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
Roman Anthony (BOS), OF (54% rostered on Yahoo, 27.0% on ESPN)
Like many top prospects, Anthony struggled in his first taste of big league action. He was batting just .114 through his first 15 games, and he provided minimal value in the counting categories as well. He had just one homer, one steal, five RBIs, and five runs scored, so it was fair to wonder if he wasn’t quite ready for the step up in weight class.
Anthony has put all those concerns to rest since then. He’s been scorching hot over his past 12 games, posting a .396 batting average while routinely hitting in the top third of the Red Sox’s lineup. The power has still yet to truly come around—he’s added just one homer in that stretch—but he has scored 12 times and driven in seven runs. Overall, his approach at the dish has been significantly improved (via Process+):
Given Anthony’s pedigree and minor-league dominance, he is not someone who should be available in roughly 50% of Yahoo leagues. He’s the No. 13 outfielder in ESPN’s Fantasy Player Rater over the past seven days, and it wouldn’t be a huge shock if he continued to deliver value over the final half of the year. If he’s available, go out and get him.
Cam Schlittler (NYY), SP (21% Yahoo, 5.8% on ESPN)
We’ve seen tons of exciting pitching prospects promoted to the majors this season, and you can add Schlittler to that list. He made his MLB debut for the Yankees on Wednesday and immediately looked the part. He piled up seven strikeouts in just 5.1 innings, and while his 5.04 ERA doesn’t jump off the page, his 2.81 xERA is outstanding.
Schlittler limited the Mariners to an expected batting average of .183 in his first start, and he should be an elite source of strikeouts moving forward. His strikeout rate checked in at 33.3% in his first start, and he was above 35% in Triple-A to start the year.
With Clarke Schmidt recently hitting the IL, the opportunity is there for Schlittler to stick in the rotation for the rest of the year. The Yankees were conservative with his pitch count in his first start—he was pulled after just 75 pitches—he should have a longer leash moving forward. The strikeout upside is enough to make him a strong addition to any fantasy rotation, and he should have solid win expectency while pitching for the Yankees.
Yahoo and ESPN Most Added Players
As usual, streaming pitchers dominated the listed of most-added players on Yahoo. Four of the five most-added players were scheduled to take the bump on Thursday: Logan Allen, Colin Rea, JP Sears, and Patrick Corbin. Unfortunately, Allen’s start was rained out, so he’ll start one leg of a doubleheader versus the White Sox on Friday.
Rea got the nod for the Cubs against the Twins, and he put together a really strong performance. He went seven innings and surrendered just one earned run and three hits. His lone blemish came on a Kody Clemens solo home run, and he was able to cruise to a comfortable win. Unfortunately, it’s hard to imagine similar results for Rea in the future. His xERA for the year is over five, putting him in the 12th percentile. He also provides minimal strikeout upside, so he’s a risky option in all but the best matchups.
Sears wasn’t awful versus Atlanta on Thursday, but he wasn’t particularly valuable either. He surrendered three earned runs in five innings, and that wasn’t good enough to get a win. He did add six strikeouts, but he’s very tough to trust whenever he’s pitching at home. His ERA is near six in that split, so he makes for a much better streaming target when the Athletics are on the road.
Corbin has been one of the worst pitchers in baseball over the past two seasons, but he’s been slightly improved with the Rangers this season. He still hasn’t been great—4.15 ERA, 4.58 xERA—but he’s been a decent innings eater. He went five innings on Thursday versus the Angels, allowing just two earned runs and picking up the win. He added six strikeouts, so he was a decent streamer overall. He’s still not someone who stands out as an exciting option, but he can potentially be streamed in the right matchups. That’s a step in the right direction for him.
Romy González was the lone batter among Thursday’s top adds, and his positional versatility makes him easy to fit in most lineups. He provided just a smidge of value on Thursday, walking once in three plate appearances and scoring a run, but his numbers for the year make him more than just a daily streamer. He has a .333 batting average and .311 xBA, and he has phenomenal batted-ball metrics as well. He might not be able to keep it up forever, but he’s playing on most days and is an interesting add for the time being.
Three pitchers were also included in ESPN’s list of most-added players. Lucas Giolito has had success since joining Boston’s rotation, racking up a 6-1 record with a 3.36 ERA. He’s been brilliant over his past six starts, tallying five wins with a 0.70 ERA, 2.62 FIP, and an 8.72 K/9. Can he keep it up? That remains to be seen. His underlying metrics aren’t quite as impressive, but it could be worth riding out this hot streak for as long as possible.
Brandon Woodruff made his long-awaited return from shoulder surgery on Sunday, and things couldn’t have gone much better. He allowed just one run across six innings, and he scattered just two hits, zero walks, and eight strikeouts. It resulted in some elite expected statistics, so there’s a chance he could go right back to being an elite fantasy starter. He’ll have to prove he can do it against tougher competition than the Marlins, but there are plenty of reasons to be excited.
Speaking of the Marlins, Edward Cabrera has put together his best stretch as a professional recently. He was outstanding in June, pitching to a 2.89 ERA with 21 strikeouts in 18.2 innings, and so far, he’s been even better in July. He’s gone seven innings in back-to-back outings, so he’s started to live up to his immense potential.
Michael Busch has reached the point where he’s not available in most leagues, and that is to be expected. That’s how good he’s been of late. He batted .309 with seven homers in June, and he’s been scorching hot to start July. He’s batting .457 so far this month, and he’s gone deep four times in 35 at-bats. His expected statistics for the year are phenomenal—he ranks in the 94th percentile for xwOBA and 96th percentile for xSLG—so he’s an excellent addition in leagues where he’s still available.
Ceddanne Rafaela is another player who has been scorching hot. Over his past 17 games, he’s batted .328 with six homers and an 1.124 OPS. Unfortunately, he continues to hit in the bottom third of the Red Sox’s lineup, and his advanced metrics suggest he’s running hot from a power standpoint. He’s worth a look if you need help in the outfield, but some regression is likely headed his way.
Category-Specific Players to Add
Chandler Simpson (TBR), OF (35% Yahoo, 16.9% ESPN)
Simpson is back in the back leagues, and he’s back to doing what he does best: swiping bags. He’s stolen seven bases since being called back up, including four in his past eight games. He’s now at 26 steals for the year, which is the fourth-most in the entire league. Only José Caballero, Oneil Cruz, and Pete Crow-Armstrong have more, and the latter two have at least 122 additional at-bats. As long as he keeps playing, he’s going to challenge for the league lead in that department.
Additionally, Simpson is a solid help in the batting average category as well. He’s batting .311 for the year, and his expected average is basically identical. Simpson isn’t going to provide any production in the power department, but he will be a major asset everywhere else. That’s a very solid addition to most fantasy rosters.
Joe Boyle (TBR), SP (24% Yahoo, 8.0% on ESPN)
Sticking with the Rays, Boyle is another intriguing arm to add to the fantasy mix. It remains to be seen what his role will look like in the majors, but he has electric stuff. He owns an elite 37.8% strikeout rate and 34.2% Whiff rate through his first 10 innings, and he’s yet to allow a single earned run.
For the time being, it appears as though Boyle will work in tandem with Drew Rasmussen. Rasmussen has had three major elbow injuries, so the team is looking to limit his innings moving forward. He went just two innings in his last start, which allowed Boyle to pitch 5.0 innings in relief. If that trend continues, it’s going to give Boyle plenty of win opportunities, even if he doesn’t throw more than a handful of innings.
That combination is more than good enough to warrant a spot on most rosters.
Ronny Henriquez (MIA), RP (39% Yahoo, 13.1% on ESPN)
Henriquez doesn’t look like a dominant reliever at just 5’10” and 155 lbs, but he’s been dominant for the Marlins this season. He owns a 2.66 ERA with phenomenal strikeout metrics, ranking in the 94th percentile for strikeout rate, 96th percentile for Whiff rate, and 97th percentile for Chase rate.
Henriquez has taken over as the Marlins’ primary closer, and while that’s not the most fruitful role in fantasy, it can still provide value. Henriquez now has five saves and five wins on the year, and with the Marlins clearly not contending and looking to add arms at the deadline, his role should be safe for the rest of the year.
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 Landon Roupp against the White Sox, but he’s far from the only option:
Chase Burns (CIN), SP (51% Yahoo, 31.6% ESPN)
Burns has not lived up to expectations after being promoted to the majors. His ERA is currently above 8.00, while his xERA is at 5.93. His batted-ball data also leaves a lot to be desired, so it’s reasonable that his ownership has dipped recently.
That said, none of that really matters versus the Rockies. Their offense has been one of the worst in baseball this season, especially when playing outside of Coors Field. They’re 29th in wRC+ when facing a righty on the road, and they also boast the worst strikeout rate in baseball in that split.
Despite Burns’ struggles, he’s still put up fantastic strikeout numbers at the MLB level. In this type of matchup, Burns has massive upside in every category across the board.
Speculative Adds
Janson Junk (MIA), SP/RP (8% Yahoo, 4.7% on ESPN)
Junk is a hard pitcher to get a feel for. He doesn’t have electric stuff, so he relies on command to get outs at the MLB level. While that’s a difficult formula, it can be effective. Junk has made it work so far. He ranks in the 100th percentile for walk rate, and his 2.00 FIP ranks as the sixth-best mark among pitchers with at least 30 innings. Tarik Skubal is the only starter who has fared better than Junk in that department, which is obviously elite company. At a minimum, it makes Junk someone to keep an eye on moving forward.
Kyle Bradish (BAL), SP (6% Yahoo, 1.3% on ESPN)
Bradish has yet to pitch for the Orioles this season, but his time could be coming soon. He’s expected to start a rehab assignment any day now, and he’s made it through multiple bullpen sessions. That puts his ETA in the major leagues somewhere around the end of July or the beginning of August.
Bradish was a legit ace as a starter in 2023 and 2024 before undergoing Tommy John surgery. He had a 2.83 ERA across 30 starts in 2023, and he had a 2.75 ERA and 12.13 K/9 in eight starts last year. The Orioles will likely be careful with Bradish when he is activated—especially if the team remains out of playoff contention—but the talent is worth stashing if you have an IL spot available.
Deep League Players to Watch
Luke Raley (SEA), 1B/OF (4% Yahoo, 1.0% on ESPN)
It remains to be seen if Raley will hold down the first base job in Seattle for the long run. The team is rumored to be in the market for a corner infielder, which could impact Raley’s playing time. That said, he also has the ability to play the outfield, which should keep him relevant regardless of who the Mariners acquire.
Raley is a solid power/speed threat. He had 22 homers and 14 steals in 2024, and he was at 19 and 14, respectively, in 2023. Raley hasn’t been quite as productive so far this season, but he should continue to be in the lineup against righties on most days. That’s enough to warrant consideration in deeper leagues.
