hamstring strain.