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At RotoBaller, we have you covered with points league pickups for the upcoming week on the weekends, but the world of fantasy baseball changes fast! What if you have a guy who suffered an injury, and most of the suggestions are gone? Our midweek pickups are geared toward finding players on a hot streak and riding the week out with them instead of a struggling starter on our team. You know your team better than I do. Don't drop someone that you won't be able to get back!
It's important to know your league's scoring. Points league scoring vastly differs on ESPN, CBS, Yahoo!, and Fantrax. Most leagues also have start limits. Remember those when deciding whether to pounce on a streamer this week. For example, pitchers gain two points for a win on ESPN but also lose two points for a loss. Yahoo gives eight points for a win, and losses don't count against you at all!
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We're not saying to drop a key piece of your team for these guys, but dropping a bench player for a guy on a heater could be the difference between winning and losing your matchup in a points league. It's okay to be patient in roto and category leagues. Points leagues are a different animal. Roster percentages and positions are taken from ESPN.
Fantasy Baseball Pitcher Waiver Wire Pickups - Points Leagues
Shallow Leagues
Bryan Woo, SP, SEA (47.2% Rostered)
Woo has given up just four runs in 27 2/3 innings all season. He's not a strikeout guy, but he excels at keeping guys off base. He held the Oakland team that he will face tomorrow to just two baserunners in 4 1/3 innings in his season debut on May 10. Woo is back to working about six innings per start now. The A's can't really hit anyone and are striking out at an alarming 29.7% clip against right-handed pitchers. There is a lot of potential here.
Tyler Anderson, SP, LAA (32.6% Rostered)
On the surface, a matchup with the Astros is usually a bad place for a lefty. However, Anderson held Houston to one run in eight innings back on May 22. He doesn't pile up the strikeouts like many on this list, but Anderson has a 2.37 ERA and 1.13 WHIP on the season. The xERA suggests that Anderson has had some luck on his side, but it's not all luck. The hitters aren't squaring him up. Anderson has made a living on inducing soft contact. He's still doing that this year.
12-Team Leagues
Ryan Weathers, SP, MIA (18% Rostered)
Weathers saw his string of five straight quality starts come to an end last week, but he still struck out 11 Rangers in six innings. He's more valuable on Fantrax (which doesn't deduct for earned runs) or ESPN (where losses hurt less), but the great matchup against Cleveland this weekend has him on my radar in all leagues. The Guardians strike out 25% of the time against lefties. Weathers will likely give up some runs, but the strikeout potential more than makes up for it.
Ben Lively, SP, CLE (17.1% Rostered)
Lively has allowed between one and three runs in every start this season. That kind of consistency is important to those of us in points leagues. We want to know what to expect. Lively will notch a handful of strikeouts and does a good job of avoiding damage. A date with the Marlins on Friday has "ceiling game" written all over it.
Matt Waldron, SP, SD (15.9% Rostered)
Waldron has only allowed six runs in five starts since getting blasted by the Diamondbacks in the desert on May 5. That was part of an early-season skid in which he allowed 22 runs in his first seven starts of the season. I'll take my chances that he can charm the Snakes at home. Waldron has 35 strikeouts in the last five games (including 10 against the Braves and six against the Dodgers). Missing bats is always a good thing.
Deep Leagues
Jake Irvin, SP, WAS (10.8% Rostered)
Jake Irvin's 9th K. pic.twitter.com/UTw4NURdCO
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) May 29, 2024
People are going to see his matchup on Friday against the Braves and run the other way. Don't be one of those people. Irvin fanned 10 Braves in six scoreless innings in Atlanta on May 28. Irvin has struck out at least six batters in four of his last five starts. The rough April is a distant memory. Irvin has only allowed 10 runs in his last six starts combined against some good offensive teams in Atlanta, Cleveland, Philly, and Minnesota.
Michael Lorenzen, SP, TEX (9.1% Rostered)
Lorenzen has gone at least six innings in eight of his nine starts on the season and has struck out 27 batters in his last five starts. Not bad numbers for a guy this widely available. He draws the Giants on Friday. You know...the team that has only scored 18 runs during a six-game skid (not to mention their last win was a 1-0 affair). Give me that all day in deep leagues.
Also consider:
- Javier Assad, CHC (49.9% Rostered), Thursday at CIN
- Hunter Brown, HOU (44.2% Rostered), Saturday at LAA
- Gavin Stone, LAD (36.9% Rostered), Sunday at NYY
- Braxton Garrett, MIA (36.6% Rostered), Today vs. TB
- MacKenzie Gore, WAS (32.5% Rostered), Saturday vs. ATL
- Kyle Gibson, STL (17% Rostered), Saturday vs. COL
- James Paxton, LAD (12% Rostered), Today at PIT
- Jake Irvin, WAS (10.8% Rostered), Friday vs. ATL
- Cal Quantrill, COL (8.7% Rostered), Thursday at STL
- Griffin Canning, LAA (6.3% Rostered), Saturday vs. HOU
- Simeon Woods Richardson, MIN (4.8% Rostered), Saturday at PIT
Fantasy Baseball Catcher Waiver Wire Pickups - Points Leagues
Shallow Leagues
Logan O'Hoppe, LAA (25.1% Rostered)
O'Hoppe has slowed down a little, but he's still hitting for power. He has two homers in the last week and four of his seven homers on the season have come in the last two weeks. He's especially valuable on Yahoo and Fantrax since they don't dock for strikeouts.
12-Team Leagues
Shea Langeliers, OAK (19.4% Rostered)
Langeliers is leading all catchers in strikeouts (10) over the last week, so don't touch him on ESPN or CBS. On Yahoo and Fantrax, he's a nice option with three RBI in the last three games.
Deep Leagues
Tyler Stephenson, CIN (6.1% Rostered)
Stephenson is seeing time at DH since the Reds need all the offense they can get. Stephenson is riding a nice five-game hitting streak. He finishes the week at Coors, then heads home to Great American Small Park, two of the best hitting venues outside the Pacific Coast League. He's a must-start for the rest of the week, not just in deep leagues.
Patrick Bailey, SF (7% Rostered)
Bailey's percentage is creeping up slowly, but a subpar weekend has tempered the rush to add him. However, he does have three hits in the last four games and closes the week in Arizona and Texas -- both of which are park upgrades over his home digs.
Also consider:
- Elias Diaz, COL (14.3% Rostered)
- Connor Wong, BOS (9.7% Rostered)
- Ivan Herrera, STL (2.5% Rostered)
- Jake Rogers, DET (0.5% Rostered)
Fantasy Baseball Infield Waiver Wire Pickups - Points Leagues
Shallow Leagues
Ryan Mountcastle, 1B, BAL (40.5% Rostered)
It took a bit, but this is the Mountcastle we got used to last season. He is hitting .388 with four homers, 11 RBI, and 10 runs scored in the last 12 games. He also has two multi-homer games in June...and today is only the fifth day of the month.
Josh Bell, 1B, MIA (29.7% Rostered)
On May 3, Bell was hitting just .181 and was in danger of losing his full-time job with the Marlins. Since then, he is hitting .319 to raise his average to .247 on the season. Bell isn't hitting for power, but he is riding a seven-game hitting streak and has only gone hitless four times in the last month. He has slashed the strikeouts (he had 30 in the first month and only 20 since) and is driving in runs. Bell hit 11 homers in 53 games with the Marlins last season. The power should come back around since he is seeing the ball well once again.
12-Team Leagues
Nolan Gorman, 2B, STL (19.8% Rostered)
The guy has four homers and six RBI...in the last three games! Add Stormin Gorman now in all leagues!
Nolan Gorman is...
THE. HOTTEST. HITTER. ON. THE. PLANET
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/GRS9e3bJ7C
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) June 5, 2024
Amed Rosario, 2B/SS/OF, TB (18.6% Rostered)
Rosario has eight hits in the last four games with two runs scored and an RBI. Rosario has never hit for a lot of power, but he finally has a home again in Tampa. He has already surpassed last year's RBI total with the Dodgers and the .303 average would be the best of his career by 16 points. He has good value in all points leagues since he is getting on base, driving in runs, and not striking out much.
Deep Leagues
Mark Vientos, 3B, NYM (6.2% Rostered)
You will see a few more Mets on this list. They decided that they wanted to be a real team again, so welcome back! That means we can start getting a few Mutts on our teams. Vientos took over the 3B job from the struggling Brett Baty on May 28. Since then, he is hitting .333 with two homers and five RBI. All of those fireworks have come in June, so he's just getting started. Vientos may be worth holding onto past the end of the week.
Brandon Lowe, 2B, TB (2.9% Rostered)
Lowe only had two hits in his first 20 at-bats returning from the IL at the end of May. Since then, he has had six hits in 17 tries with a homer and six RBI. Lowe has a modest three-game hitting streak, but this guy has 60 homers over his last two full seasons (2021 and 2023). Getting him for free could be a huge boost to your team the rest of the week and down the stretch.
Casey Schmitt, SS/3B, SF (0.6% Rostered)
The rookie has five hits in 12 tries since his recall on June 1 with two homers and four RBI. He's worth a prospective add to see if he can keep this up.
Also consider:
- J.P. Crawford, SS, SEA (45.6% Rostered)
- Joey Ortiz, 2B/3B, MIL (20% Rostered)
- Masyn Winn, SS, STL (11.1% Rostered)
- Jonathan India, 2B, CIN (10.6% Rostered)
- Ty France, 1B, SEA (9% Rostered)
- Josh Rojas, 2B/3B, SEA (4.1% Rostered)
- Brendan Rodgers, 2B, COL (2.6% Rostered)
- Nick Gordon, 2B/OF, MIA (0.4% Rostered)
Fantasy Baseball Outfield Waiver Wire Pickups - Points Leagues
Shallow Leagues
Lane Thomas, WAS (46.7% Rostered)
Thomas has homered, driven in five, and stolen four bases in the last week. Those steals are huge for those of you in Yahoo and CBS leagues. The strikeouts detract a little bit on ESPN, but not enough to chase me off.
TJ Friedl, CIN (29.7% Rostered)
I mentioned the favorable schedule for the Reds the rest of the week earlier. It's time to add another Redleg on a heater. Friedl has a homer, a steal, three runs scored, and five RBI since his return from the IL on May 29. It seems like his breakout in 2023 was not a fluke. Get him while you still can without having to pay for him.
Matt Vierling, DET (27.4% Rostered)
Vierling is now leading off for the Tigers. He scored at least one run in seven straight games before the streak came to a halt last night. He is still hitting .400 in the last eight games with four homers, nine RBI, and 10 runs scored.
12-Team Leagues
Starling Marte, NYM (24.7% Rostered)
Marte is hitting .400 over the last week and has six RBI in the last four games. He's stolen a couple of bags and walked more than he's struck out (which is a huge boost on Yahoo). The only thing Marte isn't doing right now is hitting for power. He does have two triples on the week, though, so he's getting closer.
Miguel Andujar, OAK (14.5% Rostered)
Andujar's season didn't begin until May 24, but he has hit two homers and driven in 12 runs in nine games. He's making up for lost time. With two more games against Seattle and three against the Jays to close out the week (all against pitchers with less than two years of major league experience), Andujar should stay hot.
J.D. Martinez, NYM (13.2% Rostered)
Remember him? The Mets offense is almost like purgatory nowadays, but the Amazins are showing signs of life. J.D. has homered twice this week, driven in five, and scored six runs. The four walks up the value even more on Yahoo. He draws the human pitching machine (Patrick Corbin) today, so even if you only pick him up for one day, it should pay off.
Deep Leagues
Alec Burleson, STL (5.2% Rostered)
Burleson has a homer in three straight games. This after he went through an oh-for-17 stretch. Pick him up until he inevitably cools off again.
Jose Siri, TB (1.6% Rostered)
Siri has two homers and six RBI in the last five games. He has been a streaky hitter throughout his career, so he is worth adding for the rest of the week to see if he can keep this up. This road trip has been good for Siri. Games in Atlanta and Minneapolis bode well for the rest of the week.
Also consider:
- Wyatt Langford, TEX (38.3% Rostered)
- Giancarlo Stanton, NYY (36.3% Rostered)
- Willi Castro, MIN (18.5% Rostered)
- Tyler Freeman, CLE (14% Rostered)
- Jesse Winker, WAS (11.6% Rostered)
- Luke Raley, SEA (3.6% Rostered)
- Will Benson, CIN (2.2% Rostered)
- Heliot Ramos, SF (1.4% Rostered)
- Jesus Sanchez, MIA (0.7% Rostered)
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