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
Nick Kurtz (ATH), 1B (33% rostered on Yahoo, 12.0% on ESPN)
Kurtz’s ascent to the majors has happened at light speed. He was selected fourth overall in the 2024 MLB Draft, and he made his debut for the Athletics less than a calendar year later. He seemed unchallenged in the minors, including a 138 wRC+ with eight homers in Triple-A this season, so the Athletics decided to see if he could hang in the big leagues.
So far, so good. Kurtz was forced into a brief IL stint at the end of May/beginning of June, but he’s returned with a vengeance. In eight games since being activated, he’s posted a .273 batting average, .909 OPS, and three homers.
The power is what truly stands out here. He now has 16 homers between the minors and majors this season, and there’s no reason to expect much decline. If anything, he could continue to improve as he gets more comfortable with big-league pitching. He has one of the fastest bats in the league—only Oneil Cruz and Junior Caminero have better marks among qualified hitters—giving him significant upside on balls in play.
The only real downside is that Kurtz does have some swing-and-miss to his game. He’s struck out in 31.9% of at-bats at the MLB level this season, but that’s not necessarily a killer. He has similar in-zone contact numbers to guys like Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani, and they’ve turned out pretty well.
While Kurtz certainly isn’t those guys (at least not yet), the power is 100% real. He’s the No. 1 first baseman in the ESPN Fantasy Player Rater over the past seven days, so the upside makes him a priority add wherever he’s available.
J.P. Crawford (SEA), SS (26% Yahoo, 13.9% on ESPN)
Crawford was once a big-time prospect in his own right, but the breakout has never truly happened. He did post a 136 wRC+ with the Mariners in 2023, but that stood out as an outlier. His previous career-best mark was just 105, and he regressed back to just 89 in 2024. Crawford has also never cracked 20 homers or double-digit steals as a professional, so he didn’t offer a ton for fantasy players.
However, Crawford is looking to change that narrative in 2025. He’s currently batting .294, while his on-base percentage is above .400. He’s walking at an elite rate (99th percentile), while his .289 xBA puts him in the 89th percentile. After a brief slump at the end of May, Crawford is back to making outstanding contact and swing decisions at the plate (via Process+):
Crawford still isn’t providing a ton of power or speed contributions, but he’s not a zero in those departments either. He has six homers and five steals for the year, so he has a chance to get to double-digits in both departments. Add in a spot at the top of the Mariners’ lineup, and he’s someone who can help you in every category across the board.
Ultimately, he’s been undervalued for much of the season. He’s the No. 8 shortstop in the Player Rater over the past 15 days, and No. 17 for the year. He’s someone who should be owned at a much higher clip, especially in leagues that require a middle infielder in addition to a shortstop.
Yahoo and ESPN Most Added Players
As usual, Thursday’s list of top waiver adds on Yahoo was dominated by streaming pitchers. Four of the five most-added players were starters: Erick Fedde, Michael McGreevy, Colton Gordon, and Charlie Morton.
Fedde and McGreevy were both pitching for the Cardinals in a doubleheader vs. the White Sox. Fedde got the ball in Game 1, followed by McGreevy in Game 2. The Cardinals ultimately won both outings, but neither starter was able to pick up a win.
Fedde put together a quality outing. He only lasted five innings, but he surrendered just one earned run. He also added four strikeouts, so he was a pretty solid stream, all things considered. That said, he’s not someone who should be a part of your long-term plan at pitcher.
McGreevy had a similar statline. He also surrendered just one run over five innings, and he managed to add five strikeouts. He also surrendered just three hits and one walk, so he provided excellent ratios. His advanced metrics weren’t nearly as impressive—his .167 BABIP made his numbers look better than they should’ve been—but it was yet another example of why nearly anyone can be streamed vs. the White Sox.
Gordon has held his own since being promoted to the majors, and he turned in another solid yet unspectacular outing. He surrendered two earned runs across five innings, and he racked up four strikeouts. Unfortunately, his offense didn’t give him enough support to make him eligible for the win. Nothing about Gordon stands out as particularly intriguing for fantasy purposes, so there’s no need to rush out and add him.
Morton has finally started to show some signs of decline at 41 years old, entering Thursday’s matchup vs. the Rays with an ERA over six. The Rays have been one of the hottest teams in baseball, so it was far from an appealing spot. However, Morton turned in one of his best outings of the season. He limited Tampa to just one run across six innings, and he added seven punchouts. His FIP in that start was a sparkling 1.23, so it’s possible that Morton could turn things around moving forward.
Cam Smith is the lone batter on this list, and he’s starting to heat up. He entered the year as one of the top prospects in baseball, and he earned a starting job with the Astros right out of spring training. He experienced some growing pains early, but he’s shown some signs in recent games. He launched two homers on Tuesday, and he’s now batting .321 in June. Smith doesn’t have quite as much raw power as someone like Kurtz, but he’s another player whose upside is too great to ignore.
The top three names on ESPN’s list of most-added players—Jacob Misiorowski, Clarke Schmidt, and Grant Holmes—have all been discussed at length in previous columns. They were also featured on Thursday in this same section.
Quinn Priester was also in this section on Thursday, but he’s a newer addition to the list. He was a back-end top 100 prospect when coming up with the Pirates, but he was ultimately traded to the Red Sox at the deadline last year and then the Brewers this offseason. Priester has finally started to put things together at the MLB level. He’s not a particularly strong strikeout pitcher, but he does a fantastic job of limiting the damage on balls in play. He ranks in the 95th percentile for groundball rate and 82nd percentile for barrel rate, so opposing offenses have to string hits together to get to him. They haven’t been able to do much of that recently, with Priester posting a 2.36 ERA since May 15. Priester has reached the point where he can be added and started in all but the toughest of matchups, and Sunday’s contest vs. the Twins is a strong streaming spot at a minimum.
Then, there’s Clayton Kershaw. He had a rough start to his season after being activated from the IL, but his past two starts have been vintage. He’s allowed just one run over his last 12 innings pitched, and he’s surrendered just 10 baserunners with 12 strikeouts. Pitching for the Dodgers results in plenty of win potential. He may not be the same must-start stud that he was in his prime, but there’s enough here to warrant an add where available.
Category-Specific Players to Add
Michael Toglia (COL), 1B (21% Yahoo, 3.2% ESPN)
Toglia was nothing short of one of the worst hitters in baseball to start the year. He was swinging at everything, and he unsurprisingly was doing very little damage. He ranked in the first percentile in strikeout rate and Whiff rate, so his power wasn’t given an opportunity to play.
The Rockies sent Toglia back to the minors at the end of May, but he’s back with the big league club at the moment. In four games since returning, Toglia has showcased his upside. He’s launched three homers, despite playing each game on the road. He had 25 homers in 116 major league games last season, so he’s a legit power threat.
The strikeouts remain the big concern. Toglia has still whiffed five times in 17 at-bats since returning to the majors, and his strikeout rate for the year is north of 38%. If he can improve just a hair in that department, he has the chance to be a valuable fantasy asset.
Jake Mangum (TBR), OF (7% Yahoo, 4.4% on ESPN)
While most fantasy players were upset by the Rays’ decision to send Chandler Simpson back to the minors, Mangum has simply been the better player this season. He doesn’t exactly have the same game-changing speed, but he’s still well above-average in that department. He ranks in the 85th percentile for sprint speed, and he’s sitting on 1o steals in just 138 at-bats.
Mangum has also showcased a much better hit tool. He’s in the Luis Arraez/Jacob Wilson mold of hitters, meaning he doesn’t strike out and he doesn’t really walk. He’s at the plate to put the bat on the baseball, and he’s done that at a solid clip. Mangum is currently hitting .312, so he’s a solid source of batting and steals as long as he keeps his spot in the Rays’ lineup.
Dylan Lee (ATL), RP (8% Yahoo, 1.3% on ESPN)
It feels almost impossible, but the Braves haven’t had a save in more than a month. Their last save came all the way back on May 16, with Raisel Iglesias ultimately slamming the door.
However, the Braves are starting to play a bit better. They swept the Mets in a three-game series to start the week, and they’ve now won three straight series. Part of that stems from the return of Ronald Acuña Jr., but the Braves were going to turn it around at some point. They simply have too much talent, making the postseason in each of the past seven seasons.
The next time the Braves have a save opportunity, don’t be surprised if Lee is the guy who gets the call. While Iglesias has struggled this season, pitching to a 5.93 ERA and 4.88 xERA, Lee has thrived. His ERA currently sits below two, and he’s racked up better than a strikeout per inning. His advanced metrics are also significantly more impressive, so he appears to be the best option at the backend of the team’s bullpen.
Lee was scooped up in a bunch of high-stakes leagues recently, so it could be worth getting the jump before the Braves’ next save chance.
Streaming Pitchers
Be sure to check out the great Nick Pollack’s SP Streamer Rankings to see his favorite choices. Friday’s slate features a handful of potential options. Nick makes the case for Cade Horton vs. the Mariners, but he’s far from the only option:
Shane Baz (TBR), SP (47% Yahoo, 30.9% ESPN)
On paper, Baz has not been quite as good as he was for the Rays last season. His ERA is up from 3.06 to 4.55, while his home runs per nine have spiked from 1.02 to 1.51.
However, Baz’s underlying metrics aren’t nearly as bad. His 3.99 xERA is just slightly higher than his mark from last season, while he’s averaging more strikeouts per nine innings. His groundball rate is also a career-best 50.9%, which makes his home runs per nine feel like an outlier. A much higher percentage of his fly balls are flying over the fence this season, so with some better luck in that department, he should be due for some progression.
The talent with Baz is still clearly there, and he’s coming off an impressive showing in his last outing. He limited the Mets’ talented offense to just three hits over 6.2 scoreless innings, and he added six punchouts. If he can do that vs. the Mets, there’s no reason not to trust him vs. the Tigers. Detroit is improved offensively this season, but they’re still just 14th in wRC+ vs. right-handers with the fifth-highest strikeout rate in that split.
Speculative Adds
Masataka Yoshida (BOS), OF (3% Yahoo, 1.7% on ESPN)
Yoshida is reportedly still struggling to throw the baseball, which makes it tough to, you know, play baseball. With Rafael Devers clogging up the DH spot, it’s left Yoshida with no real rush to get back on the field.
Now that Devers is in San Francisco, the DH spot in Boston is much more open. It will reportedly ramp up Yoshida’s rehab process, since he doesn’t need to throw to serve as the designated hitter.
Yoshida should be a solid source of batting average at a minimum. He’s hit at least .280 in each of his two MLB seasons, and he’s also chipped in double-digit homers. He’s not going to wow you from a power standpoint, but he’s not a complete zero. He could be worth stashing on the IL if you have a spot open, especially if you need some help in batting average.
Jurickson Profar (ATL), OF (24% Yahoo, 19.4% on ESPN)
Unfortunately, Profar does not have the same IL eligibility as Yoshida, so if you want to scoop him, you’re going to have to burn a bench spot. That could ultimately be worth the sacrifice. Profar had a massive late-career breakout for the Padres last season, hitting .280 with 24 homers, 94 runs, 85 RBIs, and 10 stolen bases. That made him a legit five-category contributor.
Profar has started a rehab assignment in the minor leagues, and it’s already been reported that he’ll bat second for the Braves when he’s eventually activated. That will put him smack dab behind Acuña and ahead of Matt Olson and Austin Riley in the lineup. There are worse situations to be in.
Deep League Players to Watch
Wenceel Pérez (DET), OF (4% Yahoo, 4.1% on ESPN)
Perez is one of the most exciting deep league targets we’ve had to discuss in quite some time. He’s only had 63 at-bats for the Tigers this season, but he has been a monster in that small sample. He’s already launched five homers to go along with a .326 xBA and a .597 xSLG.
Can he keep it up over a larger sample? That remains to be seen, but it’s at least worth finding out in deeper formats.
