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Welcome back to our fantasy baseball waiver wire hitter category boosters for Week 17 of the 2024 MLB season -- free-agent hitters to consider adding to help boost your team in HR, SB, RBI, AVG, and Runs. Today, we'll look at names like Sal Frelick, Eugenio Suarez, Lawrence Butler, Masataka Yoshida, and more.
Effectively, we are at the halfway point of the season. This has been a great week to take stock of your leagues; which ones are you in the running for? Which ones might be lost causes? What leagues do you need some category help in at this time? That is what this article tries to bring you each week.
There are dozens of waiver-wire articles across the industry each week, but how many of them break down the available hitters by which categories they are most capable of contributing? I aim to give you the top options this week for each of the five offensive categories. All hitters will be under 50% rostered on Yahoo and listed in order of my preference. Take heed: even terrible teams have useful fantasy players on them, so dig deep and find those bargains. Let's take a look.
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Runs Scored (R) - Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Boosters
Luis Garcia Jr., Washington Nationals (rostered in 48% of leagues)
I have been touting Garcia for weeks, and the rostership percentage continues to creep up. Yet, that number is still below 50%. The second baseman is hitting a robust .415 in July with four home runs and nine RBI, adding in nine runs scored. Don't need that production? Fine, I will take it.
Matt Vierling, Detroit Tigers (rostered in 21% of leagues)
Vierling is hitting third often in the Detroit lineup. He has scored runs in seven of the last nine games, nine total in July. See his Statcast below; there is some faint red there that is close to being the blood red we love.
Geraldo Perdomo, Arizona Diamondbacks (rostered in 5% of leagues)
Perdomo is often an afterthought for most fantasy players, but he is a shortstop who gets daily at-bats and seemingly has no competition for them. And he has scored 11 runs this month. While Perdomo won't help much with home runs and stolen bases, he's scored 10 runs in the last week. Add him if you need help in this category.
Also consider: Zach Neto (LAA), Jacob Young (WAS), Rowdy Tellez (PIT)
Home Runs (HR) - Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Boosters
Tyler Stephenson, Cincinnati Reds (rostered in 24% of leagues)
Stephenson always seems to be productive when he is not hurt and has four home runs in July. He now has 10 homers on the season to go with a decent .245 batting average with assured at-bats behind the plate for the Reds. Add this power hitter now, especially if your current catcher is slumping.
Lawrence Butler, Oakland Athletics (rostered in 18% of leagues)
Yes, Butler hit three home runs on Sunday afternoon, driving his FAAB price up that very day. Butler is hitting leadoff in Oakland and now has seven home runs in July. Funny how things go; both Esteury Ruiz and JJ Bleday were favored over him, and lo and behold, here is Butler lighting it up right now. He's also hitting .317 with 17 RBI this month. Roster him now, especially if you are hurting in the outfield.
Michael Toglia, Colorado Rockies (rostered in 12% of leagues)
Toglia leads MLB in home runs over the last 30 days with 11 dingers. That comes with 17 RBI, a less-than-stellar .205 batting average, and 27 strikeouts in 88 at-bats. This is a one-trick pony right now, but that trick is a valuable category for fantasy players. Check out his rolling xwOBA below and you can see that he is improving. If you need power, grab Toglia.
Also consider: Colt Keith (DET), Jesus Sanchez (MIA)
Runs Batted In (RBI) - Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Boosters
Eugenio Suarez, Arizona Diamondbacks (rostered in 29% of leagues)
Suarez always ends up producing, no matter the ancillary stats, and this year is no exception. Check out his July below: hitting .341 with four home runs, 16 RBI, and 10 runs scored in 52 plate appearances. If you need RBI, Suarez is a great get right now.
Gio Urshela, Detroit Tigers (rostered in 4% of leagues)
Urshela is the kind of unsexy veteran we love in this weekly piece. He's always been a good hitter and seemingly gets opportunities after many people have forgotten about him. Urshela makes good contact and only strikes out 14.9%, even though his hard-hit rates are not very good. In our game, production matters, even if the Statcast data may not support it. Urshela has nine RBI in 47 July at-bats, while hitting .298. That works, as does his eligibility at first base, shortstop, and third base.
Ernie Clement, Toronto Blue Jays (rostered in 3% of leagues)
You might be surprised to see the versatile Clement listed here. However, the veteran is hitting .289 in July with three homers and 10 RBI due to having daily at-bats with the injuries to Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Bo Bichette. Clement is also eligible at second base, shortstop, third base, and a Swiss Army knife for the Toronto Blue Jays. He might be able to help you out, too.
Also consider: Keibert Ruiz (WAS), Zack Gelof (OAK)
Stolen Bases (SB) - Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Boosters
Ke'Bryan Hayes, Pittsburgh Pirates (rostered in 34% of leagues)
Hayes oozes potential and tantalizes with his skill set, but has yet to really put it together in Pittsburgh. However, one thing we know Hayes does well is run, and stealing bases is a forte for him. He's healthy again and has no competition for playing time. Expect double-digit stolen bases for the rest of the season.
Max Schuemann, Oakland Athletics (rostered in 15% of leagues, runs)
Schuemann is quietly getting daily at-bats in Oakland and has been more productive than people give him credit for these days. See below. He's hitting .351 with two home runs, five RBI, and four stolen bases in July. He's playing shortstop and batting ninth most of the time, but he's a sneaky play for speed.
Xavier Edwards, Miami Marlins (rostered in 4% of leagues, steals)
This is another sneaky play that is not rostered in most leagues. Edwards has three steals in his last week of games and is playing shortstop as well, where he should not have much competition for playing time. He had five steals and was hitting over .320 when he was recalled from Triple-A. It's worth watching at this time if you need stolen bases.
Also consider: Sal Frelick (MIL), Dylan Moore (SEA)
Batting Average (AVG) - Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Boosters
Masataka Yoshida, Boston Red Sox (rostered in 43% of leagues)
Yoshida seems to fly under the radar, but this is a skill set you may want to roster, especially as he has regained his health and can hit for batting average. Yoshida is hitting .302 in July with two home runs and 11 runs batted in. He is hitting third in a surprising Boston lineup and should continue in that slot. He should be rostered far more than the 43% he is at this time.
Sal Frelick, Milwaukee Brewers (rostered in 14% of leagues)
Full admission: I really like Frelick. He's hitting .324 in July with six runs scored and three stolen bases, too. There isn't much pop in this profile, but the batting average boost and the added 14 steals help you out in a couple of categories. He should be rostered in far more leagues. Look at the chart below to see how Frelick's rolling batting average has played out over his last 40 at-bats. Grab him before someone else does if you need a shot in the arm in the batting average category.
Jose Iglesias, New York Mets (rostered in 2% of leagues, BA)
Yes, I always include at least one eye roll here. But have you considered Iglesias? Raise your hand if you knew he was hitting .380 through 79 at-bats since June 1. He's not a zero in the home-run category with three, has one stolen base, and has scored 14 runs over that time frame. Add in the second-base and third-base eligibility, and you have a useful player for your roster, even if it doesn't last all summer.
Also consider: Gabriel Moreno (ARZ), Juan Yepez (WAS)
I hope this helps you out! Good luck and happy hunting, RotoBallers! You can always message me @mdrc0508 on X to complain about picks or make other suggestions!
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