Major League Baseball

MLB Quick Hits: Five swipes for Billy

Published Jun. 15, 2015 6:15 a.m. ET

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John Halpin

Reds OF Billy Hamilton stole five bases on Sunday, raising his MLB-leading total to 31. The next closest base thief is Dee Gordon with 22 steals, so Hamilton is dominating this category, even with a .267 on-base percentage.

Three of Hamilton's five Sunday thefts were against Cubs SP Jon Lester, who is notoriously bad at holding runners. If you're a daily fantasy player, think about using speed against Lester in his starts. The lefty's next outing will be this weekend at Minnesota, where heralded rookie Byron Buxton will be waiting. Hopefully, Buxton will bat higher than ninth in the order by then.

In other news ...

Nationals OF Bryce Harper missed Sunday's game after getting hit in the left quad by a pitch on Saturday. It sounds like the Nats just wanted to give Harper one day off, but he's not a lock to play on Monday.

Rangers OF Delino DeShields left Sunday's game with a hamstring injury, and it's unclear if he'll need a DL stint. The Rangers are bringing 2B Rougned Odor back from the minors, and if DeShields is out for awhile, it might mean that Joey Gallo moves to the outfield.

DeShields' dad, who manages the Reds Triple-A affiliate, said the following on Sunday about Devin Mesoraco, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer: "[Mesoraco]'s not going to be the player they want him to be with a bad hip ... I don't care where you put him. The main thing for him, right now, is to get healthy. It's obvious, to me, that he's injured, and he's not going to get better. It was even hurting him on his swings the other night in Columbus." See you next year, Devin.

Blue Jays 2B Devon Travis (shoulder) will begin a rehab assignment today, and could probably return later this week. Teammate Aaron Sanchez (lat strain) is headed to the DL.

Red Sox OF Mookie Betts (back) hasn't played since running into a wall on Friday night. The Boston Herald reports that Betts was "closer to getting back on the field" Sunday.

Jose Fernandez's next rehab start will be at Triple A on Wednesday, and he's still targeting an early July return.

Steve Cishek returned to the mound for the Marlins on Sunday, but with A.J. Ramos pitching pretty well, a closer change isn't likely anytime soon.

Marlins 3B Martin Prado (shoulder) is doubtful for Monday's game, according to the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel. Look for Derek Dietrich to fill in tonight.

Tigers DH Victor Martinez went 1-for-4 with an RBI in his first rehab game on Sunday, and could come off the DL this weekend if all goes well.

Indians SS Francisco Lindor didn't start on Sunday, but will play moving forward. For all the praise Lindor's talent gets, his Triple-A OPS was .747. At age 21, he's probably not ready to be a good big-league hitter, and he shouldn't be on your fantasy radar in shallow leagues.

D-backs SP Patrick Corbin had a solid rehab start on Sunday. He's not too far away from coming off the DL. 

Streaming starter report: Jesse Chavez was adequate on Friday, and Kyle Hendricks was pretty good on Saturday. Today's pick is Taijuan Walker (owned in 21.3 percent of FOXSports.com leagues) at San Francisco. The Giants have hit pretty well this season, but Walker has allowed four earned runs in 22 innings over his last three starts, with 21 whiffs against just three walks. He should be rostered, and not just streamed.

DFS advice (based on 50/50 games, salaries from DraftKings): Francisco Liriano ($10,000) has posted at least 19.7 DK points in eight of his last 10 starts, and faces a White Sox lineup that hasn't hit southpaws at all ... Dallas Keuchel ($9,600) is also a strong SP play ... Trevor Bauer ($7,800) and Carlos Rodon ($6,500) are tempting, less-expensive options, but I think I prefer Walker ($7,900) ... Mets lefty-mashing OF John Mayberry Jr. ($2,500) is cheap, and faces Mark Buehrle. Mayberry had a 23-point night on Friday against Alex Wood ... Tonight's best lineup stack options appear to be the Angels, Tigers and Red Sox. Angels 3B David Freese ($3,600) stands out as a nice value ... As good as Keuchel is, Rockies C Wilin Rosario ($3,100) comes at a very reasonable price against him ... Kolten Wong ($4,100), Jung Ho Kang ($3,600) and Wilmer Flores ($3,800, 2B/SS) look like solid middle-infield plays.

See you back here tomorrow morning.

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