Cardinals C Yadier Molina, who has been out since July 9 after tearing a ligament in his thumb, began a rehab assignment on Wednesday. Molina caught six innings in the game at Double-A Springfield, while hitting a home run and a double in three at bats. The Cards want to make sure Molina is ready to play regularly behind the plate, and manager Mike Matheny said that his All-Star backstop "might need a couple days of catching" before coming off the DL, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. If you own Molina, keep an eye on the news this weekend. He could be back as soon as Friday.
Wednesday's studs & duds
Stud: Clayton Kershaw was his usual awesome self, striking out 10 D-backs in eight innings, and allowing one unearned run.
Stud: Let's go with Cubs 3B Luis Valbuena, who had a homer and a steal against the Reds.
Dud: My dad was so happy when he called last night to tell me that the Yankees had gotten nine consecutive hits in the third inning against Tigers SP David Price. Price finished his night with eight runs and 13 baserunners allowed in two-plus innings. That'll hurt the old fantasy ERA.
News & notes
Congrats to Cubs' rookie Jorge Soler for homering in his first major-league at bat. He crushed it, too.
Cubs 1B Anthony Rizzo missed Wednesday's game due to lower back tightness, and is day to day.
Eric O'Flaherty saved Wednesday's win for the A's. He's still available in 95.9 percent of FOXSports.com leagues.
The Rockies have placed catcher/fantasy disappointment Wilin Rosario (wrist) on the DL. Backup Michael McKenry (0.2 percent owned) has been hitting pretty well (.897 OPS), and might be a good option in deeper formats.
In other Cardinals' news, SP Michael Wacha (shoulder) is tentatively scheduled to make a minor-league rehab start on Sunday, while ace Adam Wainwright says he's struggling with a "dead arm."
The Mets were without 3B David Wright (neck) and 2B Daniel Murphy (calf) again on Wednesday. Maybe they'll play today, maybe they won't.
Dodgers OF Scott Van Slyke is day to day after leaving Wednesday's game with a sprained ankle. 3B Juan Uribe (hamstring) could return from the DL as soon as Sunday, while 1B Adrian Gonzalez got Wednesday off due to a stiff back that the team is trying to manage down the stretch.
On the heels of two consecutive bad outings by Jake Petricka, Zach Putnam got a one-out save for the White Sox on Wednesday. Let's keep an eye on this situation as Petricka's job could be in danger.
A's SS Jed Lowrie (broken finger) hopes to begin a rehab assignment by Saturday.
Look for Red Sox SS Xander Bogaerts (concussion) to be activated on Saturday.
Streaming starters
A strong outing from Angels' SP Hector Santiago raised our record to 81-53 for the season. Today's pick is Houston's Collin McHugh (29.1 percent owned) versus the Rangers, while Friday's selection is Jacob DeGrom (26.8 percent owned) in pitcher-friendly CitiField. DeGrom has a 3.13 ERA with a 1.22 WHIP and nearly a strikeout per inning, and he'll face a Phillies' lineup that ranks 27th in the majors with a .673 OPS.
See you back here tomorrow morning.
