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          Fantasy baseball pitcher rankings, lineup advice for Tuesday's MLB games

          Fantasy managers can expect Gerrit Cole to have a longer leash Tuesday in his second start. Wendell Cruz/USA TODAY Sports
          • Eric Karabell, ESPN Senior WriterJun 25, 2024, 11:48 AM ET
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            • ESPN contributor on TV, radio, podcasts, blogs, Magazine
            • Charter member of FSWA Hall of Fame
            • Author of "The Best Philadelphia Sports Arguments"
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          Look for our fantasy baseball starting pitcher rankings, hitter upgrades and downgrades daily to help you make smart fantasy baseball lineup decisions and for MLB betting tips. MLB game odds are provided by ESPN BET, and fantasy advice is geared toward ESPN 10-team leagues with standard scoring.

          Note: This file has been updated with any overnight pitching changes or weather-related game postponements, along with the addition of the latest MLB game odds as of the indicated time of publication.

          New York, New York, Part 1

          Many eyes in the baseball world will be on Citi Field on Tuesday as the rival Yankees and Mets meet for the first time this season, opening a quick, two-game series (they play again at Yankee Stadium in four weeks). The teams have been trending in different directions of late. The Yankees have dropped seven of 10, but they held on to first place in the AL East as the Orioles stumbled this past weekend. The rejuvenated Mets have won 13 of 17 to move into NL wild-card contention.

          Yankees ace RHP Gerrit Cole makes his second start of the season after missing much of the first half recovering from an elbow injury. Fantasy managers may not have been pleased to see Cole removed from the Orioles game last week after four innings and 62 pitches, his second charged earned run coming when reliever Ron Marinaccio inherited a man on base and permitted the run to score, but he should go deeper against the Mets. Cole should be active in all lineups.

          The Mets send LHP David Peterson to the mound, which is not quite as interesting for fantasy managers, even though Peterson is 3-0 in his four starts. Peterson is 18-21 with a 4.62 ERA in 68 career starts, one of which came against the Yankees in 2020. Peterson should not be active in many fantasy lineups, even though the Yankees offer a rather paltry .699 OPS versus left-handers, far below their work against right-handers.

          Something to watch on the Yankees side: Journeyman 1B/3B J.D. Davis was acquired from the Athletics on Sunday, and he is expected to handle the right side of a first base platoon with rookie Ben Rice. Davis may debut for his fifth MLB team Tuesday against the lefty Peterson. Davis boasts relatively even career OPS splits (.779 vs. LHP; .763 OPS vs. RHP), but it is about the playing time in daily formats and deeper ones.

          Meanwhile, Mets RHP Edwin Diaz was ejected from Sunday night's eventual win at Wrigley Field, before throwing a pitch, for using an illegal substance. Perhaps we know by Tuesday's game time if the two-time All-Star closer must serve a 10-game suspension immediately. If Diaz is out, expect RHP Reed Garrett (3 saves) to handle closing duties.

          What you may have missed on Monday

          By Todd Zola

          • The San Diego Padres will be without OF Fernando Tatis Jr. for at least 10 days (and probably longer) after he was placed on the IL due to a femoral stress reaction in his right quadriceps. The visit will be backdated to June 22 after Tatis missed a pair of games because of a separate triceps injury. Veteran OF David Peralta and OF Bryce Johnson will cover right field with utility man Donovan Solano also seeing more action.

          • The Padres had hoped to activate SP Yu Darvish for tonight's home affair with the Washington Nationals, but manager Mike Shildt indicated Darvish is experiencing right elbow inflammation. Darvish has been sidelined for a month due to a groin issue. His return is now unclear. The club has summoned SP Adam Mazur from Triple-A El Paso to make tonight's start.

          • Seattle Mariners SP Bryan Woo lasted only three innings as he was removed early due to a hamstring injury. Woo yielded one earned run on five hits with three strikeouts. He threw three scoreless frames, then gave up a hit to open the fourth before leaving. Woo had been dealing with forearm tightness, so the silver lining is that his evening wasn't cut short due to any arm issue. The right-hander is slated for an MRI today. It's unclear how the Mariners would address their rotation of Woo is forced to miss time, especially since SP Emerson Hancock was removed from his June 19 outing with Triple-A Tacoma due to back tightness. Hancock had filled in for Woo earlier in the season.

          • The Toronto Blue Jays expect to activate SS Bo Bichette in advance of tonight's home date with the Boston Red Sox. Bichette worked out his sore calf yesterday with no issues. On Sunday, INF Orelvis Martinez was suspended for 80 games. He had recently been promoted to the big club to add depth with Bichette out. Martinez is a natural shortstop, but he's been playing mostly second base and third base with Triple-A Buffalo.

          • The New York Mets will be without OF Starling Marte for at least 15 days. He's been diagnosed with bone inflammation in his right knee, leading to a recommendation for him to refrain from activities for 15 days. Marte is expected to be placed on the 10-day IL today. Look for OF DJ Stewart and OF Tyrone Taylor to see most of the action in right field.

          • The Cincinnati Reds placed OF TJ Friedl on the 10-day IL. He's expected to miss 2-3 weeks thanks to a left hamstring strain. Jake Fraley will likely handle CF duties, which opens some playing time at DH. Suspended 3B Noelvi Marte is eligible to return on Thursday, but he's been struggling in his rehab efforts at Triple-A Louisville. Over 11 games, Marte has posted only a .143/.143/.163 line, so it's unclear if he'll be activated as soon as he's eligible.

          Everything else you need to know for Tuesday

          • The top left-handed pitchers in ESPN standard points leagues meet up in Detroit. Phillies LHP Ranger Suarez averages 18.1 fantasy points per outing, and he is 10-1 with a 1.75 ERA and .89 WHIP using more traditional numbers. Suarez has won only one of his past four starts, though he has permitted only four earned runs in that span. Tigers LHP Tarik Skubal, averaging 16.5 fantasy points per start, allowed four earned runs in each of his past two outings, losing at Atlanta and Houston. However, he boasts a 2.01 ERA in home games. Do not expect a high-scoring affair.

          • Angels LHP Tyler Anderson has permitted only one earned run in six of his last seven starts, lowering his ERA to 2.48. A season ago, his ERA was 5.43. Anderson has not faced the Athletics this season, but chances are he is going to enjoy the experience. Fantasy managers seem cold to adding Anderson based on last season's numbers, but it's the final week of June. We have seen enough.

          • Astros RHP Hunter Brown continues his fortunate stretch versus unimpressive offenses with a home matchup against the Rockies. Hey, good numbers are good numbers for fantasy, regardless of opponent. Brown was 1-5 with a 6.18 ERA and 1.57 WHIP when he faced the Angels two weeks ago. He beat the Angels, then the Tigers and then the White Sox, permitting one earned run in 19 innings, and now he has a 4.72 ERA and 1.41 WHIP. Brown should continue his success against the Rockies and their .652 road OPS (it is .757 at Coors Field).

          • Betting tip of the day: We are way past the point of doubting Braves RHP Reynaldo Lopez. This starting thing is working out. Lopez has six or more strikeouts in four consecutive outings, so take OVER +5.5 strikeouts (-120). Cards RHP Kyle Gibson allows home runs. Lots of them. Braves 1B Matt Olson has four blasts off Gibson in 24 AB. DH Marcell Ozuna doesn't have any. Take OVER 0.5 HR (+300 for Olson, +205 Ozuna) and go with Atlanta to win (-140).

          It's never too late to start a free fantasy baseball league. Leagues drafted this week will start scoring fresh the following Monday. Come and join the fun!

          Starting pitcher rankings for Tuesday

          Reliever report

          To get the latest information on each team's bullpen hierarchy, as well as which pitchers might be facing a bit of fatigue and who might be the most likely suspects to vulture a save or pick up a surprise hold in their stead, check out the latest Closer Chart, which will be updated every morning.

          Hitting report

          Plan ahead in fantasy baseball with help from our Forecaster projections. Each day, we will provide an updated preview of the next 10 days for every team, projecting the matchup quality for hitters (overall and by handedness) as well as for base stealers.

          Best sub-50% rostered hitters for Tuesday

          Best and worst hitters from the day are generated by THE BAT X, a projection system created by Derek Carty using advanced methods like those used in MLB front offices, accounting for a variety of factors including player talent, ballparks, bullpens, weather, umpires, defense, catcher pitch-framing and lots more.

          Worst over-50% rostered hitters for Tuesday

          THE BAT X's Best Stacks for Tuesday