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
Addison Barger (TOR), 3B, OF (32% owned in Yahoo!)
It’s a tad surprising that Barger is rostered in just 32% of Yahoo! leagues with his kind of profile as a hitter. It hasn’t translated into a ton of fantasy value as he is the 21st-ranked third baseman on Fangraphs Player Rater in 12-team 5×5 leagues, but there is a lot to like about his improved contact ability and the premium quality of his contact metrics and bat speed.
Addison Barger crushes a three-run blast!💥 pic.twitter.com/uSU9t7QRdK
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) July 2, 2025
He has a violent swing, and his 116.5 mph MaxEV is tied with the young star Junior Caminero. Barger is a player trending in the right direction and should be rostered in most 12-team formats.
Zack Gelof (ATH), 2B (10% owned in Yahoo!)
Gelof is expected to make his return this weekend against the Giants and hopefully add some juice to the second base position in fantasy. He has the power-speed combo you look for with 17 homers and 25 steals last season, but it came with an ugly .211 average and 34.4% strikeout rate. He is interesting regardless because of how thin the position has been, and he can continue working on cutting down the strikeouts in one of the friendliest home parks.
Michael Soroka (WSH), SP, RP (22% owned in Yahoo!)
Soroka has a bloated ERA at 4.70, but has limited baserunners very effectively with a 1.03 WHIP. The fastball velocity has remained up, and the command looks good. Quietly, he holds a 3.24 SIERA since the start of May, which ranks 17th among starters (min. 40 innings). It slots him right between Jacob deGrom and Robbie Ray. Soroka deserves to be rostered more and used in the right matchups.
Brandon Walter (HOU), SP, RP (19% owned in Yahoo!)
Walter has emerged as an important piece of the Astros’ rotation. He walked just one batter in June and had the fourth-best SIERA (2.77) during the month. The lefty doesn’t throw hard (91.7 mph fastball), but there’s some deception to his delivery. He has three fastballs that he mixes effectively along with his 112 Stuff+ slider and changeup. He commands his pitches well and is able to generate plenty of chase outside the zone and a good amount of whiffs. The upside is capped a bit, but he can be a usable player.
Brandon Walter’s 8th and 9th Ks…and Sword ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/CjaUmewX58
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 15, 2025
Yahoo! and ESPN Most Added Players
Simeon Woods Richardson was picked up to stream against Miami on Wednesday, and he was solid. He picked up the win, as he allowed one run on two hits and two walks with three strikeouts over five innings.
Ronny Henriquez looks like the reliever to own in Miami, as he has three saves in their last 10 games. The Marlins are on a nice winning streak and are generally much better than expected. With Henriquez’s stuff and strikeout upside, he could be worth splurging on if you need saves.
It’s rare for a reliever like Ronny Henriquez to consistently use 4 different pitches (sweeper, four-seamer, slider & changeup).
Even rarer, he misses bats with all of them. pic.twitter.com/JpwktuVXSi
— Fish On First (@FishOnFirst) June 6, 2025
Nick Martinez was a popular streamer against the Red Sox on Wednesday, and he wasn’t great, as he allowed four runs on nine hits with two strikeouts in 6.2 innings. Streaming fringy pitchers in Fenway is not something I’d recommend.
Landen Roupp was used at Arizona on Wednesday by fantasy managers, and allowed two runs on five hits and four walks while striking out four in four innings.
Kyle Stowers has been one of the breakout bats of 2025, and he has been crushing the ball since mid-June, with a 26.7% barrel rate and 63.3% hard-hit rate. He is also one of just 10 hitters all season to have a 120 wRC+ in each of the three months of the season so far (min. 80 PA). The other hitters include Aaron Judge, Brent Rooker, Cal Raleigh, Isaac Paredes, James Wood, Jeremy Peña, Jonathan Aranda, Kyle Tucker, and Shohei Ohtani.
Otto Lopez is back to making a ton of contact with some pop like he did early in the season. He is up to eight homers and nine steals on the season, and looks like he should end around 15 homers and 20 steals with a .270 batting average. He and Masyn Winn feel like similar players for fantasy.
Agustín Ramírez is ranked as the seventh most valuable catcher in Fangraphs Player Rater in 12-team 5×5 leagues despite not debuting until April 21. Agustín Ramírez, Shea Langeliers, and Will Smith are the only catchers in baseball with a double-digit barrel rate and a sub-20% strikeout rate (min. 200 PA).
Shane Baz is coming off a strong month of June, as he had a 3.26 ERA and 1.02 WHIP over 30.1 innings. The right-hander had the sixth-highest swinging strike rate in the month among starters with 14.5% and held the 10th-highest ground ball rate at 52.2% (min. 30 innings). Baz is still only 26 years old and has the stuff to be dominant.
Clayton Kershaw made history Wednesday night with his 3,000th career strikeout. He became the 20th pitcher in MLB history to accomplish that feat. The future Hall of Famer has also pitched well this year after returning from injury, holding a 3.43 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, and a clean 4-0 record in 44.2 innings.
CLAYTON KERSHAW 💪
3,000 CAREER STRIKEOUTS! pic.twitter.com/aG2mQcAFKa
— MLB (@MLB) July 3, 2025
Max Muncy, unfortunately, injured his left knee Wednesday night, as he was crashed into by Michael A. Taylor trying to steal third base. Muncy has been one of the hottest hitters in baseball with the fourth-best wRC+ (198) since June. Let’s hope the injury wasn’t as bad as it looked.
Streaming Pitchers
Be sure to check out Nick’s daily SP streaming article!
Stephen Kolek (SD), SP (11% owned on Yahoo!)
Kolek has pitched well this year with a 3.73 ERA and 1.24 WHIP, and is one of just eight starters this season to throw a complete game shutout. He draws the Rangers on Saturday, who have the third-worst OPS against righties on the season. Kolek won’t draw a ton of strikeouts, and the Rangers don’t strike out a ton either, but he mixes his pitches effectively and induces a heavy amount of ground balls.
Speculative Adds
Logan Evans (SEA), SP, RP (2% owned on Yahoo!)
I’ve included here and in the player to watch section in the past, while Logan Gilbert was dealing with his injury. He is expected to start Thursday’s game against the Royals, and it is to be determined if he stays in the rotation beyond that. He’s been more effective than Emerson Hancock and is deserving of another shot. The right-hander has a deep arsenal with multiple fastballs and breaking balls with solid command. He’s a guy who found some success in the big leagues earlier this year, with a 3.38 ERA in 40 innings. His pitcher-friendly home ballpark adds to the appeal and makes him a solid speculative add.
Deep League Players to Watch
Isaac Collins (MIL), OF (3% owned on Yahoo!)
Collins popped up out of nowhere and has found an opportunity to play regularly with Milwaukee. The former Rule 5 pick has been playing some good ball for the Brewers. He’s a very good defender and has shown a good approach at the plate that has led to a slash line of .268/.373/.421 with five homers and eight stolen bases. That is a very useful player in deeper leagues.
The rookie’s third hit of the game is a missile https://t.co/UbYyKKBx9K pic.twitter.com/VtyzbKzkSc
— Milwaukee Brewers (@Brewers) July 2, 2025
