Welcome to the Waiver Wire Picks, our daily fantasy baseball article that looks at the best players 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. We’ll also look at the most-added players in fantasy baseball across the major sites and tell you which players to add and which to leave on the wire.
Top Priority Players to Add
Jake McCarthy (COL) – OF (Yahoo – 46%)
McCarthy has been raking this season after locking down a full-time job in the Rockies’ outfield. The story of McCarthy’s career thus far has been his BABIP. In the seasons where he’s running hot, he’s posted above-average lines with decent defense. In seasons when his BABIP is lower, McCarthy has lost time, especially in 2025, when he posted a .233 BABIP. This season, he’s sitting at a .345 BABIP. He’s probably been a little fortunate to this point, but he’s turned a lot of grounders into line drives, which have the highest probability of turning into a hit. Statcast thinks he deserves a .272 average – lower than his current .308, but still an asset to fantasy teams. McCarthy’s speed has always been present, but this year, he’s added Coors-aided power to his game. I’m hard-pressed to think of a league where a 15-30 outfielder with a plus average shouldn’t be rostered.
Caleb Durbin (BOS) – 2B, 3B (Yahoo – 41%)
Durbin has his share of responsibility for the terrible start to the Red Sox season, but he’s making up for it as quickly. Durbin had a sub-.550 OPS through the end of May, but sits at .688 today thanks to a scorching June and the first two games of July. He’s done so by getting more aggressive at the plate. Durbin has swung at 72.2% of strikes while heating up after swinging at 59.6% of strikes through his cold start to the season. Durbin has excellent contact ability (92% zone contact) and a hitter-friendly park. When you add in that he’s likely to chip in close to 20 steals and qualifies at multiple infield positions, including MI and CI, he should be rostered in a majority of leagues.
Yahoo and ESPN Most Added Players
The top 5 most-added players on ESPN are either starters who are pitching today or Colorado outfielders. Let’s start with the obvious – Hunter Greene has massive upside and should be snapped up everywhere. Nick has him 27th on this week’s edition of The List, and he’s even a decent start in his first game back off the IL. Greene’s opponent today is Brandon Young. Young struck out 8 and got 23 whiffs in his last start vs the Nationals, but I’m still a skeptic. Young’s xFIP and xERA are both around 4.65; his most optimistic ERA estimator is his FIP, which sits 0.84 runs above his ERA. Even if you got the good ERA, his WHIP is a damaging 1.30. This matchup is in Cincinnati; the hitter-friendly park is mostly offset by the Reds’ poor offense, even at home. He’s fine if you’re desperate for volume, but he’s a low strikeout play, facing a much better starter, with a WHIP that is a negative for your squad.
I’d much rather start Sean Burke, who ranks first among the most-added players on ESPN. Stuff models think Burke’s got a bit better of a repertoire this year, with Stuff+ particularly a fan of his four-seamer. Burke is striking out 24.5% of batters he faces, while walking 8.5% of them, leaving him with a very solid 16% K-BB rate. Today, his matchup is against the Guardians, who rank 26th in MLB by runs scored. The Guardians are starting Parker Messick, so Burke might not pick up a W today, but he’s likely to give you solid strikeouts and ratios against a weak offense.
Jake McCarthy and Mickey Moniak are both among ESPN managers’ top-added players. The two Colorado outfielders hit first and second, respectively, against righties. They both had an off day against the last lefty the Rockies saw, but McCarthy has been torching them this year and has neutral platoon splits for his career. The Rockies have two home games this weekend, then 7 straight on the road, and are lined up for 4 lefties in those 9 games. You might not get the most production out of Moniak leading into the All-Star Break, but he’s had a massive season while healthy. His bat speed has ticked up again, going from 73.1 MPH in 2024 to 73.8 MPH last year and 74.3 MPH this year. Moniak’s launch angle is the highest of his career this year, sitting at 22.4 degrees on average. Statcast thinks he’s way overperforming, but the fail case is a low-average slugger with a .240 ISO. McCarthy was discussed above – he’s raking, and with his speed and the power boost from Coors, he should be rostered in most leagues.
Two additional streaming starters make the Yahoo most-added list. Kumar Rocker has a home matchup vs the Tigers today. Rocker is Nick’s streaming pick for today. The Tigers are an average offense on the season, so it’s not the worst matchup for him. Stuff models aren’t a fan of what Rocker’s throwing, but he’s having a decent season regardless, posting a roughly average 11.3% K-BB. He’ll get another start at home vs the Astros leading into the break, so you don’t necessarily have to drop him after this one, although I wouldn’t bat an eye if you did.
Jack Flaherty is also on the list for most-added players in Yahoo. Despite the continued erosion in his fastball velo, Flaherty is striking out a career-high 11.08 batters per nine. His K-BB sits at 15.3%, which is quite solid, but worse than you’d expect due to his extremely high walk rate. The Rangers have been an above-average offense, although with Corey Seager, Wyatt Langford, and Brandon Nimmo currently injured, it’s a decent time to target them for a stream. Flaherty is a WHIP killer and an ERA risk, but he’s a good bet to help in strikeouts and a decent shot at a win if you need the volume.
Deep League Players to Watch
Victor Bericoto (SFG) – OF (Yahoo – 1 %)
The Giants outfielder has been on a tear in his debut season, hitting .279/.295/.581 with 4 homers in 20 games. As you can tell from the line, there’s not a lot there in terms of plate discipline, but there have been flashes of serious power. He swings hard, with a bat speed of 74.2 MPH, and has managed 5 barrels in only 32 batted balls (15.6%). That said, scouting reports questioned his ability to elevate. He’s had minor league seasons with big power numbers, but none more recently than 2023. With the Giants’ season and playing time allocation up in the air, he’s the sort of high-risk, high-reward player you might take a flyer on if he gets a good share of at-bats in the second half of the season.
Graphic by Carlos Leano
