Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Yandy Diaz blasted his second home run of the season in Sunday's 8-3 win over the Atlanta Braves. The home run came in the first inning off Chris Sale, the 2024 NL Cy Young winner. Diaz has gotten off to a slow start to the season, but in his last six games, he has gone 7-for-23 (.304). So far this season, Diaz is now slashing .210/.242/.355, scoring eight runs with three RBI, to go along with the two home runs. Diaz is a career .287 hitter, so fantasy managers should expect him to turn it around as he's barrelling the ball up and still ranks in the 82nd percentile in hard-hit percentage. Next for Diaz and the Rays is a series against divisional rivals, the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees. Diaz will look to keep it going and stay hot at the plate.
Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Yandy Diaz is going to stick around with the organization for a few more seasons. On Friday, the Rays picked up Diaz's $12 million team option for 2026 and added a vesting option for the 2027 season. This is noteworthy because Diaz was subject to plenty of trade rumors this offseason, but it appears the Rays want to hold onto the slugging corner infielder. Last season, Diaz slashed .281/.341/.755 with 14 home runs and 65 RBI across 145 games with the Rays. That was actually a down year for Diaz who hit .330 with 22 homers in 2023. He has been a reliable bat for a handful of years and that should remain the case heading into 2025.
The Tampa Bay Times' Marc Topkin writes that the Tampa Bay Rays are considering dropping first baseman Yandy Diaz down in the lineup from the leadoff spot as a way to boost their offense in 2025. Diaz has served as the team's leadoff hitter the last two seasons, but the 33-year-old veteran could be moved down in order to increase his RBI opportunities. In the leadoff spot, Diaz won the American League batting title with a .330 batting average in 2023, so he's done well in the lineup spot, but a move down would also give him more chances to drive in runs. Despite the talk about moving Diaz down, he has mostly served as the leadoff man this spring. Regardless of lineup position, fantasy managers can't expect Diaz to ever be as good as he was in 2023, especially if he continues to hit more ground balls. He ranks as RotoBaller's No. 19 fantasy first baseman. A trade might be the best thing for his fantasy value going forward.
According to Pat Ragazzo of Sports Illustrated, the New York Mets have checked in on first baseman Yandy Diaz. Sources have reported that the Mets have shown interest in Diaz earlier this offseason, but the Rays were unwilling to part with the first baseman. However, given this recent report, the Rays may be open to a trade discussion, especially after they added another infielder, Ha-Seong Kim, earlier this week. The Mets have also contacted other teams looking for a first baseman, including the Detroit Tigers for Spencer Torkelson and the Baltimore Orioles for Ryan Mountcastle. The Mets remain in discussions with Pete Alonso but have begun to have preliminary discussions for an alternative option. Last season, Diaz posted a .281/.341/.414 line with 14 home runs.
According to Andy Martino of SNY, the Tampa Bay Rays are not expected to trade first baseman Yandy Diaz. According to Martino, the Rays plan to hold onto Diaz for the time being as he is one of the top options for offensive production. The 33-year-old enjoyed another strong season in 2024 as he posted a .281/.341/.414 line with 14 home runs and 31 doubles. He showed a great eye at the plate with a 15.3% K rate and a 14.2% whiff rate, which were among the top marks in the sport. He also generated a strong 48.7% hard-hit rate, suggesting his power production could see some positive regression in 2025. This was a slight drop in production compared to the stellar .330/.410/.522 line he posted in 2023. Fantasy managers should expect Diaz to have a consistent spot in the Rays lineup, and he is an excellent target for points leagues, given his elite contact and low strikeout rate.
Tampa Bay Rays infielders Yandy Diaz and Jose Caballero and outfielder Jonny DeLuca are all out of the lineup for Thursday's series finale against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Diaz is on the bench for the third time in the last four days, but it doesn't appear he's dealing with any sort of injury. The 33-year-old hasn't been as good as he was last year when he won the American League batting title with a .330 average, but he's still been one of Tampa's best hitters with a .282/.342/.417 slash line with 14 homers and 65 RBI in 143 games played. Jonathan Aranda is playing first and batting cleanup, with Taylor Walls at short and batting ninth, and Jose Siri in center and in the seven-hole against Tigers right-hander Reese Olson. Aranda recently homered in three straight games and has become a regular down the stretch, hitting .262 (16-for-61) with five homers and nine RBI in 20 games in September.
Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Yandy Diaz appears to be getting a normal day of rest on Wednesday versus the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. Jonathan Aranda will take over at first base and will hit sixth against Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler. Unless he's dealing with an injury we don't know about yet, Diaz should return on Thursday for the start of a new series against the Cleveland Guardians. He's been hot so far in September, going 11-for-32 (.344) with two home runs, a double, and six RBI in eight games played. Aranda has only received 73 at-bats in the big leagues with Tampa in 2024 and hasn't done much at the plate, slashing .205/.284/.315 with only one homer, five RBI and 13 runs scored. In a tough matchup against Wheeler on the road, Aranda is a low-upside sleeper pick for DFS lineups on Wednesday.
Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Yandy Diaz (knee) is rejoining the starting nine on Sunday afternoon. Diaz left Friday's game early with a knee injury and sat out on Saturday as well. However, this injury was not serious as the 33-year-old will serve as the designated hitter and bat in his typical leadoff spot. Diaz enjoyed a nice August, posting an excellent .297/.353/.451 slash line with five doubles, three home runs, and an 8:16 BB:K ratio. Through the summer, Diaz sits with a strong .276/.331/.406 line with 12 long balls. Under the hood, he has held an excellent 13.7% whiff rate, which shows in his 15.2% K rate, which is one of the best marks in the sport. Diaz has a difficult matchup this afternoon against San Diego right-hander Dylan Cease, and is best to leave off of your DFS lineups.
Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Yandy Diaz (knee) is not in Saturday's lineup. Diaz was removed from Friday's game early due to left knee patellar tendinitis. Before exiting, the 33-year-old tallied two hits with one of them leaving the yard. Currently, it is still unknown how much time Diaz will miss, so fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day for the time being. As a result, infielder Brandon Lowe will cover first base this afternoon and bat in the two-hole. This opens up the keystone for Christopher Morel, who will bat in the leadoff spot. The Tampa Bay Rays are an intriguing stack in DFS this afternoon as they will face San Diego right-hander Randy Vasquez, who posted a 5.79 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP across his previous four starts.
Yandy Diaz Leaves Game Early With Left Knee Patellar Tendinitis
Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Yandy Diaz left Friday night's game against the San Diego Padres early with left knee patellar tendinitis. Diaz was replaced in the bottom of the fourth after hitting a single and was pinch-ran for by Jonathan Aranda. The team has not announced how long Diaz is expected to be out, but fantasy managers should expect him to sit out at least the rest of the weekend to give his tendinitis time to heal. His absence will loom large in Tampa as his 136 hits easily leads the Rays. If Diaz is expected to miss much time then expect Brandon Lowe to get more starts at first base, Christopher Morel to slide to second base and Junior Caminero to start at third base. Jose Caballero will likely get more starts at DH. With Caballero's 85 OPS+ he'd make a solid option in deeper leagues, though there are likely better options on the waiver wire.
Yandy Díaz
• 1B
•
Rays
