We blinked, and it’s officially summer! We’re nearly halfway through the season, and our fantasy teams are shaping into what we can only hope to be juggernauts. Of course, there are many of us who are struggling either with injury, opportunity, or poor performance who are still looking to improve our squads and make a charge toward the top of the standings. For the first week in nearly a month, there isn’t a blue chip, super-hyped prospect on the wire, which means we’ll have to get creative and scrappy in the way that we attack our FAAB bids this weekend. There are several names that could provide some sneaky (and not-so-sneaky) value this week.
As a reminder, this column is designed to help guide those in Free Agent Acquisition Budget (FAAB) leagues in making the best choices regarding who to target on the waiver wire. Specifically, we’re focusing on players who are between 20-25% rostered in most 12-team leagues and/or 25-50% rostered in 15-teamers. Every league is different, so we won’t be labeling player bids with any sort of recommended dollar amount but instead will use a four-tier investment rating system, ranging from a minimal spend to a potential difference-maker (or LEAGUE-WINNER, if you will).
Let’s dig in!
Investment Rating System
Only four teams have a full seven-game slate on the schedule for this week. The Atlanta Braves, Chicago Cubs, Minnesota Twins and Seattle Mariners each are scheduled to play every day. The Athletics are on the road for six games while the Colorado Rockies host the Los Angeles Dodgers for a three-game set during the week.
SEVEN GAMES: ATL, CHC, MIN, SEA
Batters
Outfielders
Jake Mangum ($$$): As usual, there’s a log jam in the Rays outfield, but the dust is starting to settle, finally. Misner is struggling, Morel is struggling, Simpson was demoted, and Mangum has started each of the last six games for the Rays. With 10 RBI over the last two weeks, he’s hitting in the middle of a hot order and putting the ball in play at a high rate. The barrel rate is extremely low, so there’s potential to improve the contact quality moving forward. He’s fast, makes contact, and is in the middle of a productive lineup. I’m grabbing him wherever he’s available in 12-team leagues or deeper.
Ramón Laureano ($$): Laureano has been starting more often than not in Baltimore as the Orioles elected to demote Heston Kjerstad instead. He’s started five of the Orioles’ last six, including three against a right-handed starter. The log jam has begun to clear, and the veteran has come out ahead, for now at least. Batting .272 with nine home runs, he’s playing very close to a career-best level and should be considered an everyday starter until proven otherwise in the Baltimore corner outfield.
Tyler Freeman ($): It may not be the best week to start a Colorado Rockies hitter, but it might not be a bad time to scoop one on the cheap. Freeman has played nearly every game since being acquired by the Rockies, but since the demotion of Zac Veen earlier this week has ascended to the top third of the order, batting first or second in each of his last four starts. Listen, it’s still the Rockies. But batting in the top third versus the bottom third makes a lot of difference and adds enough to Freeman’s value to consider him a streaming option.
Wenceel Pérez ($): Perez has benefited from the slumping Kerry Carpenter losing playing time. And he’s taken advantage with four home runs in his last 50 plate appearances. With a 14.0% barrel rate, Perez is making loud contact. He’s hot right now and should be rostered while he’s hitting it. If we see him begin to slump, it’s probably time to cut him before things get real bad. He’s low risk, but could yield some great production in the middle of a potent Tigers lineup.
Infielders
Michael Toglia ($$$): He’s finally back in the big leagues after a little bit of development down at AAA and is ready to mash some home runs – we hope. Toglia started the year with a miserable .194 batting average with 81 strikeouts in his first 207 plate appearances (39.1%). Since being called up, Toglia has six hits, including three home runs, and has driven in at least one run in each of his starts since his recall. Toglia was always going to be streaky, but as long as the valleys aren’t as awful low as his open to 2025, the peaks will be worth having him on your roster.
Ronny Mauricio ($$$): A classic post-hype sleeper, Mauricio continues to show signs of potential in his second stint with the Mets at the major league level. In just 12 starts, Mauricio has two home runs and two stolen bases, with extrapolated over a full season (DANGER!) would be a 20-20 pace relatively easily. I don’t expect him to be Francisco Lindor, but I do think he could be a counting stat guy even if the batting average is damaging.
Nick Gonzales ($$): Back from one of the weirdest injuries I’ve ever seen in baseball, where he twisted his ankle badly enough to fracture it on a home run swing, Gonzales has taken over at second base full-time for the Pirates. With a full workload, solid batting average, and decent counting stats at one of the shallowest positions in the game, Gonzales could end up making a difference in the second half for managers. This year’s sample size is too small to judge with under 75 plate appearances, but last season’s .270 batting average and .700+ OPS are enough to consider him as a fill-in option at the keystone position.
Coby Mayo ($$): Mayo probably soured a manager or two (or three) over the past two seasons in his poor showings at the major league level, but there’s opportunity for him to get more playing time in the near future – especially if the Orioles deal Ryan O’Hearn who will be a free agent at the end of this season. Since May 31, Mayo has batted 9-for-37 (.243) with three runs scored and four RBI. It’s not much, but it’s better than the .098 batting average from 2024. The power is there and will start to come around, especially if he starts to see every day at-bats.
Abraham Toro ($): With Kristian Campbell’s demotion, Toro should be solidified as a near-everyday player for the Red Sox. He’s been hot the past couple of weeks and will produce during those hot streaks, but don’t be surprised to see him come back down quite a bit. When he does, it’s time to cut bait.
Catchers/UT
Patrick Bailey ($$): Back from the IL and will likely play as much as any other first-string catcher in the league. The Giants love him behind the plate, and sometimes he hits a little bit. The volume will certainly be there, and with the addition of Devers, the production could improve as the whole lineup does. A rising tide lifts all the boats, right?
Nick Fortes ($): The Marlins are trotting him out several times a week, and he’s hot right now. The Marlins are scheduled to face at least one lefty starter this week, so it could be a streaming opportunity for Fortes, who hits better against lefties.
Pitchers
Starting Pitchers
Justin Verlander ($$$): One of the greatest pitchers of our generation has a two-step against two of the three worst teams in baseball. Sign me up. Verlander will face the Marlins on Tuesday and then gets the White Sox over the weekend in what ought to be a solid chance to redeem himself after a lackluster Still ILL start against the Guardians this past week. The fastball velocity was down, and the command wasn’t great, but he’s still got enough juice in the tank to get through a pair of mediocre lineups – and hopefully the Giants will allow him to go deeper than just the 83 pitches that he threw on Wednesday.
Eric Lauer ($$$): Lauer has been outstanding through his past few weeks, helping him to secure a place in the Blue Jays’ rotation, including an exceptional start against the Diamondbacks last time out. In the SP Roundup the following day, Nick said, “There was some ‘Canibal McSanchez’ in here with his high cutter + surprise curveballs for 83% CSW and that’s your ball game. I’m shocked to see a 70% strike rate and 15% SwStr on his four-seamer to RHB this year, which explains how he could have a ‘King Cole’ here, though there is work to be done against LHB.” All that to say that Lauer’s fastball has been excellent against right-handed bats, which has been the key to his success. As long as he keeps the heater above the belt up in the zone, his complementary pitches work well off of it and generate success. He’s available virtually everywhere and could be a huge pickup midway through the season.
Patrick Corbin ($$): Corbin has been surprisingly solid this season and allowed more than three earned runs for the first time all year last time out. This time he gets the Orioles – and before you go running to tell me just how good the Orioles’ offense is, take a second look. Against left-handed pitching this season, the Orioles rank dead last with a .588 OPS, tied for 27th with a .214 batting average, and 29th with just 11 HR off left-handers. Not to mention, the slider earned a 37% CSW last time out. Pretty good for a guy who was written off last season.
Charlie Morton ($$): Morton’s curveball looked back to being one of the best in baseball in his last start, generating six whiffs and a 31.7% CSW with a 48.8% (!!!) usage rate. He paired his (bad) fastball with it for solid results, keeping it high in the zone and following the old trusty Blake Snell Blueprint (BSB) to generate a handful of whiffs and keep batters guessing. He’s earned wins in four of his last five starts, including three quality starts mixed in there. There’s always the possibility of good ol’ Ground Chuck getting roasted, but recently he’s been much better. Against the Rangers, he’s a solid streaming option.
Didier Fuentes ($): Pay attention to the Braves’ transactions. If Fuentes remains on the big league roster for another time through the rotation, he could absolutely be worth a streaming start. The youngest pitcher to start for the Braves in a long, long time, Fuentes throws straight gas with a really good slider. I’m excited to watch him on Friday night and see if he can stick.
Relief Pitchers
Orion Kerkering ($$$): Here’s the guy I think will get the majority of Phillies save opportunities the rest of the season. Kerkering hasn’t allowed an earned run since May 6 and earned saves in two of his last three appearances. He should be at the top of any list for those looking for a relief pitcher.
Matt Strahm ($$): And here’s the guy who is currently in the role. Strahm earned saves on June 14 and June 18, also recording them in two of his last three appearances. However, he’s also allowed an earned run in two of his last three appearances. In cases like these, I always lean towards talent, and I think Kerkering earns the nod in that department. Strahm is still useful as part of a closer committee on a very good team, but isn’t my favorite option in this case.
Greg Weissert ($): Weissert has quietly earned three saves over the last 14 days, taking over in the ninth on the occasion that closer Aroldis Chapman is unavailable or manager Alex Cora decides to use him in the eighth for matchup purposes. This role could return to Justin Slaten if/when he returns from the IL with shoulder inflammation, but for now it belongs to Weissert.
Dylan Lee ($): A speculative add for the Braves’ closer role – I still think he gets a shot at this job.
Reid Detmers ($): Still pitching really well, if the Angels decide to cash in on Kenley Jansen’s value and trade him to a legit contender, Detmers ought to be next in line for saves – or at least in the discussion.
Verlander Photo by Trinity Machan/Icon Sportswire) | Toglia Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire) | Designed by Aaron Asbury (@aarongifs on Instagram)
