New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt and designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton are both out of the starting lineup for Thursday's series finale against the division-rival Toronto Blue Jays. Ben Rice is starting at first base and batting second, while Aaron Judge is serving as the DH and hitting third against Blue Jays right-hander Chris Bassitt. Cody Bellinger is in right field and batting cleanup. Goldy started strong with the Yankees but has hit a rough pate of late. He does have four hits in his last two games, but he's hit .152 (5-for-33) with three doubles, no homers, no RBI and four strikeouts in nine games since June 20. It's very possible that Rice moves into a platoon at first in the second half with Goldschmidt. Stanton didn't make his season debut until June 16 and is hitting .244 (11-for-45), but with only one home run and seven RBI.

New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt will start Saturday's game on the bench at Yankee Stadium against the division-rival Baltimore Orioles. Ben Rice is starting at first base and will bat leadoff against Orioles right-hander Zach Eflin. Not only is Goldschmidt now in more danger of being given more days off with Giancarlo Stanton back in the fold, but he's gone 2-for-18 at the plate in his last five games to drop his average under .300 on the season through 275 at-bats. The 37-year-old veteran and former MVP got off to a hot start in his first year in pinstripes, but regression has hit and his decline in power continues with only eight long balls on the year. Rice, meanwhile, is hitting just .228 but has an xBA of .293 and 12 home runs for the Yankees in what has become a breakout season. He's hitless in five career at-bats against Eflin, but eight of his 12 homers in 2025 have come against righties.

New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt finds himself on the bench for the second straight game on Monday for the series opener in the Bronx against the visiting Los Angeles Angels. Ben Rice will start at first base and hit second against Angels right-hander Jose Soriano in the first game with slugger Giancarlo Stanton (elbows) back in the lineup as the designated hitter. Nothing is concrete, but Stanton's return from the injured list could result in Rice and Goldy serving in a platoon at first base moving forward, which would obviously be bad news for the 37-year-old veteran in what has been a bounce-back year in his first season in pinstripes. Goldschmidt is still hitting over .300 on the year, but he's gone 9-for-47 (.191) with a homer, three RBI, six runs and 14 strikeouts in 13 games in June and only has seven long balls on the season.

New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt is not in Sunday's lineup when they conclude a series against the Boston Red Sox. Instead, Ben Rice will cover first base and bat in the two-hole. The 37-year-old has been a staple in the New York starting nine throughout the campaign. Over his previous eight games, Goldschmidt has gone a bit cold at the plate, posting a .212/.297/.333 line with just one double and one home run. Through 69 total games, Goldschmidt has enjoyed a strong resurgence in the Bronx, holding a .309/.369/.453 line with seven home runs and five stolen bases. Under the hood, he has generated a solid .352 xwOBA. Fantasy managers should expect him to return to the lineup on Monday when they face the Angels. This afternoon, the Yankees are a strong target in DFS facing Boston right-hander Brayan Bello.

New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt will start on the bench for Thursday's game in the Bronx against the visiting Cleveland Guardians. Ben Rice will start at first base and bat out of the two-hole against Guardians right-hander Slade Cecconi. Goldschmidt has been having a nice bounce-back season in his first year in pinstripes in 2025, but he'll take a seat after going 1-for-16 with a stolen base, walk and five strikeouts in his last four games played. The former MVP is hitting a strong .323 (72-for-223) on the season but has an xBA of .294, which means fantasy managers should expect some more regression as the season ages. The 37-year-old has added six home runs, 28 RBI, 38 runs scored and five stolen bases after showing signs of offensive decline in his last couple seasons with the Cardinals in 2023 and 2024.

New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt will open Monday's series opener in Anaheim against the hosting Los Angeles Angels on the bench. Ben Rice will make the start at first base for the Yankees and bat leadoff against right-hander Jack Kochanowicz. Goldschmidt has turned back the clock on offense with the move to the Bronx so far in 2025, as he enters the new week slashing a sublime .345/.399/.490 with an .889 OPS, five home runs, 27 RBI, 36 runs scored and four stolen bases in 194 at-bats. While fantasy managers probably want more power, it's hard to complain about what the 37-year-old former MVP has done so far in 2025. Goldy ranks second among all first baseman with his .345 average and has hit .329/.393/.514 with three home runs, 14 RBI and three steals in 85 plate appearances in May. Rice has 10 homers on the year and is an intriguing DFS play on Monday night.

New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt is taking the day off on Wednesday versus the visiting Texas Rangers in the Bronx. Ben Rice will take over at first base and will bat second against Rangers right-hander Jacob deGrom. Goldy will get a day to rest against a veteran pitcher that he's hit just .125 against with an RBI in eight career at-bats. The 37-year-old former MVP has had a resurgent season with the Yankees in his first year with the team in 2025. Goldschmidt currently ranks second among first baseman with a .339 average (60-for-177), behind only Freddie Freeman. He's added five homers, 25 RBI, 31 runs and three stolen bases. Goldy has three homers and 12 RBI in 16 games in May. Rice has never faced deGrom in his career but currently is tied for fourth among all designated hitters in the league with 10 home runs in his 143 at-bats in 2025.

New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt and catcher Austin Wells are not in the starting lineup for Wednesday's series finale against the hosting Seattle Mariners. Ben Rice will start at first base and bat second, while J.C. Escarra will do the catching and hit eighth against Mariners right-hander Luis Castillo. Goldy, who is having a resurgent season in his first year in the Bronx, will take the day off after starting each of the team's last six games. He's currently tied for third in all of baseball with 55 hits and ranks fourth with a .344 average, adding four homers, 21 RBI and 26 runs scored. Wells is batting just .214 (27-for-126) but is tied for third among all catchers with his eight home runs. His 28 RBI are tied for most with Seattle's Cal Raleigh at catcher. Neither Rice nor Escarra have ever faced Castillo in their career. Rice is a sneaky DFS power option with nine homers and 20 RBI on the year.

New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt is not in the starting lineup for Game 2 of the series against the visiting San Diego Padres in the Bronx on Tuesday. Ben Rice will start at first base and bat out of the two-hole against Padres right-hander Michael King. Goldy will be taking a regular day of rest after outperforming expectations early on in his first season with the Yankees after showing clear signs of offensive decline his last few years in St. Louis. The 37-year-old seven-time All-Star and former MVP is hitting a robust .353/.400/.481 with an .881 OPS, three home runs, 17 RBI, 20 runs scored and two stolen bases in 133 at-bats. Rice is in a prime batting-order location to return some DFS value, but he's facing one of the better pitchers in the league and has never faced King. Rice has opened the year hitting .255 (27-for-106) with eight homers, 13 RBI, 22 runs and two steals for the Yanks.

New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt is getting the day off on Thursday for the series finale against the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks at Yankee Stadium. Ben Rice is getting the start at first base and is hitting leadoff against D-backs right-hander Merrill Kelly. Goldy will take his first day off of the year after hitting atop New York's batting order the last four games. The 37-year-old former National League MVP has gotten off to a .250 batting average (5-for-20) with a homer, double, two RBI, one walk and six strikeouts in five games played. The seven-time All-Star showed plenty of signs of decline his last two years in St. Louis, but he could be a bit more intriguing as a bounce-back candidate if he continues to hit atop the Yankees' batting order. Rice will be a popular DFS play on Thursday in the leadoff spot after going 5-for-13 with two homers, a double and two RBI in his first five games in 2025.

New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt is batting leadoff again on Tuesday at Yankee Stadium against the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks and right-hander Corbin Burnes. It will be Goldschmidt's third time leading off in the early going in five games played. In his first game at leadoff on Saturday against the Milwaukee Brewers, the 37-year-old right-handed slugger hit the first pitch he saw out of the park and set the stage for the Yankees to set a new MLB record by homering three straight times on only three pitches to begin a game. He will now hit leadoff for the third straight game against a right-hander, and the Yanks don't really have any reason to change their lineup up after scoring 32 runs in the games that Goldy has hit leadoff. He's gone 5-for-12 with a homer, double and two RBI in three games and has hit .323 with an .834 OPS, a homer and two RBI in 31 career at-bats against Burnes.

New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt is starting at first base and batting leadoff for the team's second game of the regular season on Saturday at Yankee Stadium against the Milwaukee Brewers and left-hander Nestor Cortes. Catcher Austin Wells was the team's leadoff hitter on Opening Day against Milwaukee on Thursday, but Goldy will sit atop the order on Saturday with a lefty on the mound. Outfielder Jasson Dominguez is at designated hitter, which will push the lefty-hitting Ben Rice to the bench with a southpaw starting. Goldschmidt went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts on Opening Day in his Yankees debut. The 37-year-old veteran has shown obvious signs of decline as a hitter the last few seasons before coming to the Bronx, although there is bounce-back potential with the Yankees, and hitting leadoff against lefties will help. Goldy has one hit in four career at-bats against Cortes.

New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt (back) will return to the lineup on Saturday for the team's Grapefruit League game against the Phillies. The veteran was pulled from a game on March 17 due to back soreness but the team was hopeful he'd return this weekend. The 37-year-old will lead off for the Yankees on Saturday, a role he could see regularly this season when the team faces left-handed pitching according to manager Aaron Boone. The Phillies will deploy left-handed pitcher Jesus Luzardo on Saturday. The 7x All-Star owns a career .323/.423/.586 slash line against LHP, compared to a .279/.368/.488 against RHP. The former MVP has seen a dwindling batting average and power numbers the last couple of seasons with a corresponding increase in strikeout and chase rate but has been solid this spring, slashing .313/.389/.688 with three home runs. He's still a viable fantasy option as long as he's healthy and is expected to be ready for Opening Day at this point, although the days of being an elite producer are likely over.

New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt (back), who was previously expected to return to Grapefruit League action on Friday, said he now plans to return on Saturday. Goldschmidt's back is close to 100 percent, and he's not concerned about missing Opening Day next Thursday. As long as Goldy returns this weekend and doesn't have a setback with his back, fantasy managers with drafts early next week should feel comfortable taking him as a source of power as a corner infielder in mixed leagues. The 37-year-old former MVP is highly unlikely to return to the form he showed in St. Louis several seasons ago, but he could be in for a decent bounce-back campaign in the Bronx in 2025 if he can stay healthy. However, a back injury at the end of spring training and the fact that his strikeout and walk rates were both career-worst marks clearly show an aging slugger.

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone said that Friday is the target for first baseman Paul Goldschmidt (back) to return to a Grapefruit League game against the Detroit Tigers. He will go through baseball activities in camp on Thursday. Goldy has been dealing with a tight back this week, but it's not believed to be anything serious, and as long as he doesn't have a setback this weekend in his return to game action, he should be ready to roll next Thursday for Opening Day. After two straight seasons of a decline offensively, fantasy managers that have already rolled the dice on the 37-year-old former MVP have to be pleased by him going 10-for-32 with three home runs and 10 RBI in 13 Grapefruit League games to this point. Goldy may no longer be an elite fantasy first baseman, but if he stays healthy in 2025, he could easily bounce back in the Bronx.

The New York Yankees will give first baseman Paul Goldschmidt (back) as much time as he needs, but manager Aaron Boone expects him to return to a Grapefruit League game on Thursday or Friday. A sore back caused Goldschmidt to be pulled early from Monday's spring training game against the division-rival Toronto Blue Jays, but it appears it was just a precaution and that the 37-year-old veteran will be fine for Opening Day next Thursday as long as he doesn't have a setback with his back this weekend when he returns to game action. A back ailment with just over a week until Opening Day isn't what fantasy managers want to hear from an aging slugger that has shown signs of decline since winning the National League MVP award in 2022. The seven-time All-Star and five-time Silver Slugger winner had a career-high strikeout rate and career-low walk rate in 2024, although he could bounce back somewhat in the Bronx if he can stay healthy.

New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt (back) was pulled from Monday's Grapefruit League game early against the division-rival Toronto Blue Jays with back soreness, according to The Athletic's Chris Kirschner. Goldschmidt told reporters that he's been dealing with a sore back for a few days and he's not concerned about missing Opening Day next Thursday. The 37-year-old veteran went 0-for-1 with a walk before leaving Monday's game. He should be considered day-to-day for now, but if Goldy is unable to return after a few days, he could be forced to open the season on the injured list as a precaution. The seven-time All-Star and former MVP had another down year in 2024 with the Cardinals but came into Monday's spring game with a .323 average, three home runs and 10 RBI in 12 Grapefruit League games. He could bounce back in the Bronx, but it's also possible Goldy will continue to decline.

MLB.com's Bryan Hoch reports that New York Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt will start in the team's Grapefruit League opener on Friday against the division-rival Tampa Bay Rays. In addition to Goldy, Jazz Chisholm Jr., Anthony Volpe, Jasson Dominguez and Cody Bellinger are scheduled to play. After seeing a notable decline in his offensive skills the last couple years with the St. Louis Cardinals, Goldschmidt signed a one-year, $12.5 million deal with the Yankees and will be their primary first baseman in 2025. The 37-year-old former MVP had 35 homers in 2022 before dropping to 25 in 2023 and 22 last year. He had career-worst marks in strikeout rate (26.5%) and walk rate (7.2%), but a hard-hit rate just below 50% shows that he could bounce back in a better situation in the Bronx this year. RotoBaller has Goldy ranked as the No. 15 fantasy first baseman.

Free-agent first baseman Paul Goldschmidt and the New York Yankees agreed on a one-year, $12.5 million deal on Saturday, pending a physical, according to a source. Goldschmidt was also receiving interest from the Arizona Diamondbacks, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners and New York Mets, but he'll instead head to the Bronx and replace Anthony Rizzo as the club's regular first baseman in 2025. The 37-year-old right-handed slugger has been an All-Star seven times and was the National League MVP in 2022 with the St. Louis Cardinals, but he declined significantly on offense in 2024 with a .245/.302/.414 slash line with a career-worst .716 OPS and 22 home runs in 154 games. Although Goldy was better in the second half, it's concerning that his strikeout rate rose to a career-high 26.5% while his walk rate was at a career-low 7.2%. There could be some juice left, and New York isn't a bad landing spot.

The Detroit Tigers are showing interest in free-agent first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, according to sources. The 37-year-old veteran right-handed slugger is only two years removed from winning the National League MVP award. However, his offensive prowess dropped considerably in a disappointing 2024 campaign in which he hit 22 home runs with a .716 OPS in 154 games for the St. Louis Cardinals. Because of his rapid decline at the plate, the Cardinals didn't even offer him a one-year qualifying offer, so Detroit wouldn't have to send draft compensation St. Louis' way if the were to sign Goldy. With the Cards looking to get younger in 2025, they aren't expected to pursue re-signing him. A move to Detroit wouldn't be a great landing spot from a fantasy perspective after Goldschmidt posted career-worsts in strikeout rate (26.5%) and walk rate (7.2%).