Welcome to the Waiver Wire Picks, our daily fantasy baseball article that looks at the best players in baseball that you should be adding to your rosters. We’ll look at the players that are likely to be available in most leagues, as well as some deep league waiver wire options, and we’ll also look at the most added players in fantasy baseball across the major sites, and let you know which players to add and which you can leave on the wire.
Top Priority Players to Add
Hitters on the Blue Jays
We’re going to switch things up a little and focus on team lineups in favorable situations this final week of the season. Though they lagged down the stretch and are missing the postseason, the Blue Jays get a huge boost facing a Reds pitching trio that all have ERA’s over 5 (and the team has a depleted bullpen to boot). Other than Guerrero, Okamoto, and Springer, the rest of the Jays lineup is all less than 50% owned. Here are a few I’d recommend:
Alejandro Kirk (38%) – Kirk had a tremendous August with a .341 average and five homers, but he’s still cooking in September, hitting .295. He should play in at least two of the three matchups. Given his .305 average this season versus lefties (the Reds will be starting two of them), he might have the best opportunities of any catcher in the league.
Brett Bateman (8%) – Bateman is currently day-to-day after rolling over on his hip diving for a ball in center field, but X-rays were negative. If he’s back in the lineup on Friday, I love this play for average and runs (he’d score over 100 at his current pace). I’ve also highlighted him as a points league sleeper for next year.
Andrés Giménez (11%) – if you’re looking for a steal or two, Giménez might be able to help. He looks recovered from a minor hamstring issue and has ten swipes since the All-Star Break. He’s also good for a few RBIs toward the back half of the lineup.
Hitters on the Mets
After the Jays, I like the Mets’ matchups nearly as much. The Nationals have one of the all-time worst bullpens in history and with some blustery conditions the wind could be carrying routine fly balls out of the yard. Washington’s probables are currently Andrew Alvarez, Jake Irvin, and DJ Herz. Alvarez has been decent besides his 2-6 record, the New York should be able to tee off everyone else. Here are a few guys I like:
A.J. Ewing (30%) – I’ve been talking him up all year and he’s hitting .338 in September. He’s an underrated rookie who’s turned up the speed in the second half with 16 steals after the Break. If you need an OF and he’s available, he’s my top pick (he’s also eligible at 2B).
Brett Baty (4%) – The former top prospect isn’t playing every day given his .184 BA against lefties, but he’s incredibly hot in September with a .381 average and can do damage even when not starting (see his pinch-hit grand slam the other night). He’s moved up to fifth in the lineup when he’s in there and should get some quality AB’s to close things out.
Francisco Alvarez (16%) – Another top prospect (as in number one overall at one point), Alvarez has yet to figure it out—and obviously health has been an issue over the years. But he’s still got tremendous power and has multiple hits in each of his last four games.
Hitters on the White Sox
The Rockies are throwing up two lefties this weekend in Jose Quintana and Kyle Freeland, along with an RHP in Tomoyuki Sugano. Chicago may have clinched a playoff spot, but they’re still fighting for the division title which would also give them a bye in the first round.
Sam Antonacci (28%) – While he usually leads off against righties and has not-great splits against southpaws, don’t expect the starters on Colorado to go deep into their games. Antonacci should get loads of chances. He’s fallen off a bit throughout the year and isn’t running as much as he used to, but he’s got solid run production and a great OBP if your league counts that sort of thing.
Brenton Doyle (28%) – I’m kind of shocked Doyle is owned this much given his playing time, but he should get starts against both lefties and has a .314/.486/.800 slash in September. He’s making the most of his chances now that he’s on a contender, and has five steals in 39 games with Chicago.
Chase Meidroth (47%) – Where Doyle is solid against LHPs, Meidroth crushes them. He’s hitting .346 with a .583 SLG and an OPS over 1.000 (so he’s basically Yordan Alvarez when a southpaw’s on the mound). And that’s over 182 plate appearances, so it’s not a fluke.
Hitters on the Dodgers
The Dodgers will be looking to catch Milwaukee for the top seed in the NL (though it’s unlikely they can at this point), and they face off against Yunior Marte, Duncan Davitt, and Matt Wilkinson in their final series. If you’ve heard of these guys, congrats, you play in a deeper league than most. These three pitchers have combined for five MLB starts all season, so let’s assume they’re not going to shut down the likes of LA.
Obviously most of the Dodgers are heavily owned, but here are a couple that might be available:
Tommy Edman (30%) – He might be hitting just .197 this month, but Edman’s getting a lot of playing time and has 13 runs and 14 RBIs in September even with the crummy average. And his OBP isn’t half bad given the low BA. Edman might be at the bottom of the lineup, but as long as he reaches first base there’s a great chance he’ll score.
Will Smith (67%) – He’s heavily owned, but it’s a lot lower than in seasons past, so there’s a chance he’s out there. Smith is coming on with three homers in his last four starts, and even though Dalton Rushing just got activated off the IL he’s not going to catch. Smith might get all three starts in San Fran (but don’t count on it).
Yahoo and ESPN Most Added Players
Yahoo!
Part of the reason why we covered only hitters above is that the top five adds on both platforms are exclusively pitchers. It looks like fantasy players are trying to find that one streamer to get them over the top.
With one exception, all of these guys started last night and won’t pitch again this season, so let’s talk a little about Robert Gasser. The Brewers lefty will get the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday in what should be a solid matchup. He’s got a 2.33 ERA over his last four starts and has held opponents to two or fewer runs in each of them.
Gasser, despite the name, doesn’t exactly throw heat (he sits around 93), but he’s got great extenstion that results in an 85th-percentile Hard-Hit rate and 92nd-percent Average Exit velo. He also strikes out more batters than you might think. He’s got a great shot at a W if he can stay efficient and make it through five innings.
ESPN
All these guys pitched yesterday. But the #6 guy on this list was Sean Burke, who gets the Rockies on Friday. Burke did have a blowup start against the Pirates recently, but he’s only allowed two runs in his other three outings. He’s 58% owned on ESPN (64% on Yahoo), but Rocky Road is almost always a recipe for success, so he’d be my top pitching add if he’s available.
Streaming Pitchers
Check out Nick Pollack’s SP Streamer Rankings for the complete breakdown on every start for the next few days. There are two pitchers to highlight.
David Peterson (CHC) – SP (Yahoo – 32%) @ BOS
There’s going to be some nasty weather in Boston, so they’ve moved Sunday’s game up to a Friday doubleheader. Peterson is getting the nightcap and faces a Red Sox team that’s clinched a playoff spot and doesn’t have anything else to play for. Peterson might not go too deep in this one as they’ll want him fresh for the postseason, but expect five or so innings. He’s gotten seven K’s in both his last outings, and both were Quality Start wins to boot. He’s looking like a new pitcher since he came over from the Mets.
Davis Martin (CHW) – SP (Yahoo – 35%) vs COL
Let’s pick on the Rockies one last time. Martin had a rough couple of starts after a blister issue in August, but he’s allowed only three total runs in all of September and has a great matchup on Saturday. It’ll be the second-to-last day of the season so you never know how long a pitcher will last, but if Martin can get to five IP, he’s got a great chance for a win. He’s also picked things up in the swing-and-miss department with six K’s against the Tigers in his last effort.
