NL Week 4 Strategy-April 18, 2026
In The Field
3B Graham Pauley left Friday’s game early with left oblique discomfort. The Diamondbacks received good news that OF Lourdes Gurriel Jr. was cleared to be activated. He was in the starting lineup on Saturday. He was recovering from ACL surgery in September. Gurriel Jr. hit .248 with 19 HR, 52 R, 80 RBI, and 10 SB in 546 PA last year. OF Tim Tawa has been starting in left field most nights, so he is likely going to shift to a bench role. OF Jackson Chourio (hand) was able to take swings for the first time since having hamate bone surgery. It has been a slower recovery than expected, but an early May return is the goal for the Brewers’ young superstar. The Brewers have been playing OF Sal Frelick and OF Garret Mitchell regularly, so the guy who will lose the most playing time is going to be OF Brandon Lockridge (.255 AVG with 0 HR, 5 R, 5 RBI, and 3 SB). OF Kyle Stowers (hamstring) was activated on Sunday. Stowers hasn’t played this season because of a spring injury, but is looking to build off his breakout 2025 season (.288 AVG with 25 HR, 61 R, 73 RBI, and 5 SB). He is going to slot into being the regular leftfielder, which is going to end the playing time for the platoon of OF Heriberto Hernandez and OF Javier Sanoja. OF Juan Soto (calf) has been able to do baseball activities and is on track to return next week. He has been out for the past two weeks. 1B Jorge Polanco (wrist/Achilles) had an MRI done on his right wrist and was placed on the 10-day IL on Saturday. This will also give him time to address his Achilles injury. OF Willi Castro (hand) left Wednesday’s game after getting hit on the hand by a pitch. X-rays came back negative, but he was still out of the lineup on Friday. 3B Jared Triolo (knee) is expected to start running bases next week. He has been able to hit, so this is the next step in returning. The Pirates have been using 2B Nick Gonzales and 3B/OF Nick Yorke at 3B while he has been out. Gonzales is hitting .246 with 0 HR, 7 R, 10 RBI, and 1 SB in 65 PA, and Yorke is hitting .255 with 0 R, 3 R, 2 RBI, and 0 SB. Both players would be fantasy relevant if they were playing full-time, but it’s hard to roster either in their current rotation. OF Harrison Bader was placed on the 10-day IL with a left hamstring strain. Bader was struggling before the injury (.115 AVG with 1 HR, 4 R, 3 RBI, and 0 SB). C Sean Murphy (hip) is playing in rehab games, but hasn’t progressed to full games. He is still on track to return before the end of the month. 2B Ketel Marte was scratched from the lineup on Tuesday due to lower back soreness. He was back in the lineup on Wednesday. He was at DH on both Wednesday and Friday to manage this injury. C Gabriel Moreno was placed on the 10-day IL on Tuesday with a left oblique strain. They have alternated starts for C Adrian Del Castillo and C James McCann, which makes it hard to roster either. OF Christian Yelich was placed on the 10-day IL on Tuesday with a left adductor strain. He is expected to miss 4-6 weeks, which is a big blow to fantasy owners. OF Pete Crow-Armstrong has been moved down to seventh in the batting order due to his early-season struggles (.227 AVG and 30% K). This was always a possibility considering he chases so much out of the zone (48% O-swing). 1B Jose Fernandez has become a regular in the Diamondbacks lineup. He is hitting .302 with 2 HR, 9 R, 9 RBI, and 1 SB in 53 PA. 3B Connor Norby has picked up 1B eligibility in most leagues. He is hitting .254 with 2 HR, 6 R, 6 RBI, and 0 SB. 1B/OF Jake Bauers is off to a strong start in 2026, hitting .254 with 5 HR, 13 R, and 13 RBI in 66 PA. The power looks legit, backed by strong quality of contact (13% Barrels and 53% HardHit), which supports the early home run surge. He is also showing a solid approach (11% BB and 21% K), which should help keep him in the lineup. Bauers is a clear add for power right now, especially while he is locked into regular at-bats. OF Ramón Laureano is off to a great start, hitting .290 with 4 HR, 12 R, and 13 RBI in 76 PA. He has also been moved into the leadoff spot for the Padres. 1B Dominic Smith is off to a hot start, hitting .362 with 4 HR, 10 R, and 16 RBI in 50 PA. He is making excellent contact (12% K) and has shown improved power (10% Barrels). The .342 BABIP may come down slightly, but the overall profile looks strong. Smith is a solid add, just know he only plays against RHP. SS Ha-Seong Kim (finger) has started to take batting practice and the Braves intend for him to take live at-bats starting Thursday before starting a rehab assignment. SS Mauricio Dubon has been getting the majority of the reps at shortstop.
On The Mound
Nick Lodolo (blister) threw a simulated game (31 pitches) on Friday. The plan is that, without a setback, he is scheduled for 3 IP on Tuesday. He has been dealing with a recurring blister issue since the end of spring training. Kyle Harrison (knee/wrist) is expected to start next week against the Tigers. He missed his most recent start after injuring his knee and wrist while covering first base. Harrison has looked good to start the year (3.07 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, and 18% K:BB). Cade Horton (elbow) had successful Tommy John surgery on Thursday. He is going to miss the remainder of this season and won’t likely be ready to pitch until the second half of 2027. This is tough news for the Cubs because Horton had a 2.66 ERA and 1.07 WHIP through 24 GS and 125.1 IP to start his career. Spencer Strider (oblique) went 3.1 scoreless innings for High-A Rome on Thursday. He was able to go 50 pitches, which means he will need 2-3 more rehab starts before being built enough to make his 2026 debut. Matthew Boyd (biceps) made a rehab start with Triple-A Iowa on Thursday (3.2 IP, 3 ER, 4 H, 1 BB, and 6 K). He is expected to be activated and start next week on Wednesday against the Phillies. Jared Jones (elbow) threw a live BP session on Wednesday. The Pirates’ pitching coach said Jones looked “amazing”. He is going to throw multiple live BP sessions before beginning a rehab assignment. He has a target return date of late May. Jones had a 4.14 ERA, 1.19 WHI, 26% K, and 8% BB in 121.2 IP in 2024. The Pirates’ current rotation has been one of the best in baseball (3.16 ERA, which ranks #3), so there isn’t currently an opening, but a lot can change over the next month. Nick Pivetta left his start early on Sunday with an elbow injury, which turned out to be a flexor strain. According to his manager, Craig Stammen, he is going to be our “weeks, maybe months”. Blake Snell (shoulder) threw live BP on Wednesday. It was 31 pitches, and he is expected to throw at least two more live BP sessions before starting a rehab assignment. He is looking at a late May return date, but with Snell’s injury history, that is no guarantee. Kyle Freeland was placed on the 15-day IL on Wednesday with left shoulder inflammation. Zack Wheeler (shoulder) went 5.2 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, and 9 K in his latest rehab start. He went 72 pitches, which puts him in line for one more start before making his season debut after having venous thoracic outlet syndrome surgery. Joe Musgrove (elbow) hasn’t been cleared to start bullpens. He was able to make one start during spring training but was shut down after experiencing soreness. There is no timetable for his return at this point. Griffin Channing (Achilles) went 2.2 IP, 2 ER, 1 H, 4 BB, and 6 K in his rehab start for Triple-A El Paso. The plan is for him to make one more start before making his season debut. Channing has struggled with control (9 BB in 8.1 IP), so hopefully he can clean that up in his next rehab start. Matt Waldron was activated on Friday and started against the Angels (3.2 IP, 6 ER, 8 H, 1 BB, and 4 K). Quinn Priester (wrist) is expected to start a rehab assignment next week. He has been held out due to symptoms related to thoracic outlet syndrome.
In The Bullpen
Daniel Palencia was placed on the 15-day IL on Friday with a left oblique strain. The good news is that it isn’t an elbow or shoulder injury, but the bad news is that he will be sidelined for multiple weeks. The Cubs also have Hunter Harvey (triceps) and Phil Maton (knee) on the 15-day IL as well. Caleb Thielbar and Ben Brown are candidates for saves while everyone is on the IL. Paul Sewald had a big week for fantasy owners with three saves (7). Raisel Iglesias saved back-to-back games on Tuesday and Wednesday. Emilio Pagan got two saves and is second in the league with six saves. The Brewers’ bullpen was a source of fantasy goodness this week. Abner Uribe got a save and a win. Trevor Megill blew a save but also closed out Friday’s game. Aaron Ashby got two wins, and Grant Anderson got a save on Thursday. Mason Miller continues to be the best reliever in baseball. He picked up two saves to go along with a 0.00 ERA, 0.21 WHIP, 77% K, 3% BB, and -0.55 SIERA. Gus Varland got two saves for the Nationals while Clayton Beeter blew the only save chance he got. Jhoan Duran was placed on the 15-day IL with a left oblique injury, which is a troublesome injury for pitchers. Brad Keller and Jose Alvarado are options at the back end of games. Duran had been one of the best relief pitchers in the game with a 1.35 ERA, 0.75 WHIP, 33% K, 0% BB, 1 W, and 5 SV.
Players to add this week:
SP Carmen Mlodzinski (PIT)- Carmen Mlodzinski has started off strong in 2026, posting a 1.77 ERA and 1.33 WHIP across 20.1 IP. He has shown solid strikeout ability (23% K) with a decent 13.8% K-BB%, but the 9.2% walk rate needs to come down continue success. He is generating a healthy amount of ground balls (52% GB), which helps limit damage. His underlying skills point towards a 3.67 SIERA, which suggests he can remain a useful fantasy option. Mlodzinski is a viable add as a back-end starter, especially in favorable matchups.
1B Dominic Smith (ATL)- Dominic Smith is off to a hot start, hitting .362 with 4 HR, 10 R, and 16 RBI in 50 PA. He is making excellent contact (12% K) and has shown improved power (10% Barrels). The .342 BABIP may come down slightly, but the overall profile looks strong. Smith is a solid add, just know he only plays against RHP.
1B Jose Fernandez (ARI)-Jose Fernandez is off to a hot start, hitting .302 with 2 HR, 9 R, and 9 RBI in 53 PA. However, he has not drawn a walk (0% BB) and is striking out at a 26% rate, which raises concerns about sustainability. He is also running a .378 BABIP, which is likely to regress. With that being said, he is playing every day and is swinging a hot bat. He projects as a 15 HR/10 SB type of bat with a full season’s worth of plate appearances.
OF Ramon Laureano (SDP)-Ramón Laureano is off to a great start, hitting .290 with 4 HR, 12 R, and 13 RBI in 76 PA. He has also been moved into the leadoff spot for the Padres. The power is backed by strong underlying metrics (17% Barrels and 49% HardHit), which support the breakout. He is also showing a solid approach (8% BB and 21% K). His .327 BABIP is reasonable given the contact quality. This is in line with his strong bounce back last season (.281 AVG with 24 HR, 72 R, 76 RBI, and 7 SB in 488 PA).
1B/OF Jake Bauers (MIL)- Jake Bauers is off to a strong start in 2026, hitting .254 with 5 HR, 13 R, and 13 RBI in 66 PA. The power looks legit, backed by strong quality of contact (13% Barrels and 53% HardHit), which supports the early home run surge. He is also showing a solid approach (11% BB and 21% K), which should help keep him in the lineup. Bauers is a clear add for power right now, especially while he is locked into regular at-bats.
3B Connor Norby (MIA)- Connor Norby is off to a decent start, hitting .254 with 2 HR, 6 R, and 6 RBI in 70 PA. He has also added 1B eligibility in most leagues. He has shown decent plate skills (9% BB and 24% K) to go along with a strong barrel rate (9% Barrels). It’s a double-digit HR/SB profile with a lower batting average (.240-.250) due to his high fly ball rate (49% FB).
SP Andrew Painter (PHI)- Andrew Painter has been up and down to start 2026. He has a 3.77 ERA and 1.33 WHIP across 14.1 IP. His underlying skills paint a different picture. He has above-average strikeout-to-walk rates (21%). Painter is striking out 26% of batter while only walking 5%. He is being hurt by a .381 BABIP, which is going to regress. His 3.01 SIERA supports that he has pitched better than his ERA indicates. Painter is a strong add with both strikeout upside and improving ratios.
SP Kyle Harrison (MIL)- Kyle Harrison is expected back next week. He has gotten off to a solid start in 2026, posting a 3.07 ERA and 1.09 WHIP across 14.2 IP. He has paired a 25% strikeout rate with solid control (6.7% BB), leading to a strong 18.3% K-BB%. Harrison is limiting damage fairly well, though the 1.23 HR/9 is something to monitor given his fly ball tendencies. His 3.53 SIERA supports the early results. Harrison is a strong add as a mid-rotation fantasy arm with strikeout upside. The Brewers have gotten the most out of Harrison because he is sporting a career-best Stuff+ (106) and Location+ (115).