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 (55% rostered on Yahoo, 21.4% on ESPN)
Kurtz has seen a big spike in ownership recently—especially on Yahoo—but he still checks in below the 60% threshold. That’s a mistake. The rookie first baseman has settled in at the major league level and is already making a huge impact for fantasy purposes. He’s the No. 3 first baseman in the ESPN Fantasy Player Rater over the past 15 days, and there’s no reason to expect too much regression moving forward.
Kurtz has prodigious power, thanks in part to his elite bat speed. He’s averaging 77.5 miles per hour on his swings, which would be the fourth-best mark among qualified hitters. Only Oneil Cruz, Junior Caminero, and Jo Adell have been better, putting Kurtz in pretty elite territory. The result is a 16.7% barrel rate, which puts him in the 95th percentile.
Kurtz’s power has only increased as he’s gotten more comfortable with MLB pitching. He’s still striking out a ton, but he’s doing serious damage when he puts the ball in play. He has 11 homers since being called up in the middle of June, and his power has led to serious gains in Process+:
Kurtz is not going to help you in the batting average department, but he might not be a killer, either. His average currently sits at .251, and he’s at .257 since returning in June. His expected batting average is slightly worse, but he doesn’t figure to be someone who hits below .220. With his power, that’s more than good enough.
Charlie Morton (BAL), SP (23% Yahoo, 7.2% ESPN)
While Kurtz’s career is just getting started, Morton is clearly on the back nine. He’ll turn 42 years old in November, and his numbers for the year suggest he’s on the decline. His ERA currently sits at 5.18, while his xERA isn’t much better at 4.17.
That said, Morton’s numbers are marred by a dreadful start to the year. He has turned things around in a big way since then, pitching to a 2.76 ERA and 2.87 FIP over his past eight starts. He’s also picked up five wins during that stretch, and he continues to possess above-average strikeout stuff. Morton has tallied 48 punchouts in his past 42.1 innings, and his 23.1% strikeout rate for the season puts him in the 55th percentile. That’s far from elite, but he’s still contributing in that category despite his advanced age.
Morton is a prime trade candidate before the deadline, so his situation could also be improved in the coming weeks. Even though he hasn’t struggled to pick up wins recently, the Orioles have still been a subpar offensive squad all season. With a change of scenery—and a potential move to a more pitcher-friendly venue—Morton could be a very valuable fantasy asset down the stretch. He’s still got some gas left in the tank.
Yahoo and ESPN Most Added Players
As usual, Yahoo’s list of most-added players is dominated by streaming pitchers. Three of the top five options took to the mound on Saturday: Trevor Rogers, Janson Junk, and Brady Singer.
Rogers and Junk opposed each other in Baltimore, and Junk was highlighted in Friday’s waiver column. He turned in another brilliant start on Saturday, pitching seven scoreless innings and earning a win. His FIP now sits at 2.13 for the year, which is an absolutely elite figure. He’s doing it without the benefit of dominant stuff, but he’s limiting the free passes and keeping the ball in the yard. It may not continue forever, but Junk is someone who has earned the benefit of the doubt for the time being.
In some ways, Rogers was even better. He didn’t pick up the win, but he racked up eight punchouts and surrendered just two hits and two walks across 6.2 innings. He did surrender one run, but his marks for the day were still fantastic overall: 1.35 ERA, 1.58 FIP, 2.70 xFIP. Rogers lowered his ERA to a sparkling 1.58 for the year, albeit across just six starts. He moved up to No. 61 in the Pitcher List Rankings earlier this week, and it’s possible he moves up another couple of spots following another fantastic outing.
Singer got the benefit of facing the Rockies at home on Saturday, which is about as good as it gets for a starting pitcher. He was unable to secure a win and allowed three earned runs, but his nine strikeouts were tied for his best mark of the year. His other outing with nine punchouts came three starts ago, so he’s trending up in that department. Singer’s 2.77 FIP and 1.18 xFIP on Saturday suggest he was a bit unlucky, and while he won’t get to face the Rockies every time out, he’s proven that he can be streamed in the right matchups.
Simeon Woods Richardson was also a popular add, and he’ll take the bump Sunday vs. the Pirates. Pittsburgh is arguably the only matchup in baseball better than facing the Rockies. They don’t strike out at the same frequency, but they’re dead last in wRC+ when facing a righty on the road. They’re also averaging the fewest runs per game when away from home, so it’s an elite spot. Woods Richardson isn’t a particularly exciting option in a vacuum, but there’s plenty of reason for optimism on Sunday.
Noelvi Marte was the lone batter to crack the Yahoo top five, and he rewarded those who scooped him up with a homer on Saturday. Marte now has six homers and four steals in just 92 at-bats this season, and he also sports a .293 batting average. While his advanced metrics suggest he’s been a bit fortunate, his power/speed upside is tantalizing. He ranks in the 92nd percentile for sprint speed, while his max exit velocity puts him in the top two percent of MLB hitters. There’s a reason he was once considered an elite prospect, so it could be worth riding out his current hot streak.
ESPN’s list of most-added players features a lot of names we’ve touched on recently. Brandon Woodruff, Ceddanne Rafaela, Michael Busch, and Lucas Giolito were all discussed at length in Friday’s column, so Rogers was the lone outlier.
Category-Specific Players to Add
Alec Burleson (STL), 1B/OF (48% Yahoo, 40.7% ESPN)
Burleson can flat-out hit. He’s now batting .289 for the year, and his .285 expected batting average puts him in the 85th percentile. He’s been even better as the calendar has heated up, hitting .303 in May and .317 in June.
Burleson doesn’t provide the typical raw power you’d expect from a corner infielder or outfielder, but he’s trending upward in that department as well. He launched six homers in June, and he had 21 homers in 2024. He’s on pace to set new career highs in both slugging percentage and ISO, so he’s becoming a more complete hitter.
Add in just a smidge of stolen base upside—he has three steals this season and had nine last year—and Burleson is a valuable asset for any lineup construction.
Tyler O’Neill (BAL), OF (33% Yahoo, 9.3% ESPN)
While Burleson might not be a true slugger, O’Neill fits the bill. Well, he’s at least fit the bill historically. He hasn’t looked like the same hitter so far this season, launching just three homers in his 118 plate appearances.
Still, this is a player who has two seasons with at least 30 homers under his belt, and he’s still making solid contact. He has a 14.7% barrel rate, so there is minimal reason for concern about his power potential. As he gets more at-bats under his belt, the ball should start flying.
O’Neill also benefits from his home ballpark, which has been much friendlier for right-handed hitters since moving in the left field fence. It ranks as the eighth-best park for righty bats from a home run standpoint, so O’Neill has excellent upside over the second half of the year.
Sean Manaea (NYM), SP (40% Yahoo, 29.5% ESPN)
If you have been holding on to Manaea all season, it’s finally time to (hopefully) reap the rewards. He’s slated to make his return to the mound Sunday vs. the Royals, though he’ll come out of the bullpen behind Clay Holmes. With the All-Star break starting on Monday, it’s an opportunity for Manaea to get his feet wet for a few innings before joining the starting rotation next week.
Manaea made some mechanical changes in his first year with the Mets, and he emerged as an outstanding starter over the second half of the year. He finished with a 3.47 ERA overall while averaging better than a strikeout per inning.
If Manaea is available, he’s someone who is worth grabbing. He should be a solid source of wins for an above-average squad, and he can help your team’s ERA and strikeouts as well.
Streaming Pitchers
Be sure to check out the great Nick Pollack’s SP Streamer Rankings to see his favorite choices. There are a handful of decent options to choose from on Sunday, with Nick opting for Joey Canitllo. However, he’s not the only player worth considering:
Eury Pérez (MIA), SP (49% Yahoo, 20.0% ESPN)
Perez is available in just over 50% of Yahoo leagues, and he’s someone who simply shouldn’t be available. His advanced metrics have been outstanding since returning from the IL, pitching to a 2.61 xERA while limiting batters to a .188 xBA. His actual numbers are starting to reflect his dominance, with Perez allowing just one run with three hits and 15 strikeouts over his past 11 innings.
Baltimore isn’t an elite matchup, but they’re not all that imposing either. Junk and the bullpen were able to keep them off the scoreboard entirely on Saturday, and there’s no reason Perez can’t do the same. Even if you don’t want to hold on to Perez for the rest of the season, he’s worth scooping.
Speculative Adds
Kevin Ginkel (ARI), RP (13% Yahoo, 1.4% ESPN)
Another one bites the dust in Arizona. Shelby Miller is currently seeking a second opinion on a forearm injury, but he could be headed for the third Tommy John surgery of his career. If he is forced to go under the knife, he’ll join Justin Martinez and A.J. Puk as Diamondbacks relievers to have season-ending surgery.
That leaves Ginkel as the team’s likely closer. He has the team’s lone save opportunity since Miller went down, and he’s had some save opportunities in previous years. Ginkel’s numbers this season are horrid—particularly his 8.57 ERA—but saves are saves. With the Diamondbacks looking more like sellers than buyers at the trade deadline, Ginkel could have a handful of opportunities over the second half. That’s enough to at least put him on the radar.
Brandon Walter (HOU), SP/RP (16% Yahoo, 9.7% ESPN)
Walter has been a bit feast or famine this season. He’s allowed just 17 earned runs in his seven starts, and 12 of them came in two outings. One of those was at Coors Field, while the other was against a solid Angels’ offense.
Other than those two outings, Walter has pretty much been nails. His xERA for the year is just 2.90, putting him in the 89th percentile. He ranks in the 100th percentile for walk rate, and his batted-ball data is also fantastic. His strikeout numbers are also good enough, so he checks all the boxes. As long as he keeps his job in the Astros’ rotation, he’s a potentially valuable asset down the stretch.
Deep League Players to Watch
Ha-Seong Kim (TBR), SS (7% Yahoo, 3.1% ESPN)
Kim has missed most of the season, and his numbers during his Triple-A rehab assignment were horrid. Kim has always been more known for his bat than his glove, so it’s understandable why fantasy players didn’t rush out to add him after being activated.
However, Kim has been a solid source of steals over the past few seasons, and he’s hit the ground running for the Rays. He hit .333 with a homer and a steal across his first four games before wearing the collar on Saturday. Playing at Steinbrenner Field should help his numbers much more than Petco Park did, so he has the chance to be relevant in deeper formats.
