Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Shane Baz (elbow) made his third minor-league rehab start with Triple-A Durham on Thursday, throwing 3 1/3 innings while allowing one run on five hits and two walks with three strikeouts. Baz threw 69 pitches on Thursday as he continues on the road to recovery from Tommy John surgery, and he'll likely need another appearance or two in the minors to sharpen things up before rejoining Tampa Bay's injury-riddled rotation. The 24-year-old former top prospect should be able to return before the end of May at this rate, so he's worth a stash in the majority of fantasy leagues. For his major-league career, Baz features a promising 4.02 ERA and 1.12 WHIP while fanning 48 and walking 12 through 40 1/3 frames (nine starts) for the Rays.

Seattle Mariners shortstop J.P. Crawford (oblique, hand) is not traveling with the team ahead of Friday's series opener against the Baltimore Orioles. Crawford's hand is still sore and a little swollen after getting hit by a pitch during Thursday's minor-league rehab assignment with Triple-A Tacoma, and the M's aren't certain when he'll rejoin the club. Working his way back from a strained right oblique as well, the 29-year-old infielder will likely need a few days to allow the swelling in his hand to go down before getting back into game action. It may be enough to keep Crawford from being reinstated from the injured list this weekend. Fantasy managers should have a few more days of streaming value out of utility man Josh Rojas, who's taken over as Seattle's primary leadoff man while slashing a potent .330/.395/.482 with three home runs, nine RBI, 12 runs scored, and four stolen bases in 126 plate appearances (35 games) this year.

Chicago Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner (hamstring), who remained out of Thursday's lineup, went through a more regular pregame workout before the game against the division-rival Pittsburgh Pirates, manager Craig Counsell said. If all goes well, the hope is that Hoerner will be back in Chicago's lineup for the second game of the series against Pittsburgh on Friday. The 27-year-old contact-hitting infielder appears to be on the cusp of a return from tightness in his left hamstring after being out of the lineup in each of the past three contests, so fantasy managers should expect to get him back without needing a trip to the injured list. In 41 games (156 at-bats) before picking up the injury, Hoerner slashed .269/.361/.391 with two home runs, 11 doubles, 12 RBI, 25 runs scored, and five stolen bases as the Cubs' primary leadoff hitter.

Chicago Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson (knee) continued to ramp up his activity ahead of Thursday's game against the division-rival Pittsburgh Pirates at Wrigley Field, including fielding ground balls. After a period of rest, recovery, and treatment, Swanson did some light running and agility work and played catch before Wednesday's series finale against the Atlanta Braves and seems to be progressing well in his recuperation from a sprained right knee. The 30-year-old star infielder is eligible to come off the 10-day injured list as early as Saturday's contest against Pittsburgh, though it's unclear if he'll need a brief minor-league rehab assignment before the Cubs activate him. Although Swanson was slashing a meager .209/.285/.341 with four home runs, 12 RBI, 20 runs scored, and four stolen bases in 37 games (129 at-bats) as Chicago's everyday shortstop before the injury, he's a must-stash player in all fantasy leagues.