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 players you can leave on the wire.
Top Priority Players to Add
Christian Encarnacion-Strand (CIN), 1B (41% rostered on Yahoo, 9.3% on ESPN)
Encarnacion-Strand was limited to just 29 games last season, and he was dismal when he was healthy enough to take the field. He managed just two homers across 29 games, and he struggled to a 33 wRC+.
That said, he’s still just 25 years old, and he was an absolute monster in 2023. Across 67 games in Triple-A, he launched 20 homers with a 155 wRC+. He kept the success going when he reached the big-league level, launching an additional 13 homers in 63 games. Not bad for a player getting his first taste of MLB action.
A wrist injury sapped all of his power potential last season, but he’s fully healthy entering 2025. He launched three homers in spring training, and most of the major projection systems peg him for around 20 bombs this season. That feels very conservative for a player with 70-grade raw power playing in one of the most hitter-friendly parks in baseball. He has an outside chance at 30+ homers, and very few players on the wire can do that without killing you in the other categories.
Victor Scott II (STL), OF (32% Yahoo, 5.8% ESPN)
What if Billy Hamilton could actually hit? That’s the question that fantasy players should be asking themselves regarding Scott. Like Hamilton, Scott is a legit burner. He swiped 94 bags across two different levels of the minors in 2023, and he added 35 last year between Triple-A and the majors.
The big reason for the decrease is that Scott struggled to adjust to higher-level pitching. That’s not unexpected for a 23-year-old. When he did get on base, his sprint speed graded out as the seventh-fastest in the entire league.
Scott has displayed increased hitting prowess during spring training, posting a .349 AVG and .451 OBP while clubbing four homers. That’s probably not sustainable—the major projection systems have him closer to .200 than .300—but it was enough to earn him an everyday job in centerfield.
If Scott can keep hitting, he has the potential to be an absolute league winner with his stolen base upside. If he doesn’t, you can pretty safely return him to the wire. That’s a gamble worth taking.
Yahoo and ESPN Most Added Players
Kyle McCarthy touched on Jack Leiter yesterday, and he headlines the most added players on Yahoo. Leiter was a big-time prospect who struggled to start his career, but a strong spring training has put him back on fantasy radars. He’s locked into the Rangers’ rotation and will draw the start vs. the Red Sox on Friday.
Joey Ortiz will open the season as the Brewers’ starting shortstop, with Brice Turang sticking at second base. Ortiz had a strong spring training, and while he’s not going to kill you in any category, he’s not going to help you a ton either. Brendan Donovan will bat third for the Cardinals this season, putting him directly behind Lars Nootbaar and Willson Contreras and directly ahead of Nolan Arenado. You could do a lot worse for teammates. He also has eligibility at three different positions and a solid track record of success at the MLB level.
On the pitcher side, Shane Bieber makes for an upside IL stash. It’s still unclear when he’ll make his return from Tommy John surgery, but he’s trending in the right direction. Teammate Ben Lively drew the start on Thursday vs. the Royals, and he has some streaming appeal in the right matchups. His next start is scheduled for next Wednesday in San Diego, so that’s probably not one of them.
Clay Holmes is looking to become the latest reliever to successfully transition into a starting role, joining the likes of Michael King, Seth Lugo, and Jordan Hicks. The early results were extremely promising, pitching to a sparkling 0.93 ERA and 10.71 K/9 in Spring Training. He wasn’t great vs. the Astros in his first start of the year, but he’ll have better matchups ahead.
Kristian Campbell and Cam Smith are two exciting prospects who made their team’s roster to start the year. Campbell was the Baseball America Minor League Player of the Year in 2024, posting a ridiculous 180 wRC+ with 20 homers and 24 steals across Double-A and Triple-A. His versatility at 2B, SS, and OF makes him a valuable asset for most rosters. Smith is only eligible at third base, and he flew threw the minors after being drafted just last season. He absolutely raked in Spring Training, posting a 186 wRC+ with four homers in just 43 plate appearances. However, the major projection systems aren’t nearly as bullish on Smith as they are on Campbell.
Kerry Carpenter has been a platoon player for most of his MLB career, but that’s not the worst thing in the world. He’s a lefty bat that mashes against right-handers, and he posted a 160 wRC+ with 18 homers across 87 games last season. His Statcast data is also fantastic—he had the eighth-best barrel rate among players with at least 250 plate appearances—so he can be a valuable bench bat in the right matchups.
Finally, Aroldis Chapman has seemingly won the closer job in Boston. He vastly outperformed Liam Hendriks during spring training, to the point where even Hendriks thinks Chapman should be the closer. He still has excellent metrics and will play for a team that could be vastly improved in 2025.
Category-Specific Players to Add
Jung Hoo Lee (SFG), OF (26% Yahoo, 69% ESPN)
Lee technically doesn’t fit the “sub-60%” threshold on ESPN, but he’s well below this mark on Yahoo. If you’re looking for help from a batting average standpoint, it’d be hard to do better than Lee. Most of the major projection systems have him at .280 or better for 2025, and THE BAT X gives him the seventh-best projection in that category overall. The fact that he opens the season in Cincinnati is just the cherry on top.
Andrew Vaughn (CWS), 1B (19% Yahoo, 9.0% ESPN)
Power might be the hardest commodity to find on the wire, especially power that doesn’t kill your batting average. Vaughn fits the description. He started slowly in 2024 but made big strides down the stretch:
Vaughn may never live up to his pedigree—he was the No. 13 prospect per FanGraphs heading into 2021—but there’s a smidge of power upside here.
Victor Robles (SEA), OF (47% Yahoo, 11.7% ESPN)
Victor Robles: post-post-post-hype sleeper? Robles very quietly posted a 141 wRC+ last season and swiped 34 bags in just 91 games. He’s slated to hit leadoff for the Mariners this season and is T10 in projected steals in THE BAT X projections.
Dustin May (LAD), SP (36% Yahoo, 13.9% ESPN)
This may not be the right section for May. If he’s fully healthy, he has the potential to be much better than just a “category contributor.” He’s expected to make his first start of the year on Tuesday vs. the Braves, which is far from the most appealing matchup. However, he has the potential to provide decent ratios across the board, and playing for the Dodgers will give him plenty of win opportunities if he can make it through five innings.
Luke Jackson (TEX), RP (32% Yahoo, 2.4% ESPN)
Jackson pitched the ninth inning in the Rangers’ final spring training contest, and manager Bruce Bochy said the bullpen usage in that game was “pretty close” to what he plans to do in the regular season. That seemingly would make Jackson the favorite from a saves standpoint. Jackson also had a double-digit strikeouts-per-nine in back-to-back seasons, and he was at 13.5 during spring training. He could potentially help out a bit in that department as well.
Streaming Pitchers
Be sure to check out the great Nick Pollack’s SP Streamer Rankings to see his favorite choices in the opening week. He’s eyeing Jeffrey Springs vs. the Mariners, and that’s probably your best bet. However, you can also consider…
Mitch Keller (PIT), SP (42% Yahoo, 71.5% ESPN)
Keller draws a matchup vs. the Marlins on Friday, and it doesn’t get much better than that. They were 27th in wRC+ against right-handed pitchers last season, and they had the 14th-highest strikeout rate. Keller isn’t a world-beater, but he doesn’t beat himself with walks. The Marlins are going to have to beat him with their bats, and they haven’t really shown the ability to do that.
Speculative Adds
Brandon Woodruff (MIL), SP (55% Yahoo, 40.6% ESPN)
Early in the season, grabbing a pitcher to stash on your IL spot is common practice. Woodruff is someone who could definitely fill that role if you have the space for him. He hasn’t appeared in a game for the Brewers in a year and a half, but he notably landed on the 15-day IL instead of the 60-day IL to begin the season. That’s an optimistic sign, and Woodruff did throw an inning in spring training.
When Woodruff was at his best, he was nothing short of one of the best pitchers in baseball. There’s no guarantee he’s still that guy, but if he’s out there in your leagues, it costs nothing to find out.
José Alvarado (PHI), RP (9% Yahoo, 5.0% ESPN)
Jordan Romano appeared to enter the year as the Phillies’ closer, but he’s on very shaky ground. He was dreadful in his final year with the Blue Jays, and the Phillies have some other relievers who are capable of pitching the ninth inning. Romano got off to a poor start in 2025, squandering a two-run lead in the eighth inning. Alvarado secured the win after pitching a scoreless ninth with two strikeouts, so we could be heading to a committee situation in Philly.
Spencer Torkelson (DET), 1B (11% Yahoo, 6.7% ESPN)
Torkelson was so bad in his sophomore season that he was literally demoted to the minors. That said, he has an elite pedigree, topping out as the No. 4 overall prospect per FanGraphs in 2022, and he hit 31 homers in 2023. He started the year with a bang, walking four times and homering in five at-bats, so he’s an interesting bounce-back candidate.
Deep League Players to Watch
Ryan Bliss (SEA), 2B (1% Yahoo, 0.4% ESPN)
Bliss is definitely not someone who needs to be added to most leagues, but he’s someone worth keeping an eye on. He won the Mariners’ second base job out of spring training, and he’s another player with elite speed. He stole 50 bags in just 93 Triple-A games last season, and he added five more in 33 games with the big league club. If he can hit at all—he posted a .308 batting average in spring training—he has the potential to be fantasy-relevant at the bottom of the Mariners’ lineup.