Each week, we’ll look at a handful of different hitters who fantasy managers should consider picking up in deeper fantasy baseball leagues. Many of these players will have the most value in larger leagues where waiver wire options aren’t as plentiful. Still, they could also occasionally be useful additions in other, more standard-sized leagues, depending on your options at their position.
All roster percentages mentioned in this column are via FantasyPros as of Wednesday afternoon.
Enrique Hernández – 6%
Hernandez was mentioned in this column at the beginning of May as an intriguing deeper league option with power and counting stat potential (specifically RBI and runs scored) thanks to both a 17.1% barrel rate and a reasonably regular role in the Los Angeles Dodgers lineup.
At the time, Hernandez was striking out 29.2% of the time and hitting just .169 with a .242 on-base percentage.
Since then, he’s continued to hit for power. For the season, his barrel rate sits at a decidedly above-average 12.2%, and he’s sporting a .194 ISO, two home runs and a .472 slugging percentage in 41 plate appearances since the start of May.
However, the veteran is striking out significantly less while seeing his batting average and on-base percentage improve considerably.
In those 41 plate appearances, he’s hitting .278 with a .366 on-base percentage while striking out just 19.5% of the time with a 12.2% walk rate.
Even if his batting average when all is said and done at the end of the year ends up between the .169 number it was earlier in the year and the .278 number it’s been since May 1, Hernandez is very much worth a look in deeper leagues.
The Dodgers lineup is certainly part of it, but now, thanks to the recent run of form at the plate, the 33-year-old is sporting a .344 xwOBA on the season.
Even if he’s just a short-term addition, he’s as close to a must-add as you can get at this time of year for fantasy managers in deeper leagues.
J.P. Crawford – 10%
J.P. Crawford had a bit of a down year at the plate in 2024. He continued to draw walks at a high rate, but in part due to a lower BABIP, saw his wRC+ drop to 89.
Of course, a lower BABIP wasn’t the entire story. Crawford’s .309 xwOBA last year was also the second-lowest full-season xwOBA he’s logged in a Seattle Mariners uniform.
Fast forward to this season and Crawford is once again drawing walks at a high rate, with a decidedly above-average xwOBA as well. In many ways, his 2025 production is starting to resemble what he did in 2023.
That year, Crawford hit .266 with a .380 on-base percentage, 19 home runs and two stolen bases in 638 plate appearances, adding a .340 xwOBA and a .359 xwOBAcon in the process.
Except for this time around, the veteran is making more loud contact.
The 2023 season was very much a career year at the plate for Crawford, but if he keeps making this kind of contact at the plate, he could surpass what he did a few years ago this season.
Christian Vázquez – 0%
Vazquez is only batting .214 with a .282 on-base percentage and a home run in 78 plate appearances this season, but don’t let the season-long numbers fool you; he’s been much more productive as of late.
Dating back to May 1, Vazquez is batting .290 with a .371 on-base percentage, a home run, a 131 wRC+ and a .353 wOBA. Along the way, he’s added two barrels and has two multi-hit games in the last week.
Move the calendar back slightly more and Vazquez is batting .300 with a .378 on-base percentage, a .150 ISO and just a 17.8% strikeout rate in 45 plate appearances since April 24.
We’re dealing with smaller sample sizes here, and Vazquez has remained as the Twins’ ninth-hitter during that span despite his recent form at the plate.
Still, at a position where finding streaming options or short-term injury replacements can be tricky, particularly in two-catcher leagues, Vazquez is very much worth a look while he’s producing like this.
The recent production is certainly part of it, but hitting fairly regularly in a successful lineup is an almost equal part of the equation.
Since the calendar flipped to May, the Twins have the league’s eighth-best collective wRC+ (111), the eighth-most home runs (20) and have been outscored by just 12 teams.
Graphic by Carlos Leano.
