Carlos Beltran -- Beltran is scheduled to begin taking extended spring training at-bats on Monday. Beltran was diagnosed with a bone spur in his right elbow in the middle of May, and worst case scenario at that point was missing 6-to-12 weeks. Thankfully for Beltran owners, the Yankees' outfielder didn't require surgery, and he's been making steady progress ever since. If all goes well in extended spring training, Beltran could return to the Yankees' lineup as early as Thursday. Beltran was only batting .234 with five home runs before the hitting the DL, but Yankee Stadium is a favorable home park, Beltran is still very talented, and he should start picking up the pace. He's a good buy low candidate.
Jose Abreu -- Abreu, who has been on the DL the past couple weeks with an ankle injury, could be activated on Monday. That's good news for fantasy owners, who haven't had to be without one of the season's biggest breakouts for very long. Scouts did not oversell the ridiculous raw power that Abreu possesses, and the holes in his swing that had some concerned he might strike out a lot have not proven to be an issue (26.5% K%). There may be a little bit of risk still left, but it's more likely that Abreu goes on to become of the baseball's best power hitters over the rest of the season.
Nelson Cruz -- The red-hot Cruz left Sunday's game against Houston after being hit on the hand with a pitch. Cruz was 0-for-2 in the game, but I think fantasy owners will forgive him considering how ridiculous he's been performing lately... and since his x-rays came back negative. He's being considered day-to-day and should be back in the lineup around mid-week. Cruz's nearly 60-home-run pace is unlikely to continue, but he's in a good situation with Baltimore and should continue to be a valuable contributor in all fantasy formats.
Matt Wieters -- Wieters, who began testing his elbow on Friday with some light throwing, threw again on Sunday and said he felt even better this go-round. Still, manager Buck Showalter said that Wieters won't be returning within the next couple weeks, leaving just a two week window between then and July 1 for the Orioles to decide whether he'll need to undergo surgery so he could be ready for the start of the 2015 season. Wieters is one of the best catchers in fantasy, so his owners are waiting with baited breath to see how this situation shakes out.
Feel free to ask me your fantasy questions on Twitter (@DerekCarty).
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