Tampa Bay Rays outfielder/third baseman Christopher Morel (Achilles) is not in the starting nine on Saturday as the Rays continue a series against the Cleveland Guardians. Morel was lifted early from Friday's game after suffering an Achilles injury while running. Fantasy managers should pay close attention to Sunday's lineup as the 25-year-old may not need to be sidelined long. As a result, Yandy Diaz will shift to the designated hitter spot, which will open up first base for Brandon Lowe. Both Diaz and Lowe are worth a look at in DFS this afternoon as they face Cleveland southpaw Joey Cantillo, who has bounced between the rotation and the bullpen this summer. However, he looked quite sharp in his previous outing striking out 11 batters but still sits with a hefty 5.96 ERA.

Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Christopher Morel left Friday night's game early with right-Achilles discomfort, according to the team. Morel was replaced by Dylan Carlson in the top of the third after recording a single and rounding first hard before returning to the base, apparently tweaking his Achilles in the process. No further update has been provided by the team as of yet, but until then, it should be assumed that the 25-year-old's status is day-to-day. Morel has been subpar with the Rays since being acquired in a trade with the Chicago Cubs, hitting for just a 66 OPS+ in 150 plate appearances. Much of the drop in production has been due to a huge drop in power, hitting for a .583 OPS with Tampa compared to .675 with Chicago before he was traded. Fantasy managers likely haven't been counting on Morel, but if they need another option from the Rays to finish the season, they should consider Jonny DeLuca, who is hitting for a 125 wRC+ over the last 30 days in the Rays' outfield.

Tampa Bay Rays third baseman/outfielder Christopher Morel, second baseman Brandon Lowe and outfielder Jose Siri are all heading to the bench on Friday versus the division-rival Baltimore Orioles and right-hander Dean Kremer at Camden Yards. Dylan Carlson is starting in left field and batting cleanup, Jose Caballero is at second base and batting seventh, and Jonny DeLuca is in center field and is in the six-hole against Kremer, who is making his first start off the injured list. Morel has struggled in his short time with Tampa since being acquired from the Cubs at the trade deadline, hitting .191 (22-for-115) with three homers, five RBI and 42 strikeouts in 31 games. Carlson has hit just .208 (16-for-77) in 25 games since joining the Rays at the trade deadline, but all three of his homers have come in Tampa. He'll be a deep DFS sleeper in the cleanup spot for the Rays on Friday.

Tampa Bay Rays utilityman Christopher Morel made his presence known immediately with his new team in Tuesday's 9-3 win over the Marlins. Playing second base and batting third, Morel went 1-for-4 with a solo home run. He was also hit by a pitch. The 25-year-old roped a fourth-inning Edward Cabrera curveball into the left-center seats for his first HR with the Rays and his 19th on the season. He has already proven to be an erratic hitter in his young career and this season has been no different, as he has slashed .199/.303/.380 with 45 runs scored, 52 RBI, and seven stolen bases in 426 plate appearances. He has cut his strikeout rate down to 24.2% and has gotten unlucky on balls in play despite hitting the ball hard, so perhaps a change of scenery will help turn things around for him.

Third baseman Christopher Morel has been traded to the Tampa Bay Rays in the deal that will send Isaac Paredes to the Chicago Cubs. Morel hit .199 this season with 18 homers and 51 RBI for the Cubs before the trade. The 25-year-old offers some pop in his bat but the batting average is an issue as are his 103 strikeouts on the season. Morel's role in Tampa Bay is not clear with top prospect Junior Caminero knocking at the door at Triple-A Durham as Paredes' replacement as the everyday third baseman. The Rays are known to be creative in getting players into the lineup so it's possible Morel could be used in the outfield or designated hitter rotation.

Chicago Cubs third baseman Christopher Morel is out of the starting lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Kansas City Royals. The young slugger needs to clear his head after going hitless with four strikeouts during his previous series against the Milwaukee Brewers. Morel has plenty of potential with the bat, but he hasn't put it all together yet. In his absence, Miles Mastrobuoni will play third base and bat seventh versus right-hander Brady Singer. Fantasy managers should adjust their lineups accordingly.

Chicago Cubs third baseman Christopher Morel nailed a pair of homers on Sunday, leading the Cubs to an 8-3 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals. Morel went 2-for-4 with two runs and three RBI to round out his line. The toolsy infielder has had a strange season, slashing just .202/.303/.387 while playing miserable defense, yet somehow being quite useful in fantasy by tacking on 42 runs, 18 homers, 50 RBI, and seven swipes in 341 at-bats. His statcast page is also a sea of red, so he could be a solid buy-low going into the second half.

Chicago Cubs third baseman Christopher Morel is getting a breather on Saturday as the team takes on the visiting Los Angeles Angels at Wrigley Field. Morel is in the midst of a modest three-game hitting streak that has seen him go 3-for-11 with an RBI, no walks and six strikeouts in 12 plate appearances. The 25-year-old Dominican right-handed slugger typically sells out for power and can be very streaky at the plate. He's hitting under .200 on the season but has 15 home runs, 46 RBI, seven stolen bases and 38 RBI in 308 at-bats. Morel is useful for his power/speed combination in most fantasy leagues, but he's most certainly going to be a drain on your team batting average. David Bote will play third base and bat eighth for the Cubs on Saturday against Angels left-hander Tyler Anderson. Bote is hitting .250 with a .564 OPS and an RBI in 12 career at-bats against Anderson.

Chicago Cubs third baseman Christopher Morel walked the Pittsburgh Pirates off with a single to score Cody Bellinger with the game's only run, sealing a 1-0 victory for the Cubs. Morel has found a home in the cleanup spot in the batting order, hitting .215 with nine home runs, 32 RBI, 22 runs scored, and four stolen bases. Morel has cut his strikeout rate from 31% in 2023 to a manageable 21.5% thus far in 2024. Look for the productive Morel to continue playing third base and batting in the four-spot for the 26-21 Chicago Cubs.

Chicago Cubs third baseman Christopher Morel (toe) is serving as the designated hitter on Tuesday and is batting cleanup against the Atlanta Braves and left-hander Chris Sale. Patrick Wisdom will play third base for the Cubbies. Morel has been beat up in the last few days with a toe injury and a sore knee, so it makes sense the Cubs are getting the 24-year-old right-handed slugger off his feet for this one. Morel fouled a ball off his left foot late in Monday's game against the Braves. He's never faced Sale in his career and is in for a tough matchup with Sale looking healthy and dominant so far in his first year in Atlanta in 2024. Morel has been better in May with a .244 average (10-for-41) with five home runs and 13 RBI. There's plenty of power here, but Morel is also prone to strikeouts, which Sale can deliver in spades when he's on.

Chicago Cubs third baseman Christopher Morel (toe) left the team's game on Monday early against the Atlanta Braves with a toe injury on his left foot after he fouled a ball off his foot late in the contest. Morel also injured his right knee on Saturday against the Pittsburgh Pirates and is dealing with some bumps and bruises, so it wouldn't be a surprise at all to see him sit out of Tuesday's game in Atlanta. The 24-year-old walked off with a trainer and was seen wincing after fouling a ball off his foot. Before leaving late in Monday's game, Morel went 0-for-3 with a walk and two strikeouts to drop his season average to .223 and his OPS to .747. If Morel needs more than just one day off because of his bumps and bruises, both Miles Mastrobuoni and Nick Madrigal would be candidates to mix in at the hot corner for the Cubbies.

Chicago Cubs third baseman Christopher Morel (knee) is back at third base and is batting cleanup for the Cubbies on Sunday against the Pittsburgh Pirates and left-hander Bailey Falter. Morell was forced to leave Saturday's contest early in the fifth inning with right-knee soreness after sliding into second base on a stolen-base attempt. It was clearly nothing serious, though, so fantasy managers can get the 24-year-old back into their starting lineups for a good matchup against Falter. Morel is hitting just .220 (31-for-141) on the year, but he also has eight home runs, 25 RBI, four stolen bases and 21 runs scored in the middle of Chicago's batting order. He's hit .250 (6-for-24) with two of his home runs against left-handed pitching.

Chicago Cubs third baseman Christopher Morel (knee) was removed from Saturday's game versus the Pittsburgh Pirates in the fifth inning with right knee soreness. The 24-year-old appeared to have hurt his right knee while sliding into second base attempting a steal in the top of the third inning. He went 1-for-3 with a strikeout before exiting. Morel is considered day-to-day and will undergo further evaluation on his right knee after the game. Nick Madrigal replaced Morel in Saturday's contest. Madrigal would see an uptick in playing time if Morel were to miss any games, but he is not on the fantasy radar in most league formats after hitting .208 (11-for-53) in 2024.

Chicago Cubs outfielder/infielder Christopher Morel launched his seventh homer in a 6-5 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Saturday. Morel hit the home run off Tobias Myers in the third inning. The third baseman is hitting .213 with the aforementioned seven home runs, 20 RBI, three stolen bases and 20 runs scored. Morel launched 26 round-trippers in 2023. Morel has been hitting in the cleanup spot for the Cubs. Continue to look for more pop in his bat, but be aware that could come with a batting average hit to your fantasy team.

Chicago Cubs third baseman Christopher Morel went 1-for-4 and smashed a solo shot in the bottom of the sixth inning against Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Joe Ross in the Cubs' 3-1 loss on Friday. Morel's sixth homer of the season, and second in as many games, gave the Cubs a 1-0 lead at the time. The 24-year-old now has a .689 OPS on the season. Morel is hitting below his 2023 levels, but a .295 wOBA with a .338 xwOBA point towards some positive regression for the righty. He will get a matchup against Brewers rookie Tobias Myers on Saturday.

Chicago Cubs outfielder Christopher Morel went 1-for-4 with a three-run home run and a walk during Thursday's extra-innings loss to the New York Mets. The 24-year-old is now slashing .209/.287/.383 with five homers, 17 RBI and three stolen bases in 31 games. Morel has not had the breakout campaign some pundits were expecting as he has struggled to find consistency at the plate. There is still value in his bat due to his power potential and positional versatility, but he is becoming more of a liability in shallow formats.

Chicago Cubs outfielder Christopher Morel struggled at the plate after a hitless game with two strikeouts Wednesday. Morel is now 5-for-37 in his last 10 games with one double, one homer, seven RBI, and 11 strikeouts. Like his outfield partner, Ian Happ, he had a strong start to the season but has also hit a wall. He should be able to get back on track with favorable matchups in the upcoming series versus the Miami Marlins.

Chicago Cubs infielder Christopher Morel is focusing on playing third base as Spring Training gets underway, manager Craig Counsell told the media on Saturday. The Cubs' new skipper explained that he wants to maximize Morel's impact both in the field and at the plate, and he thinks he can do so by giving the 24-year-old a more consistent role on defense. To be precise, Counsell said, "Christopher's done so much with the bat, that it's our job to figure out the best way to deploy it." Indeed, Morel impressed through 107 games last year, slashing .247/.313/.508 with 26 homers, 71 RBI, and 119 wRC+. He was the Cubs' designated hitter for more than half the season, adding 28 appearances in the outfield and 26 in the infield, including five at third base. He finished 2023 with -12.9 dWAR.

Chicago Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said that the team isn't trying to trade utility player Christopher Morel this offseason. And as far as where Morel will play in 2024, they view him as a game-changing hitter whom the Cubs want to keep in their lineup, whether he's playing one spot or moving around. Morel has appeared at each outfield spot, shortstop, second base and third base in his career, but he made 61 appearances in 107 games as the designated hitter in 2023 while hitting 26 home runs, which was tied with Cody Bellinger for the team lead. Morel didn't make his season debut until May 9 and was tied for 19th in MLB with a .508 slugging percentage. Not only can Morel hit and hit for power, but he could give fantasy managers some nice positional flexibility in 2024. Third base and first base, in addition to DH, might be the most realistic for Chicago.

Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell and general manager Carter Hawkins said on Saturday that outfielder Christopher Morel will likely be used in a super-utility role again in 2024 rather than focusing on just one position. Morel has been working some at first base this winter and he's played every position but first base and catcher in his two seasons in the majors to this point. The 24-year-old right-handed slugger was mostly used as a designated hitter in the second half of last season. He could bounce around from the outfield, third base, first base and DH in his third big-league campaign. Of all the options on the diamond, Morel should be in the lineup regularly. Morel has a lot of power (26 home runs, .821 OPS), but he strikes out a third of the time and can be very streaky for fantasy managers. If he can cut down on the K's, he could break out.