X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Gain Access Now

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Player Comparisons
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

2B and SS Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 9

Injuries have been up around the league, and middle infielders haven't been spared, so things are looking a bit thin out there on the ol' waiver wire. You can still find help, though, and that's the goal of this exercise.

Most of the players who will be written up in this feature won't be the next breakout star. Some may only be useful for a brief period. A few might not provide any value at all. It's the nature of the beast; if these players were slam dunks, they wouldn't be widely available for free. We're looking for plausible upside with naught but opportunity cost. By considering a wide swath of factors including but not limited to evidence of a change in approach, favorable upcoming schedules, and plain ol' potential, the goal is simply to find as much marginal value as possible.

As a reminder, we'll be looking at pickups for shallow leagues (30-49% rostered) and deeper formats (10-29%), as well as highlighting players in the single-digits who deserve a spot on your watch list at the very least. These are your second base and shortstop waiver wire pickups for Week 9 - May 24 through May 30.

Be sure to check all of our fantasy baseball lineup tools and weekly lineup resources:

 

Pickups for Shallow Leagues

Jonathan Villar, 2B/3B/SS, New York Mets (37% rostered)

Injuries have hit the Mets hard in recent weeks, which has opened things up for Villar to not only start everyday, but also assume the leadoff role. He homered in back-to-back games last week and has three homers, three steals, and 12 R+BI in the past two weeks. That production has been accompanied by a lousy .171 batting average, but as long as he keeps putting up crooked numbers in the counting stat categories, he'll be worth rostering.

Colin Moran, 1B/2B/3B, Pittsburgh Pirates (36% rostered)

Moran (groin) has not yet returned to action after a groin injury, but he's close and it sounds like he won't need a rehab assignment. Prior to hitting the injured list, Moran was hitting .297/.352/.468 with four homers, 29 R+BI and a stolen base in 32 contests. He should immediately slot back into the cleanup spot once he's back in the lineup.

Kike Hernandez, 2B/SS/OF, Boston Red Sox (31% rostered)

Hernandez has performed well since recovering from a hamstring strain last week, hitting safely in four of five games with five runs, a homer, and a stolen base. His full-season numbers don't leap off the page, but since April 17, he's logged a .282/.341/.538 line with four homers and 19 runs in 23 games. Boston handed the leadoff spot right back to him after the IL stint, and he's still on a 100 run pace over a full season despite the missed time.

 

Pickups for Deeper Leagues

Kolten Wong, 2B, Milwaukee Brewers (27% rostered)

Wong isn't tremendously exciting, but assuming the arm issue that resulted from a HBP on Friday doesn't keep him out of action, he's still worth a roster spot in plenty of leagues. The 30-year-old has multiple double-digit HR/SB seasons on his ledger, and is pacing toward another in 2021. Couple that with a solid batting average and a firm grip on the leadoff spot in Milwaukee, and you have a classic boring but reliable vet. Plus, based on his career numbers at Miller Park it's fair to expect him to start hitting better at home moving forward.

Odubel Herrera, 2B/OF, Philadelphia Phillies (11% rostered)

Over the past 14 days, Herrera is hitting .341 with a homer and two steals. That stretch included a nine-game hitting streak that featured four multi-hit contests. His swinging strike, hard-hit, and barrel rates are all career-bests, and there's virtually no competition in Philadelphia for the starting job in center field.

 

The Watch List

Willy Adames, SS, Milwaukee Brewers (9% rostered)

The Rays traded Adames to Milwaukee late last week, which should improve his outlook. For his career, Adames has hit much better away from Tropicana Field (.858 road OPS vs. .624 home), and Miller Park is hitter-friendly.

Taylor Walls, SS, Tampa Bay Rays (4% rostered)

When news of the Adames trade broke, fantasy managers briefly got themselves hyped up over the potential promotion of either Vidal Brujan or Wander Franco. Instead, in true Rays fashion, they called up Walls instead. He doesn't have the cache of those more well-known farmhands, but Walls hit well at Triple-A and has enough contact ability and speed to be intriguing.



Download Our Free News & Alerts Mobile App

Like what you see? Download our updated fantasy baseball app for iPhone and Android with 24x7 player news, injury alerts, sleepers, prospects & more. All free!



More Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Advice


Check out RotoBaller's entire fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups and sleepers list, updated daily!




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Player Comparisons
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

D'Andre Swift15 mins ago

Upgrades To Limited Participant On Thursday
Luka Doncic19 mins ago

Expected To Miss At Least A Week
CeeDee Lamb25 mins ago

Sidelined During Thursday's Practice
Ladd McConkey32 mins ago

Does Not Practice On Thursday
Mike Evans41 mins ago

Logs Full Practice On Thursday
DeVonta Smith2 hours ago

Misses Another Practice
Cody Bellinger3 hours ago

Cubs Looking To Trade Cody Bellinger?
Brandin Cooks3 hours ago

Preparing To Play In Week 12
CeeDee Lamb3 hours ago

Not Seen At Thursday's Practice
3 hours ago

Blake Snell Has Met With Red Sox, Dodgers
Aaron Rodgers3 hours ago

Jets Owner Suggested Benching Aaron Rodgers
Mike Evans5 hours ago

Practicing Again On Thursday
Chandler Stephenson6 hours ago

Registers Three Assists Versus Predators
Jason Robertson6 hours ago

Totals Three Points In Wednesday's Win
Nils Lundkvist6 hours ago

Exits Early With A Lower-Body Injury
Matthew Knies6 hours ago

Sustains An Upper-Body Injury
Mikael Granlund6 hours ago

Exits Late With Injury Wednesday
Patrik Laine7 hours ago

Returns To Practice
Ausar Thompson7 hours ago

Listed As Doubtful For Thursday
Walker Kessler7 hours ago

Still Missing For Jazz
Jordan Clarkson7 hours ago

Questionable To Face Spurs
Devin Vassell7 hours ago

To Miss Third Consecutive Game
Chris Paul7 hours ago

Considered Probable For Thursday's Game
Khris Middleton7 hours ago

Medically Cleared To Play
Chris Sale18 hours ago

Wins National League Cy Young Award
Tarik Skubal18 hours ago

Wins 2024 American League Cy Young Award
Paul George18 hours ago

Exits Game On Wednesday, Hyperextends Left Knee Again
Scoot Henderson19 hours ago

Leaves Game On Wednesday, Won't Return
Jalen Johnson19 hours ago

Active On Wednesday Night
Zach Collins20 hours ago

Uncertain To Play On Thursday
Austin Eckroat20 hours ago

Heads To The RSM Classic After Win
Harris English20 hours ago

Finding Form Heading To The RSM Classic
Ben Griffin20 hours ago

Continues Playing Well Heading To The RSM Classic
Denny McCarthy20 hours ago

Returns to The RSM Classic
Patrick Williams20 hours ago

Likely To Miss At Least One Week
Kyle Anderson20 hours ago

Available For Matchup With Hawks
Victor Wembanyama20 hours ago

Out Again On Thursday
Jusuf Nurkic20 hours ago

Available On Wednesday
Stephen Curry20 hours ago

Will Play Against Atlanta
De'Anthony Melton20 hours ago

To Undergo Season-Ending ACL Surgery
Tre Mann20 hours ago

Probable For Thursday Night Matchup Against Detroit
Mike Conley20 hours ago

Appears On Injury Report For Thursday With Toe Injury
Donte DiVincenzo21 hours ago

Questionable Heading Into Thursday
Josh Jacobs21 hours ago

Limited With Multiple Injuries
DeVonta Smith21 hours ago

Misses Practice On Wednesday
Isaiah Hartenstein21 hours ago

To Make Season Debut On Wednesday
Seth Jones23 hours ago

Expected To Miss Four Weeks
Sam Darnold23 hours ago

Limited With Foot Injury
Max Domi23 hours ago

Placed On Injured Reserve
Jalen Hurts23 hours ago

Limited On Wednesday
Connor Ingram23 hours ago

Out Day-To-Day With An Upper-Body Injury
Jake Ferguson23 hours ago

Picks Up A DNP On Wednesday
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen23 hours ago

Returns To Action Versus Kings
CeeDee Lamb23 hours ago

Listed As Limited, Dealing With Two Injuries
Alex Tuch23 hours ago

Available Wednesday
Tage Thompson23 hours ago

Remains Out On Wednesday
Sam LaPorta24 hours ago

Practicing In Full
Jordan Eberle24 hours ago

To Remain Out On Wednesday
George Kittle24 hours ago

Will Play In Week 12
Ludvig Aberg24 hours ago

Looks To Defend RSM Classic Title
Ladd McConkey24 hours ago

Does Not Practice On Wednesday
Si Woo Kim24 hours ago

An Intriguing Option At RSM Classic
Maverick McNealy24 hours ago

In Solid Form Ahead Of RSM Classic
Eric Cole24 hours ago

Chasing First Tour Victory At RSM Classic
San Francisco 49ers1 day ago

Nick Bosa Does Not Practice On Wednesday
Christian McCaffrey1 day ago

Does Not Practice On Wednesday
George Kittle1 day ago

Limited During Wednesday's Practice
Connor Bedard1 day ago

Ends Drought With Two Assists
Sam Reinhart1 day ago

Pushes Point Streak To 11 Games
Mark Scheifele1 day ago

Celebrates Ninth Career Hat Trick
Evan Bouchard1 day ago

Rocks Senators With Three-Point Period
Connor McDavid1 day ago

Nets Two Goals During Three-Point Night
TB1 day ago

Nicholas Paul Exits Early With Injury Tuesday
Zach Hyman1 day ago

Sits Out Third Period Versus Senators
2 days ago

Guardians' Stephen Vogt Named AL Manager Of The Year
Milwaukee Brewers2 days ago

Pat Murphy Named NL Manager Of The Year
Jonas Brodin2 days ago

Returns To Action
2 days ago

Nick Pivetta Declines Boston's Qualifying Offer
Jose Siri2 days ago

Mets Acquire Jose Siri From The Rays
2 days ago

Phillies To Meet With Juan Soto
2 days ago

Luis Severino Rejects Qualifying Offer From Mets
2 days ago

Willy Adames Declines Brewers Qualifying Offer
2 days ago

Teoscar Hernandez Declines Qualifying Offer From Dodgers
2 days ago

Juan Soto Declines Yankees' Qualifying Offer
Luis Gil3 days ago

Wins AL Rookie Of The Year Award
Paul Skenes3 days ago

Named 2024 NL Rookie Of The Year
Brady Singer3 days ago

Reds, Royals Discussing Jonathan India, Brady Singer
3 days ago

Sean Manaea To Reject Mets' Qualifying Offer
3 days ago

Braves Have Interest In Walker Buehler
3 days ago

Astros Interested In Willy Adames
Charles Oliveira3 days ago

Gets Back In The Win Column
Michael Chandler3 days ago

Gets Dominated At UFC 309
Karine Silva3 days ago

Suffers Her First UFC Loss
Viviane Araujo3 days ago

Gets Back In The Win Column
Mauricio Ruffy3 days ago

Extends His Win Streak To Six
Nick Martinez4 days ago

Signs Qualifying Offer With Reds
4 days ago

Luis Severino Likely To Decline Qualifying Offer From Mets
James Llontop4 days ago

Loses Clear-Cut Decision In Thrilling Fight At UFC 309
Paul Craig4 days ago

Loses Decision At UFC 309
Bo Nickal4 days ago

Remains Undefeated With Lackluster Performance At UFC 309
Stipe Miocic4 days ago

Retires After UFC 309 Loss
Jon Jones4 days ago

Gets TKO Win At UFC 309 To Defend Heavyweight Title

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP