In weekly FAAB leagues, your waiver wire claims have likely already been processed. Our FAAB Insights articles are great sources for finding targets ahead of weekly waiver deadlines.
Here, you will find players you can pick up if you have daily waiver claims or if you are able to pick up players throughout the week.
These are players you should consider adding from the waiver wire for matchup number 13 who are available in 60% or fewer of ESPN leagues.
Catcher
Travis d’Arnaud (C – ATL) 16% Rostered
Since injuring his hamstring on June 18, Sean Murphy has had one at-bat, as a pinch hitter. During that time, Travis d’Arnaud has taken over as the starting catcher in Atlanta. Since June 18, d’Arnaud has gone 7-for-18 (.388), with two homers, three runs, and four RBI. His season totals are six homers, 17 runs, 18 RBI, and a .283 batting average.
He should be added for as long as Murphy is out, and perhaps beyond because he has definitely earned more playing time with his recent performances.
d’Arnaud has made some improvements over last season that have led to his success this year. For the fourth straight season, he has lowered his strikeout rate and for the third straight season he has increased his walk rate.
His 11% barrel rate is his best since 2020, and his 41.8% HardHit rate is an improvement over last year. He has put more fly balls in the air than last season, and his HR/FB rate has increased along with it.
Much of his success this year is due to his plate discipline. For one thing, his Strikezone Judgment is excellent according to our PLV data:
In addition to his top-notch ability to judge strikes and balls, he makes great decisions based on what he sees, as shown by our decision value PLV metric:
Even with Murphy on the mend, d’Arnaud is worth a waiver wire add where available.
Honorable Mention: Elias Díaz (47%), Patrick Bailey (4%), Yainer Diaz (5%), Danny Jansen (15%), Cal Raleigh (24%), Henry Davis (14%), Bo Naylor (2%)
Corner Infield
Joey Votto (1B – CIN) 14% Rostered
Joey Votto is back! He homered in his first game back:
KING HAS RETURNED@JoeyVotto pic.twitter.com/wRBJwUqymN
— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) June 20, 2023
In the five games since his return this season, he has totaled three home runs, four runs, seven RBI, and a .293 AVG.
Votto is coming off a disappointing 2022 season where he dealt with injuries and was limited to just 91 games. He is just two seasons removed from a 36 homer, .266 AVG season, though.
Granted, the sample size is small, but the veteran has an insanely high 25% barrel rate and a respectable 41% HardHit rate that is better than what he did last season. The early returns of three homers in five games does not appear to be a fluke considering the hard contact. Also, Votto has a 58% flyball rate and a 42.9% HR/FB rate which have led to the home run pace. Both of those, as well as the very low 8% LD rate, should all even out closer to his career norms.
Votto has averaged a 42% pull rate and a 22% LD rate the last three seasons. If he can get his LD rate up to that normal range and maintain his 41% pull rate this season, he could likely maintain a high average.
Something that Votto will have to adjust to maintain a high average is his plate discipline. His 49.4% swing rate is the second highest of his career, and the highest since his rookie year. His chase rate this season is 37.8% so far, which is 6% higher than his next highest season chase rate. He also has a career high 14% swinging strike rate and a career low 70% contact rate.
With more time, Votto should be able to knock off some of that rust and with a larger sample size, his numbers should end up closer to what he has done for his career. It would be no surprise to see him outproduce his rest of season projections of 7-12 home runs and an average around .235.
Votto is a worthwhile waiver add where available.
Honorable Mention: Brandon Drury (35%), Ryan O’Hearn (6%), Ryan McMahon (42%), Ezequiel Duran (20%), Jeimer Candelario (8%), Jordan Walker (41%), Christian Encarnacion-Strand
Middle Infield
Ha-Seong Kim (2B/SS/3B – SD) 12% Rostered
Ha-Seong Kim is rostered in far too few leagues considering his output this season. He has been on a tear in the last week, especially, batting .333 with two homers, three runs, six RBI, and two stolen bases. For the season, he is up to seven homers, 34 runs, 25 RBI, 13 steals, and a .250 AVG. For perspective, he has the same number of homers, RBI, and steals as Trea Turner, but with a better AVG.
Kim has been excellent this season in terms of plate discipline. He has the 12th best chase rate among all qualified hitters at 23%. His 82.4% contact rate is 36th among 156 qualified hitters. His contact ability has fluctuated some this season, but is still above average as reflected by our PLV data:
Although Kim’s barrel and HardHit rates are lackluster, he drives and pulls the ball well, allowing him to maintain a .309 BABIP – about 25 points higher than his career BABIP in the MLB, but much closer to what he did in the KBO.
Additionally, Kim has lowered his groundball rate and raised his flyball rate from last season, leading to a higher HR/FB rate, and what should be a career high in homers by the end of the season.
Kim might be able to get to 15 homers and 20 steals this season if he continues at his current pace. Only 12 players did that last season.
Kim has huge value and should be a waiver wire priority this week.
Honorable Mention: Maikel Garcia (6%), Royce Lewis (9%), Brendan Donovan (32%), Bryson Stott (46%), Christopher Morel (41%), Orlando Arcia (35%), Matt McLain (24%), Ezequiel Tovar (8%), Jordan Westburg (1%)
Outfield
Jake Fraley (OF – CIN) 22% Rostered
So far this season, six qualified batters have double digit homers and steals with at least a .270 AVG. Those players are Ronald Acuña Jr., Corbin Carroll, Freddie Freeman, Shohei Ohtani, Fernando Tatis Jr., and Kyle Tucker. Jake Fraley and Josh Lowe are the only non-qualified players to meet those marks as well.
Fraley has made major strides this season which have led to his successes. He has lowered his strikeout rate for the fourth straight season to a career best 17.4%. His 11.4% walk rate is an improvement over last year as is his 78.7% contact rate. Fraley has adjusted his approach this season, swinging more aggressively than ever:
That could very well be the key to his improvements and may make him one of the better fantasy hitters over the rest of the season. Fraley’s Hitter Performance PLV metric reflects a player on the rise:
Fraley should be able to continue putting balls over the fence with a career best 9.1% barrel rate. And although his 31.2% HardHit rate is subpar relative to the league, it is his second highest rate of his career and an improvement on last season. Fraley has also driven and pulled the ball well, which should allow him to keep his average up.
According to many projection systems, Fraley could finish the season with 20 homers and 20 steals. Nine players did that last season, and only four of them did it with a .270 AVG or higher.
Fraley presents massive value for little cost, and if he is available on the waiver wire in your league, he should be added immediately.
Honorable Mention: Luke Raley (10%), LaMonte Wade Jr. (27%), Corey Julks (1%), Willi Castro, Eddie Rosario (27%), Lane Thomas (44%), Joc Pederson (9%), Esteury Ruiz (38%), Mike Tauchman (3%), TJ Friedl (7%), Jake McCarthy (21%), Aaron Hicks (2%), Leody Taveras (20%), Tommy Pham (4%), Will Benson (1%), Nolan Jones (20%), Manuel Margot (3%), Marcell Ozuna (15%), Luis Matos (10%)
Starting Pitcher
Osvaldo Bido (SP – PIT) 1% Rostered
With a number of Pirates pitchers on the shelf, Osvaldo Bido has assumed a starting role in the rotation and has performed well in his first three games. He has a 3.45 ERA, with 18 strikeouts to just five walks.
Bido has an impressive 10 K/9 rate this season and a 2.87 BB/9 rate, both of which are better than what he has done in AAA over the last three seasons. It remains to be seen if he can make those numbers last, but he is locating the ball relatively well. He has the same Location+ (100) as Logan Gilbert, Marcus Stroman, and Freddy Peralta.
So far, Bido has stranded runners at a 79% clip and possesses a 38% groundball rate, but if he tosses his cutter and changeup more, he could potentially induce more grounders and keep more runners from scoring. They have a -17 and a 7 degree launch angle respectively.
His changeup is especially filthy, inducing a 33% whiff rate. It is his best out pitch against left-handed batters, with a 42% putaway rate, and has yet to be hit by anyone in the 26 times he has thrown it.
Bido should get an extended run in the Pirates rotation and has the stuff to stick there long term. He should be in consideration as a waiver wire add this week.
Honorable Mention: Braxton Garrett (39%), Brayan Bello (22%), Reid Detmers (32%), Julio Teheran (21%), Kyle Hendricks (8%), Griffin Canning (13%), Andrew Abbott (42%), Ranger Suárez (31%), JP Sears (9%), Bryan Woo (6%), J.P. France (10%), Wade Miley (11%), Kyle Bradish (11%), Bailey Ober (45%), Luis Ortiz (1%), Gavin Williams (11%), Emmet Sheehan (15%), Tarik Skubal (7%)
Relief Pitcher
Scott McGough (RP – ARI) 9% Rostered
It seems like nobody has a lock on the closer role in Arizona, but McGough has picked up a few saves recently and looks to be the favorite for the role at the moment.
The veteran has a 10.66 K/9 rate, thanks in large part to a splitter that has a 40% whiff rate and a 25% putaway rate and a slider that has a 44% whiff rate and a 30% putaway rate. Our PLV data likes his slider the most, but all of his pitches grade above league average:
McGough bounced around the minors between 2016 and 2018, so his success is somewhat surprising. Despite that, he has managed to post impressive 2.7 BB/9, 76% LOB, and 53.9% GB rates this season, along with a 2.50 ERA.
A 2.97 xFIP and 2.85 SIERA back up what he is doing this season, so you should feel comfortable rolling with him as a relief option, especially in leagues with holds (he is top 20 in holds among all relievers). McGough is a great relief pitching option and should be added from the waiver wire this week.
Honorable Mention: Evan Phillips (25%), Will Smith (28%), A.J. Puk (15%), Clay Holmes (48%), Craig Kimbrel (25%), Adbert Alzolay (5%),