Happy All-Star break, everybody! We made it through what is viewed as the first half of the season. Plenty will change in the coming weeks, as there will be promotions, trades, and other factors that will affect lineups in both fantasy and real life.
Throughout the season, this column is designed to help guide those in Free Agent Acquisition Budget (FAAB) leagues make the best choices in 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
SEVEN GAMES: NONE
Batters
Outfielders
A.J. Ewing (OF, $$$$): 33% rostered on Yahoo
I talked about Ewing in my article last week, and since then, he’s only looked even better, being one of the best players, period, recently. His combination of solid contact skills, discipline, and sneaky pop makes him absolutely a must-roster player. He’s still somehow only rostered in 33% of leagues in Yahoo, which is crazy. Pick him up now if someone else hasn’t beaten you to it.
Heliot Ramos (OF, $$$): 46% rostered on Yahoo
Ramos is a very streaky player, something we have seen from him in the past. This season, it’s on a whole new level, though, as he has been absolutely scorching hot since returning from injury in late June. He has a 167 wRC+ in July so far and has been the lone bright spot in many Giants games, including the one against the Blue Jays in which he broke up a Dylan Cease no-hitter. If you add Ramos and he keeps producing, he could be a huge addition.
Garrett Mitchell (OF, $$$): 22% rostered on Yahoo
Speaking of players who are ridiculously hot right now, Milwaukee’s Garrett Mitchell currently sports a .993 over his last thirty games. This recent success has led to the Brewers rewarding him with a spot higher up in the lineup, including a game in which he led off, which is pretty cool to see for a player who strikes out often. His main strength is his exit velocity, as he sneakily has one of the best bat speeds in baseball, even if the home run column doesn’t show it yet. I could see his batting average taking a bit of a hit but more home runs coming from Mitchell as the season goes on.
Charlie Condon (OF, 1B, $): 8% rostered on Yahoo
The Rockies’ #2-ranked prospect has been absolutely mashing of late, and it seems clear he may get a call-up by season’s end. He’s slashing .289/.414/.584 in AAA Albuquerque and has seen a major surge in his numbers in recent weeks. The Rockies probably won’t want to burn a year of service time, so we may not see him until late in the season, but in deep leagues, he could be a difference-maker once he’s called up. He has a great offensive toolkit and will be playing home games at Coors Field after all.
Infielders
Anthony Seigler (2B, 3B, $$$): 3% rostered on Yahoo
Anthony Seigler was a piece that went back to Boston as part of the Kyle Harrison trade with Milwaukee, one that seemed to initially be a joke at Boston’s expense. Caleb Durbin has looked great as of late, and Seigler might be looking even better. The 27-year-old hasn’t really gotten a consistent shot in the Major Leagues so far in his career, but he’s proving himself to be a valuable piece for a surging Red Sox squad. His excellent discipline and ability to hit the ball in the air make him have a pretty high floor, all things considered, though it’s likely he will cool down a bit. He has a 137 wRC+ on the season, y’all.
Luke Keaschall (2B, OF $$$): 59% rostered on Yahoo
So technically, Keaschall is seeing time in center field to fill in for the injured Byron Buxton. However, we all know how much more valuable second base is, as it’s one of the least productive positions fantasy-wise. Keaschall had a lot of hype entering the season as a stolen base threat who would get consistent playing time and would have solid ratios. He’s unfortunately not hit as well as he was projected to, but he’s been really hot as of late and may be getting a boost from his newfound role. Pick him up if he was dropped in your league, as he fills that second base spot that can be really rough to get production from.
Joshua Kuroda-Grauer (3B, SS $$): 3% rostered on Yahoo
The Athletics‘ number 9 ranked prospect has been awesome for the team thus far, filling in at shortstop for an injured Jacob Wilson. He’s put up video game numbers in the limited sample size, showcasing great contact ability. Though the lack of power and walks could limit his effectiveness, similarly to Wilson, whom he is filling in for. He’s a really hot hand right now, and some managers may be interested in picking him up, so put in a bid if you want to get value today.
Kyle Karros (3B, $$): 24% rostered on Yahoo
Karros has been on fire like a lot of other Rockies hitters as of late, and recently showed his importance by collecting three hits in a low-scoring game against the Giants. One advantage of Karros is that he’s great at hitting the ball off the sweet spot of the bat. This works well in an environment like Coors Field, where fly balls fly a lot further due to the altitude. The Rockies have a homestand coming up against some not-so-great pitching staffs, and the time may be right to spend a bit to get Karros.
Catchers/UT
Ryan Jeffers (C – $$$): 31% rostered on Yahoo
Jeffers recently returned from a stay on the injured list and looks ready to make an impact for the Twins. He was quietly one of the best fantasy catchers before going down, but was likely expendable for managers when they knew he would be out for a while. He’s probably going to be eased back into the starting role here, especially with Victor Caratini looking like a solid but not spectacular option. Jeffers has an elite hitting profile this season, showing solid power, contact, and discipline that make his Savant page bright red. Pick him up if you can.
Pitchers
Starting Pitchers
Ian Seymour (SP, RP – $$$$): 53% rostered on Yahoo
Ian Seymour is absolutely looking like a hold right now, and if he’s somehow available in your leagues, I’d suggest you grab him. He is a great fastball/changeup lefty arm who also incorporates a great sweeper into his mix. He’s incredibly deceptive, and while his command can be a touch spotty, he looks to be helpful in the four major starting pitcher categories. He’s being picked up across leagues like crazy, so now may be your last chance to get the boost from Seymour that your teams need.
AJ Smith-Shawver (SP – $): 13% rostered on Yahoo
Atlanta is looking to soon be adding some reinforcements to their rotation with AJ Smith-Shawver. He’s not the highest-ceiling guy, but before he went down with an injury, he looked like a solid streaming arm. Atlanta, while cold as of late, is an overall good enough team that he should be a candidate for wins, especially if they choose to run an opener before him, which feels like a possibility.
Relief Pitchers
Jacob Webb (RP – $$): 8% rostered on Yahoo
Webb has been serving as the interim closer for the Cubs with the injury to Daniel Palencia, and his fastball/changeup mix is pretty great. They are doing a bit of a committee thing in Chicago, but it seems like Webb is most likely to get the highest leverage spots. Pick him up if you can, he’s a solid option to get saves and he shouldn’t hurt your ratios in the process.
Jordan Romano (RP – $): 5% rostered on Yahoo
This is a bit of a desperation move at reliever, as Romano has struggled a lot since leaving the Blue Jays, and the Rockies aren’t a great team for pitchers to play for. However, Romano has been getting a few saves here and there, and in deep leagues, if you keep losing in that category, you may want to pick him up with the knowledge that it may not last (and your ratios may take a slight ding).
