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A week ago, we lamented all of the injuries plaguing the middle-infield positions as we lost several high-profile fantasy options. This week, let's roll out the welcome wagon for Fernando Tatis Jr., who was back in the Padres lineup Thursday after serving the remainder of his 80-game suspension handed down last year.
Speaking of last week's happenings, the cover boy on this article – Miguel Rojas – jumped over the 50% rostered threshold, thus making him ineligible for the column below. However, at 54% rostered, Rojas is still somewhat available and is recommended over anyone listed here if he happens to be available in your league. Rules are rules though, so without further ado, let's hit the waiver wire.
As a reminder, we'll be looking at pickups for shallow leagues (30-49% rostered) and deeper formats (10-29%), as well as highlighting prospects in the single digits who may get the call and deserve a spot on your watch list at the very least. These are your second base and shortstop fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups for Week 5 – April 24 through April 30.
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Waiver Wire Pickups for Shallow Leagues
Taylor Walls, 2B/SS/3B, Tampa Bay Rays (46% rostered)
Taylor Walls has been on an absolute heater to start the season so, in typical Rays fashion, he's also been on the bench more often than someone with his numbers should be. Through 14 games, Walls is slashing .341/.449/.683 with three homers, eight RBI, and a whopping 16 runs scored. Tampa Bay doesn't even have the platoon excuse to bench Walls, who is a switch-hitter. Sooner or later, Walls will force the hand of manager Kevin Cash and start seeing his name in the lineup every day. Fantasy managers hoping for a breakout can still invest in the 26-year-old former prospect.
Miguel Vargas, 2B/1B, Los Angeles Dodgers (41% rostered)
The number-three ranked prospect in the Dodgers system has gotten off to a brutal start to his rookie campaign as he's batting just .211 with a miserable .668 OPS through 20 games. Despite his struggles, the Dodgers remain committed to Vargas meaning he's still got value in fantasy as his elite minor league career is a much better representation of Vargas as opposed to the small sample we're still dealing with this season. Furthermore, a look under the hood reveals Vargas may be a tad unlucky as he's got a .278 xBA, a .409 xwOBA on contact, and is among the league leaders in walks, among other sturdy Statcast metrics.
Waiver Wire Pickups for Deeper Leagues
Rodolfo Castro, 2B/SS/3B, Pittsburgh Pirates (16% rostered)
The scrappy Bucs have been one of the best stories early this season and a large reason why is the play of Rodolfo Castro. The 23-year-old switch hitter is sporting a sturdy 48.6% hard-hit rate and a 91.5 MPH average exit velocity which has his batting average at .288 four weeks into the season. What's better than hitting the ball hard? Not striking out, of course, and Castro has excelled in that regard as well as his 22% K-rate is better than the league average. Can Castro and the Pirates keep this up all season? Unlikely, but right now Pittsburgh is hot and Castro makes for an intriguing hot-hand fantasy option.
Brice Turang, 2B/SS, Milwaukee Brewers (24% rostered)
Brice Turang has slowed down after a nice start to the season, but he remains a strong fantasy option, particularly in category-based fantasy leagues. Turang has three steals already this season and swiped 34 bags in Triple-A last season thanks to 97th-percentile sprint speed. Milwaukee seems committed to playing Turang every day so he should put up solid fantasy numbers playing in a friendly home ballpark.
Other Options to Consider:
Zach Neto, SS, Los Angeles Angels (9% rostered)
Ji Hwan Bae, 2B/OF, Pittsburgh Pirates (22% rostered)
Prospect Watch
Elly De La Cruz, SS, Cincinnati Reds (13% rostered)
The number-one prospect for the Reds was recently activated from the minor league injured list, and he needs to be on the radar of fantasy managers. De La Cruz destroyed minor league pitching last season to a line of .304/.359/.586 with 28 homers and 47 stolen bases in 121 games between High-A and Double-A as a 20-year-old last season. The Reds are somehow already out of contention, so there's no rush to bring up De La Cruz, but he will make his MLB debut later this season. If he mashes in Triple-A, that could be sooner rather than later. He's a must-roster player in dynasty leagues and redraft managers should monitor this kid closely.
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