Atlanta Braves right-hander Spencer Strider touched 96.7 mph twice on the radar gun during his Grapefruit League outing on Thursday, and his four-seam fastball averaged 95 mph, according to Mark Bowman of MLB.com. The late life on Strider's pitches was there, and he got a swhiff on five of the 12 sliders that he threw against the Toronto Blue Jays. Strider allowed two earned runs on two hits while walking one and striking out four in his 2 1/3 innings of work. It's good news after the 27-year-old averaged 93.1 mph with his fastball in his spring debut on Saturday against the Baltimore Orioles. Strider wasn't too worried about the radar gun, though, and it's encouraging that his velocity was back up this week. He averaged 98.2 mph in his first two MLB seasons before struggling in 2025 with a 4.45 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, and 9.4 K/9 in his return from elbow reconstruction last year. Strider may never recapture his pre-injury form, but a rebound in 2026 is possible while being another year removed from surgery. Expect to see his ADP rise this spring if his velocity slowly comes back. Right now, he's ranked as the No. 26 fantasy starting pitcher at RotoBaller.

Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena (finger) has been diagnosed with a fracture in the tip of his right ring finger, according to the team, and he'll be re-evaluated in two weeks, per Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle. Pena and the Astros were downplaying the severity of the injury that occurred on Wednesday while playing for Team Dominican Republic, when a ground ball took a bad hop and hit him in the finger. The 28-year-old will now miss the World Baseball Classic, and there's a chance he'll be forced to miss the start of the 2026 regular season as well, depending on how he recovers in the next couple of weeks. If Pena is forced to the injured list, Carlos Correa would slide over to shortstop, and Isaac Paredes would fill in at third base in Houston. Fantasy managers might be a little more hesitant to take Pena as a low-end starting shortstop in fantasy drafts now.

Cleveland Guardians closer Cade Smith has emerged as an elite source of saves in 2026, now sitting as the fourth-highest ranked reliever for the upcoming 2026 fantasy season at RotoBaller, just ahead of Andres Munoz, who registered 38 saves for Seattle a season ago. The right-hander has had a phenomenal first two seasons in the big leagues, amassing 103 strikeouts in 75 1/3 innings as a reliever in 2024 with a 1.91 ERA and 0.90 WHIP, then followed it up with 104 strikeouts in 73 2/3 innings with a 2.93 ERA (1.95 FIP) and 1.00 WHIP in 2025 while racking up 16 saves for the Guardians, 13 of which came after August 5 on the heels of the suspension of former closer Emmanuel Clase. Stepping in as the full-time closer in 2026, the 6-foot-5 Smith brings a 96.4 average fastball velocity with a 95th percentile whiff rate and 97th percentile strikeout rate to the role, on a team that won 88 games in '25 and should compete for a division crown once again. He won't be cheap on draft day, but with no indications of a slowdown on the horizon, the 26-year-old is rightfully not only one of the top relievers for fantasy, but he's also one of the top pitchers for fantasy regardless of role (starter or reliever).

Miami Marlins second baseman Xavier Edwards was removed from Thursday's Grapefruit League game with left calf tightness. The diminutive infielder was 1-for-2 with an RBI and a stolen base before his removal in the fourth inning. The severity of the injury is not yet clear, but for a player whose speed could be his greatest fantasy asset, it is certainly a situation to monitor. The 26-year-old swiped 27 bags last season and 31 the year before, and had already recorded three steals through five spring games this year. The switch-hitter makes a ton of contact, registering an 89.2 percent contact rate last season with a low 14.2 percent strikeout rate, which should continue to help buoy his batting average, which came in at .283 in 2025, but there is little power to speak of, thus limiting his fantasy appeal. Still, he's fairly priced in drafts, going around pick 175, and he offers positional versatility with 2B and SS eligibility, so managers in need of steals should consider him there, so long as Thursday's injury proves to be minor.