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 you can leave on the wire.
Top Priority Players to Add
George Lombard Jr. (NYY) – 2B, 3B, SS (Yahoo! – 29%)
The rookie call-up du jour, Lombard, made a splash in his debut. The other New York shortstop (sorry, Anthony Volpe) hit a home run for his first MLB hit. He tops the list of most-added players for both Yahoo! and ESPN, and deserves the top billing.
Lombard is an elite prospect, and he’s played like one this year. He holds a .909 OPS in the minors, with 12 HR and 14 SB in 76 games between Double- and Triple-A. For a 21-year-old shortstop, Lombard is a remarkably well-rounded hitter. He’s carried the label of “hit-tool risk” his entire minor league career, yet he’s managed to keep his K% better than the minor league average. There’s some swing and miss, but he has a good feel for the zone and walks almost as often as he strikes out (16.8% and 21.2% across the minors, respectively).
Noise around Yankees shortstops is always amplified. I don’t think Lombard is a league-winner, nor is he the second coming of Jeter. But I don’t think he’s 2026 Volpe either. Lombard is a mature hitter who was on track for a 20/20 season in the minors. He doesn’t have any glaring flaws, and I think he’ll put up a strong rookie campaign down the stretch; I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s a top-10 offensive shortstop the rest of the way. I’d add him right away in 12-team leagues, and he’s right on the fringe for 10-teamers.
Walbert Ureña (LAA) – SP (Yahoo! – 43%)
Ureña is having an unbelievably quiet breakout season. His 2.54 ERA is the eighth-lowest in the league (90+ IP), better than Tarik Skubal, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Cristopher Sánchez.
His change-up has been effective as his go-to pitch, backed up by his 97 mph two- and four-seam fastballs. A sweeper rounds out his arsenal, giving him an additional off-speed option. Like former teammate José Soriano, he’s something of a high-velocity groundball pitcher, but Ureña is substantially better at inducing soft contact. He’s been extremely effective of late, though he’s not without his flaws.
Ureña doesn’t notch many strikeouts: just under one per inning. The biggest knock against him is his poor 12.3% walk rate. There will certainly be some regression, but his xERA is a very manageable 3.26. Ureña is up to 42nd on the list, yet he’s available in over 50% of leagues.
Yahoo! and ESPN Most Added Players
Yahoo!
George Lombard Jr. got a write-up in the priority pick section above.
Randy Dobnak is a 31-year-old veteran who is pitching to the tune of a 1.16 ERA. He throws in the low-90s and his xERA is 4.58. I don’t see any world where he keeps this up, and his awful average exit velocity suggests that the collapse will be painful when it comes.
Héctor Rodríguez has had a breakout season at Triple-A this year. He’s slugged 27 home runs with an .881 OPS in 104 games. He doesn’t have the strongest prospect pedigree, but he’s been good enough this year that he’s worth a shot in most leagues. Shades of Jacob Gonzalez; an unheralded player decimating Triple-A. Let’s hope that the comparison ends there.
Ryan Weathers is coming around. I wrote about him early in the season, and it’s been a mixed bag thus far. His last three starts have been stellar, and I believe that this is the version of him we’ve been waiting for.
Joey Cantillo got through five innings against the Mets, giving up two earned runs. He’s had some tough starts, but overall he’s a solid pitcher. I like him for the White Sox this Sunday.
ESPN
George Lombard Jr. got a write-up in the priority pick section above.
Logan Henderson is still building up his pitch count, but he’s been phenomenal. I wouldn’t wait to grab him even in quality start leagues.
Ryan Weathers got a write-up in the Yahoo! section above.
Ceddanne Rafaela has been too good to ignore. His Statcast says he’s not THIS good, but he’s kept it rolling for the last month, and you can’t afford to ignore him while he’s playing like this.
Randy Dobnak got a write-up in the Yahoo! section, above.
Streaming Pitchers
Check out Nick Pollack’s SP Streamer Rankings for a complete breakdown of every start over the next few days.
Today (Wednesday): Noah Cameron (KCR) (29% on Yahoo!) Cameron will face the Twins for the second time in a row. He went eight scoreless with one hit and 7 Ks his last time out.
Tomorrow (Thursday): Shane Drohan (MIN) (40% on Yahoo!) Drohan will square off against the Pirates. He’s been a quality start machine, and Pittsburgh is a reasonable streaming target.
