Welcome to Waiver Wire Picks, our daily fantasy baseball article that looks at the best available 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 players you can leave on the wire.
Top Priority Players to Add
Jared Jones, RHP (PIT) — 52% Rostership
Jones is pitching like an ace after shaking off the rust coming off elbow surgery, and it’s really irking me how low his roster rate is. It’s a night-and-day difference in production through his first and last five starts at the major league level:
| FIP | K-BB% | WHIP | BAA | |
| First 5 starts | 4.79 | 14.4% | 1.52 | .288 |
| Last 5 starts | 2.21 | 28.7% | 0.62 | .124 |
Heriberto Hernández, OF (MIA) — 8% Rostership
I’ve highlighted Esmerlyn Valdez in numerous waiver wire articles, so it’s time to take a break. If you’re intrigued by a similar profile that provides elite raw power, look no further than Hernandez. The 26-year-old has produced like a top-10 bat in baseball this month, slashing .333/.405/.727 with a 200 wRC+ over his last 72 plate appearances. He’s launched six home runs over that span (T-2nd in July), and the .428 xwOBA paired with an average exit velo of 94.1 mph (59% HH) and a 26.1% barrel rate only support his scorching hot streak at the dish. Buy Hernández stock while you can.
Yahoo and ESPN Most Added Players
Christian Encarnacion-Strand has started his year off with a bang, slashing .400/.429/.900 (!!) with three home runs and a 262 wRC+ through five games. He’s a must-add if you need immediate production at a corner infield spot.
Ty France is another must-add. The 32-year-old has broken out of late, slashing .385/.422/.949 with a 256 wRC+ dating back to July 11th. The big headline with France is his ability to rack up extra-base hits – he’s got five doubles and six home runs over his last ten games. Pretty remarkable stuff.
None of the other names here intrigue me, even in the slightest bit.
If Casey Mize isn’t rostered, something is horribly wrong. The right-hander has tossed 80.2 innings of stellar ball, posting a 2.79 ERA/2.62 FIP and 20% K-BB rate this season. Grab him now.
Sean Burke has been terrific lately, posting a 1.40 ERA/2.64 FIP with a 0.88 WHIP and 28.3% K-BB rate over his last six outings. He’s stranded 99% of baserunners over that span. Given his ability to limit walks paired with the uptick in swing-and-miss, Burke is a solid add for your rotation.
Robbie Ray has been good on paper (3.33 ERA), but the expected numbers aren’t all that ideal. While the strikeout rate is down, Ray is still a pretty solid bet in terms of streaming fantasy starting pitchers – the big key is simply limiting the walk rate. Perhaps a change of scenery will help, too. Ray is a trade candidate to keep an eye on heading into this year’s August 3rd deadline.
Brandon Young has been an innings-eating machine, tossing back-to-back 7+ innings games and going 5+ innings in ten consecutive starts dating back to May 24th. Young won’t “wow” you in any particular category, but he’s good enough as a streaming option where you can pick and choose your matchups.
Streaming Pitchers
Our guy Nick Pollack does a fantastic job at highlighting and ranking starting pitcher streaming options… check out his list here!
Andrew Abbott, LHP (CIN) — 63% Rostership
Abbott hasn’t quite been his dominant self, but the southpaw is coming off a fabulous showing against the Mariners where he tossed six shutout innings. His sweeper has been unhittable, and I’d love to see him lean on that pitch more often – a .180 xBA, .214 xwOBA, and 31% whiff rate sounds pretty good, right? Throw it more. I’d be a bit weary regarding Abbott given the Cubs’ success against lefties this season, but he’s easily the most established name available in a majority of leagues.
Shane Baz, LHP (BAL) — 50% Rostership
Baz, 27, is in line for some positive regression (3.46 FIP), and I believe that he’ll see that success soon. Over his last four starts, the 3.42 ERA isn’t all that bad… but the 1.96 FIP and 17% K-BB rate suggest things are looking up. He’s been BABIP’d like crazy on a majority of his arsenal, but again, the expected numbers look okay. EVERY offering has a sub-0.3 xwOBA this month, and his knuckle curve has been remarkable (31% whiff rate). With a bit of batted ball luck on his side, Baz is a sneaky good buy-low addition via waivers.
