Points League Waiver Wire Pickups - Week 14

June 27, 2021

Nicklaus Gaut's H2H points league waiver wire pickups for Week 1 of the 2021 fantasy baseball season, identifying free agents to add and pitchers to stream.

We'll be doing this roundup of points leagues every week here at RotoBaller, with waiver wire targets and streaming pitchers being evaluated in terms of the different scoring systems of ESPN, Yahoo!, CBS, and Fantrax.

Player values can vary wildly from platform to platform, so we'll make sure to highlight where players are the best and worst fits. We know points league players get neglected and we're here to help.

These waiver-wire adds are for the week of June 28 - July 4, looking at players below 50% rostered for ESPN and Yahoo! Stats and rankings are calculated using games through Friday, June 26.

Know Your System

If you've read me even a little, you likely know what I'm going to say...You must account for, as precisely as possible, how a player performs under your particular scoring system. Don't be fooled into believing you can just make rough adjustments in your head, bumping up guys with high on-base percentages and low strikeout rates. Every point, in every category, counts.

For example, ESPN and Fantrax are virtually identical in their scoring for hitters and roster size. The only difference is that stolen bases are worth one more point on Fantrax and ESPN subtracts one point per strikeout. That's the difference between Ronald Acuna Jr. being a top-five hitter versus top-20.

If your league uses standard settings, then great! Turn to page 94 and you can skip ahead to the leaderboards. If you play with custom settings, it'll still be fine. Go back to page 43 and look below at the scoring systems of the four major platforms. I bet there's a chance that you'll find that your league's scoring is very similar to one of the four (well, not Yahoo!'s), even if it's not the platform you actually play on.

For example, my home league started on a now-defunct platform before moving first to ESPN and is now at Fantrax. But our scoring is basically ESPN standard only with two points for stolen bases and a handful of other minor adjustments.

If you look above, you'll likely find a suitable mirror to your own system. While every point counts, as long as they aren't seismic changes you can get away with some "close enough" calls. IE. If everything is the same except for HBP (or something similar), you're probably fine.

Waiver Wire Leaderboards

In addition to our overall waiver wire leaderboards, we're deep enough into the season that we'll also start doing a 14-day leaderboard (21 days for pitchers), as well, giving us a window into recent production. The charts are updated prior to Saturday's games, on stats and ownerships. All leaderboards, overall and 14-day, are sorted according to the player's APR*, and clicking on a chart will open a new page with a magnified version.

*APR = Average Platform Ranking - the average platform ranking between ESPN, CBS, Yahoo, and Fantrax (standard point settings)

First Base

Must Add

• Joey Votto, CIN - You know what I'm going to say, right? Joey Votto should be owned in all point leagues. Fact.
• C.J. Cron, COL - Cron should already be owned but there is really no excuse with a homestand at Coors on the docket for Week 14.
• Nate Lowe, TB

Can Add

• Christian Walker, ARI
• Bobby Bradley, BOS

Desperate Adds

The same rogue's gallery of part-timers and whiffers as every week. Hopefully, you're not this desperate.

• Seth Brown, OAK
• Miguel Cabrera, DET
• Ryan Zimmerman, WSH
• Colin Moran, PIT
• Ji-Man Choi, TB
• Rowdy Tellez, TOR

Notable IL

• Brandon Belt, SF
• Garrett Cooper, MIA
• Daniel Vogelbach, MIL

Second Base

Must Adds

Second base remains basically the opposite of first and third base, with multiple excellent (and currently hot) options available in many leagues. Take your pick!

• Ty France, SEA - France has a 32 APR over the last two weeks, slashing .341/.412/.636 over 51 PA, with a .439 wOBA and 186 wRC+.
• Jonathan India, CIN
• Tony Kemp, OAK - Kemp just won't slow down and has dominated over the last two weeks (and 48 PA), posting a .468 wOBA and 206 wRC+, with a 22.9% BB% and 6.3% K%. He's batted leadoff for the past four games and is expected to stay there as long as Mark Cahna remains on the IL.
• Kolten Wong, MIL - The biggest concern with Wong remains with wondering how long he'll manage to stay off of the IL*. He only has a 125 APR over the last two weeks but he's done that in just 30 PA (returning from the IL on June 18), slashing .310/.333/.690, with a .429 wOBA and 175 wRC+.
• Cesar Hernandez, CLE

*Shortly after writing this, Wong left in the eighth inning with calf tightness, although the Brewers are optimistic that it is a minor issue.

Can Adds

• Luis Arraez, MIN - Arraez only has an 85 APR over the last two weeks but keep in mind that he only returned from the IL on June 14. In his 38 PA since returning, he's slashing .371/.395/.600, with a .413 wOBA and 165 wRC+.
• Dylan Moore, SEA
• Brendan Rodgers, COL - Rodgers has been mediocre as of late but a homestand at Coors is just what the doctor orders for getting your fantasy goodness back on track.
• Wilmer Flores, SF - Flores has a 34 APR over the last two weeks, slashing .389/.410/.778 over 39 PA, with a .490 wOBA and .389 ISO.

Desperate Adds

• Jed Lowrie, OAK
• Jurickson Profar, SD
• Kike Hernandez, BOS
• Josh Harrison, WSH

Notable IL

• Nick Madrigal, CHW
• David Bote, CHC
• Christian Arroyo, BOS
• Aledmys Diaz, HOU
• Tommy La Stella, SF

Third Base

Must Adds

• Times are dire. Hopefully, you don't need one of these third basemen.

Can Adds

• Jeimer Candelario, DET - Candelario has only put up a 172 APR over the last two weeks but hasn't exactly been terrible, posting a .333 wOBA and 111 wRC+. However, a lot of that is being driven by 20.0% BB%, as he's only run a .313 SLG and .063 ISO over that time.
• Yandy Diaz, TB
• Maikel Franco, BAL

Desperate Adds

• Asdrubal Cabrera, ARI - When Asdrubal Cabrera is a "can add" relative to his peers at the position, you know things are struggling. Fun Fact: I still spell Asdrubal wrong on the first shot about 60% of the time. Repeat after me, Nicklaus: It's Asdrubal, not Ascrubal...It's Asdrubal, not Ascrubal...It's Ascrubal, not Asd--- Damn it!
• Hunter Dozier, KC
• Patrick Wisdom, CHC - Yes, I too remember when everyone seemed to think that Wisdom had suddenly become really good. Over the last two weeks, he's slashing .185/.290/.407, clocking in at a 222 APR.
• Josh Fuentes, COL - Fuentes has been absolutely brutal, posting a 26 wRC+ and 257 APR over the last two weeks. But, hey! Coors homestand?
• Phillip Evans, PIT

Notable IL 

• Evan Longoria, SF - The people need you, Evan. Heal faster, please. May I suggest a good blood transfusion from Framber Valdez?
• Travis Shaw, MIL
• Brian Anderson, MIA
• Matt Duffy, TB
• J.D. Davis, NYM
• Yoshitomo Tsutsugo, TB

Shortstop

Must Adds

• J.P. Crawford, SEA - Crawford has continued to dominate, continued to bat leadoff, and continues to be shockingly under-owned. He's up to a 79 APR for the year and has a 43 APR over the last two weeks, slashing .346/.370/.519 over his last 54 PA, with a .383 wOBA and 149 wRC+. Seriously, what are we doing here, people?

Can Adds

• Josh Rojas, ARI 
• Willi Castro, DET
• Luis Urias, MIL
• Willy Adames, MIL
• Paul DeJong, STL - Like much of the rest of the Cardinals offense, DeJong continues to flounder and has really struggled since returning from the IL on June 11. In his 48 PA since, he's slashing just .114/.188/.182, with one home run, two runs scored, and two RBI. Yes, those counting stats are from two weeks, not two games. Not great.
• Nicky Lopez, KC - Hold on a second...Nicky Lopez didn't learn how to hit, did he? I mean, probably only in the short-term but what he's done as of late can't just be ignored. Over his last 34 PA, Lopez is slashing .448/.529/.448, with a .439 wOBA and 181 wRC+. He also has a .000 ISO. That's right, triple-zero.

Desperate Adds

• Amed Rosario, CLE - The Rosario renaissance has been knocked back to the dark ages these last few weeks, slashing just .226/.268/.283, with a .247 wOBA and 52 wRC+.
• Kyle Farmer, CIN
• Kevin Newman, PIT

Notable IL

• Jonathan Villar, NYM
• Niko Goodrum, DET
• Didi Gregorius, PHI
• Nico Hoerner, CHC
• Taylor Walls, TB

Outfielder

Must Adds

• Hunter Renfroe, BOS - Renfroe has been an underrated star in both points and roto formats, coming in as a top-50 outfielder in roto and is a top-100 hitter by APR in points. And he's been doing it without as much of the trademark power that generally drives his value. The power has started to turn up more, though, with Renfroe running a.575 SLG and .225 ISO over the last two weeks.
• Taylor Ward, LAA
• Yonathan Daza, COL - Daza is the perfect storm of a player on a hot streak who is getting ready to have a whole week of games at Coors Field. Over the last two weeks, Daza has a 52 APR and has slashed .362/.423/.489 over 53 PA, with a 141 wRC+.

Can Adds

• Akil Baddoo, DET - The Rule-Five superstar has picked things up again, with a 93 APR over the last two weeks, while slashing .394/.500/.545 over 40 PA. He's dipped a few times but the talent continues to drive the bus.
• Steven Duggar, SF - Duggar is on the strong side of a platoon but has absolutely crushed it when playing. Over the last two weeks, he's slashing .419/.526/.774 over 38 PA, with a .534 wOBA and 247 wRC+. Even as a part-timer, Duggar has a 38 APR over that time is an obvious pick-up if you play in a league with daily moves. And even in weekly move leagues, he's a solid start if the Giants are set to face mostly righties. For example, this week, with only Caleb Smith currently tracking as the only lefty starter on the table.
• Alex Kirilloff, MIN - The further he gets away from the wrist injury that put him on the IL in early May, the more Kirilloff's power seems to be returning. After failing to go deep in the 19 games following his return (with a .066 ISO and .342 SLG), Kirilloff has now gone yard twice in his past nine games, with two doubles, posting a .500 SLG and .222 ISO. His hit stick is always there and if the power keeps returning, the rookie's value should rocket right back up.
• Victor Robles, WSH
• Robbie Grossman, DET
• Myles Straw, HOU - Straw is still batting towards the bottom of the Astros order but these things don't matter as much with an offense as powerful as Houston's. Over the last two weeks, Straw has a 48 APR over the last two weeks, slashing .341/.412/.500 over 51 PA, with a .394 wOBA and .912 OPS.
• Avisail Garcia, MIL
• Trevor Larnach, MIN
• David Peralta, ARI
• Joc Pederson, CHC
• Manuel Margot, TB
• Odubel Herrera, PHI
• Josh Naylor, CLE
• Willie Calhoun, TEX

Desperate Adds

• Max Kepler, MIN
• Jorge Soler, KC
• Anthony Santander, BAL
• Michael A. Taylor, KC
• Austin Hays, BAL
• A.J. Pollock, LAD
• Kevin Pillar, NYM

Notable IL

• Adam Eaton, CHW
• Corey Dickerson, MIA
• Jordan Luplow, CLE
• Kyle Lewis, SEA
• Lorenzo Cain, MIL
• Kyle Garlick, MIN
• David Dahl, TEX
• Nick Senzel, CIN
• Aaron Hicks, NYY
• Harrison Bader, STL
• Brandon Nimmo, NYM
• Kole Calhoun, ARI
• Victor Reyes, DET

Catcher

Must Adds

• Omar Narvaez, MIL - I mean, I guess? Narvaez isn't helping you that much but at least he's not going to absolutely murder you like most of your other likely options if you're needing to fill your backstop.

Can Adds

• Jacob Stallings, PIT
• Mike Zunino, TB
• Tyler Stephenson/Tucker Barnhart, CIN

Desperate Adds

• All catcher adds are desperate adds.

Notable IL

• Carson Kelly, ARI
• Mitch Garver, MIN
• Tomas Nido, NYM
• Danny Jansen, TOR
• Travis d'Arnaud, ATL
• Austin Nola, SD
• Alejandro Kirk, TOR
• Roberto Perez, CLE

Starting Pitchers

Two Start Weeks

Check back throughout the day for more pitching analysis! IE. We're going to a bunch of open houses today and I'm writing as we travel ; )

Must Add

• Tarik Skubal, DET - Sigh. Still available in most leagues, huh? Skubal's start looks less promising on paper than it is in reality, as the White Sox have a .335 wOBA vs LHP since May 1. But Chicago has done a lot of their lefty-mashing versus substandard pitchers and Skubal has more than held his now in two starts versus the pale hose this season, striking out 17 batters in 11 IP, while allowing 4 ER. So help me, if he strikes out double-digits again but is still less than 50% rostered, I may scream.
• Johnny Cueto, SF - Arizona is very bad. Fact. Arizona is particularly bad vs RHP (.282 wOBA and 25.1% K% since May 1). Fact.
• Jameson Taillon, NYY
• Alex Cobb, LAA - Baltimore has the second-worst record in baseball but is also one of the best offenses vs LHP. Alex Cobb, however, is not left-handed.
• Logan Gilbert, SEA - Since getting roughed up in his first two starts of his major league career, Gilbert has settled down, posting a 3.07 ERA over his last six starts, although his most recent start was cut short by rain after just two innings (0 ER, 1 H, 3 K).
• Matt Manning, DET
• Tyler Anderson, PIT - Anderson has been much better than he's looked on paper, as his 4.84 ERA is weighed down by two blowups where he allowed a total of 15 ER in 11 IP versus Atlanta and Washington. In his other 12 starts, Anderson has a 3.64 ERA and 1.10 WHIP and has a juicy matchup with the Brewers, on tap. Milwaukee is one of baseball's worst offenses vs LHP, posting a .307 wOBA and 27.3% K% vs LHP since May 1.

Can Add

• Bailey Ober, MIN - Ober has been up and down in his five starts but has a sneaky little two-step in Week 14, even if the upside is low. The White Sox have a .310 wOBA and 25% K% vs RHP since May 1, while the Royals have a .300 wOBA vs RHP. Kansas City may have a stingy 21.8% K% but they are also the Royals. Soooo...
• Ryan Yarbrough, TB
• J.T. Brubaker, PIT - Since May 1, the Brewers have just a .295 wOBA vs RHP, with a 25% K%.
• Chris Flexen, SEA - I love Flexen for his start against Texas but have zero desire to start him against Toronto earlier in the week. Seriously, it's about time to just slap a big pause on streaming against Toronto for a minute, or two.
• Martin Perez, BOS - Yes, it's Martin Perez but Perez tends to be pretty decent against bad teams. For example, when he locked up these same Royals on June 19, allowing 1 ER in five innings.
• Drew Smyly, ATL - The Mets have a .285 wOBA and 24.8% K% vs LHP since the start of May.
• Kwang Hyun Kim, STL -Kim has been a man of extremes in 2021 but the bad version isn't that bad and the good version is more than decent. In 2021, Kim has allowed 3-4 earned runs in five of his 12 starts but only one earned run in each of the other seven. On the docket for Week 14 is the Arizona Diamondbacks, who you may recall are a very bad offense.
• Zach Thompson, MIA
• Ross Stripling, TOR
• Anthony Kay, TOR - Kay has a juicy matchup against the Mariners, who have just a .281 wOBA and 27.4% K% vs LHP since the start of May.
• Adrian Houser, MIL - With an early half of the lineup featuring Adam Frazier, Bryan Reynolds, and Ke'Bryan Hayes, the Pirates aren't the streaming pushovers they once were. There are still plenty of holes but Houser has been up-and-down (at best) in 2021.

Desperate Adds

• Patrick Sandoval, LAA - I love me some Sandoval and have added him just about everywhere over the last few weeks but you need to be really careful in starting him versus the Orioles. Baltimore is bad but is also one of baseball's best offenses when facing LHP, posting a .347 wOBA since May 1, with just a 19.0% K%.
• Dylan Bundy, LAA - Oh, my sweet Dylan, what have they done to you? Your heart is just too pure for this cold, cruel world. Two starts against the Yankees and Orioles are good on paper but you're really tempting fate by running Bundy out, at this point.
• Jon Lester, WSH - If you're feeling brave (desperate), the Rays aren't that great vs LHP, posting a .295 wOBA and 27.5% K% since May 1.
• J.A. Happ, MIN - Don't get tricked by a start against the Royals. Happ is washed.
• Caleb Smith, ARI - I mean, if you're looking for a pitcher who should pick up some strikeouts but have virtually no chance of getting a win, then Smith is your man.
• Carlos Martinez, STL - If you are so desperate as to start Martinez, let alone in a matchup in Colorado, then things have gone completely sideways. Pull up! Pull up! Don't do it!
• Kyle Freeland, COL - I just called both Merriam AND Webster. It turns out that starting Kyle Freeland at home for a two-start week is quite literally the definition of desperation. But hey, if you're willing to do it with C-Mart, might as well lean into your insanity.

Notable IL

• Steven Matz, NYM
• Michael Pineda, MIN
• Austin Gomber, COL
• Matthew Boyd, DET
• Spencer Turnbull, DET
• Huascar Ynoa, ATL
• Elieser Hernandez, MIA
• Madison Bumgarner, ARI
• Tucker Davidson, ATL
• Justin Dunn, SEA
• Brett Anderson, MIL

Relief Pitchers

Keep in mind that with relievers, points scored can be deceiving. Most scoring systems make it pretty difficult for even the best non-closers to score elite points, making them very reliant on unpredictable wins. You simply need the save points to really do damage. AKA, when you see totally random names hit the leaderboard (particularly the 14-Day one), it's probably because they happened to get a few wins and/or a lot of usage. If a reliever doesn't have an established role, tread carefully.

One note about ownership; because ESPN uses nine open pitching slots, as opposed to dedicated slots for RP/SP, relievers tend to be lighter owned than on other sites.

Must Adds

Can Adds

Notable IL

• Lucas Sims, CIN
• Cesar Valdez, BAL
• Daniel Hudson, WSH

More Points Leagues Analysis