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
Jake Burger (TEX) – 1B (Yahoo – 17%)
After last season, when he was injured often and struggled when healthy, Burger turned to an unusual routine—doing Pilates three times a week. Since his injuries have often been of the soft tissue variety, he felt he needed more flexibility and core strength.
Though he started well the first week of 2026 with a pair of homers and a .409 average, Burger also struck out ten times in his first 22 at-bats. That foreshadowed a pretty miserable April, where he hit just .170. But things have looked up in May (perhaps it took time for all that Pilates to kick in), and Burger’s showing more patience at the plate.
Burger’s Pull Air rate used to be a strength, but it bottomed out last season at 13.5%, one of the lowest rates among qualified hitters. Last month he showed significant improvement with a rate of 23.6%, which is probably why he already has more homers in the first three weeks of May than in all of April. He’ll hopefully be a consistent contributor going forward now that he’s found his groove.
Jake Bauers (MIL) – 1B,OF (Yahoo – 31%)
Brayan Rocchio (CLE) – SS,2B (Yahoo – 45%)
Rocchio’s actually ranking in the top 20 on Yahoo over the last two weeks, with five steals and a .341 average, to go along with nine runs and eight RBIs. On the season, the switch hitter’s just outside of the top 100.
So how’s the number nine hitter for the Cleveland Guardians rating out as a top 100 fantasy player? It seems like Cleveland has breakout talent up and down their lineup between DeLauter, Bazzana, Angel Martinez, and now Brayan. In terms of hitter profile, Rocchio probably most resembles Steven Kwan (when Kwan’s performing) in that he doesn’t hit the ball all that hard, can run a little bit, and hardly ever strikes out. Rocchio’s maintaining a 1:1 K:BB ratio—so if you’re in a points league, this guy should be on your radar.
Miguel Andujar (SDP) – 3B,OF (Yahoo – 7%)
It’s been a lot of years since Andujar broke in with the Yankees and slugged 27 homers to go along with 47 doubles, when he looked like a perennial All-Star. He’s actually never hit more than 10 homers in a season since then, but he did hit .359 in 34 games with the Reds last year and looked completely rejuvenated.
Andujar was getting somewhat sporadic playing time with San Diego this year, but he’s settled into an everyday role and has started the last ten games in a row—and like Jake Bauers, is slugging over .500 with a solid average. He’s got three homers in his last nine games and is showing good contact skills even as he sometimes gets a little too aggressive and swings at balls out of the zone.
Andujar is tracking toward 15-20 homers on the season with a solid average and counting stats, and could finish with his best numbers in almost a decade. Just be wary of his health, however, as he hasn’t played in a hundred games since 2018.
Zebby Matthews (SDP) – SP (Yahoo – 26%)
Zebby wasn’t exactly dominating in AAA this season with a 1.51 WHIP and a 4.72 ERA, but he got the call anyway and so far in the Majors, it looks like he belongs. Blessed with great stuff and solid command, he’s boasting an 11:1 K:BB ratio after two MLB starts. Both have been gems: seven innings of shutout ball against the Marlins, and a Quality Start against the Astros (which he lost in a pitcher’s duel). His WHIP in both outings was below .8 and he’s scattered just nine hits in 13 innings.
There are some signs of regression, but they’re not blaring alarms. His Ground Ball rate sits at just 39%, and his Whiff rate is only 22%, but he’s getting some weak contact with a .215 xBA. Time will tell if hitters can adjust to him—the Red Sox will give it a go this weekend.
Yahoo and ESPN Most Added Players
Yahoo!
It’s all pretty snooze-worthy on the Yahoo! side, to be honest—it looks like fantasy owners are simply loading up on streamers. Ed-Rod gets the top spot, but that’s likely because he’s got the best matchup in a Colorado-out-of-Coors situation. He should coast in this one, assuming he can get some run support.
Casey Mize is easily the favorite of the bunch, as Severino’s 1.57 WHIP scares me even in a decent matchup. Cade Cavalli and David Peterson are facing off against one another on Thursday night, and honestly, it’s a decent match for both. Washington’s offense has been underrated all season, though. Peterson’s been throwing better of late (he might be more comfortable pitching after an opener in bulk relief, but that’s not happening in this one)—I’ve liked him in years past but can’t trust him yet.
ESPN
Five more SP’s top the ESPN list, with three familiar faces here. Again, Mize should be the best of those three and is still carrying a WHIP below 1.00 after eight starts.
And Kyle Harrison should be universally owned, period—especially after his 11-K performance in his last start. Here’s what we said about him in this very article last week, before he went out and dominated a very good Cubs lineup:
I like Kyle Harrison significantly better than both these guys, however. He does have the swing-and-miss with a K-rate of almost 30%, while also pitching to weak contact. At just 24, it feels like Harrison’s going to break out in a big way and finally get his due (he showed so much promise in San Fran and just never quite made it).
It still holds up. Between Mize and Harrison, I’d take Harrison all day. If he’s somehow available, close this article and go get him.
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.
Chris Bassitt (BAL) – SP (Yahoo – 12%) vs DET
I’m mainly taking Bassitt here because he typically alternates between a good outing and a bad one—and well, he’s due. Bassitt’s always had some crazy home and r/ad splits, and he gets a decent matchup in the cozy confines of Camden Yards against a team that’s scuffled of late. Bassitt does carry an unsightly 1.70 WHIP on the season, but it’s been better of late and hitters are only barreling his pitches 3.4% of the time. It might go terribly wrong, but it’s the best possible matchup for him.
Walbert Ureña (LAA) – SP (Yahoo – 11%) vs TEX
The 22-year-old righty for the Angels is making an impact in his Rookie season. Urena’s a flamethrower with a fastball averaging 97.8 mph, though he only throws it 20-ish percent of the time. He relies instead on a sinker/change combination, throwing both a combined 63% of his pitches. He walks a lot of batters—13.1% is not a good BB rate—but he’s getting ground balls at a 52.6% clip and seems to get a little better with every start. I like him a lot.
