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
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

Point League Pitchers: Waiver Wire Pickups - Week 20

Logan Webb - Fantasy Baseball Rankings, Starting Pitchers, Draft Sleepers

Nicklaus Gaut's H2H points league waiver wire pickups for Week 20 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 August 9th - August 15th, looking at players below 50% rostered for ESPN and Yahoo! Stats and rankings are calculated using games through Saturday, August 8th.

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

 

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. Every point, in every category, counts.

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

The charts are updated prior to Saturday's games, on stats and ownerships. All leaderboards 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)

 

Starting Pitchers

 

Two Start Weeks

 

Must Adds

  • Casey Mize, DET - Mize might start having his innings limited and got roughed up some by Boston in his last start, allowing 4 ER in five innings but has a nice, little twofer this week. Cleveland has a .300 wOBA vs RHP, while Baltimore has a .291 wOBA and 24.8% K% - and was recently dominated by Mize on July 29, scoring just one unearned run in 7 IP.
  • Josiah Gray, WSH - Gray has been more than excellent in his two starts as part of the Nationals, posting a 1.80 ERA over 10 IP, striking out 12.
  • Logan Webb, SF - In his six starts since returning from the IL, Webb keeps crushing, posting a 2.10 ERA over 30 IP, striking out 28 batters. He'll face a substandard Colorado team at home in San Francisco, with the Rockies posting just a .307 wOBA vs RHP.
  • Johnny Cueto, SF - Cueto gets the same junky offense that Webb does, facing Colorado at home, and has a 2.61 ERA over his four starts since the All-Star break.
  • Cal Quantrill, SD - Times running out to get on the Quantrill train, as he's been fantastic over his five starts in the second half, posting just a 0.90 ERA over 30 IP, while striking out 28 batters. Oakland has been surprisingly average vs RHP, running just a .310 wOBA and 23.1% K%
  • Tanner Houck, BOS - Houck has a juicy start vs an Orioles team that has posted just a .291 wOBA vs RHP, with a 24.8% K%. He doesn't go deep into games, only completing five innings once, but in his four games in the second half, Houck has a 1.17 ERA over 15.1 IP.
  • Brett Anderson, MIL - That's right, Brett Anderson is a must-add. Since returning from the IL, Anderson has been quietly excellent, posting a 1.31 ERA over his past four starts. He has a great  matchup against the Pirates this, who have just a .290 wOBA vs LHP and against whom Anderson has dominated in two starts this season . Over 13 IP, he’s allowed just nine hits, with zero earned runs, picking up the win in both.

 

Can Adds

  • Merrill Kelly, ARI - Kelly's last start looked dicey going in, as San Francisco is one of baseball's best teams and has a .333 wOBA vs RHP but proceeded to dominate, shutting out the Giants for eight innings. He'll face those same Giants this week, who come in with a 25.6% K% vs RHP.
  • Austin Gomber, COL - Gomber continued his underrated dominance this season, shutting out Miami for six innings at Coors, striking out nine. San Francisco has been average vs LHP, posting a .318 wOBA but only a 22.1% K%. It's about time to erase the dreaded "Gombering" from our memories, as in when Gomber allowed 9 ER in 1.2 IP in San Francisco on April 26. If you throw out that outlier, Gomber would drop from a 3.79 ERA to a 3.01 ERA.
  • Steven Matz, TOR - Matz's first start against the Angels isn't ideal, with Los Angeles posting a .327 wOBA and 21.7% K% vs LHP but the second in Seattle is much more so. The Mariners have just a .296 wOBA vs LHP, with a 26.9% K%.
  • Joe Ross, WSH - Ross has a nice matchup against the Mets, who have a .303 wOBA vs RHP but has struggled some in his past two starts, posting a 5.91 ERA over 10.2 IP.
  • Tyler Anderson, SEA - Whether for Pittsburgh or Seattle, Anderson just does what he does. He'll give you five or six innings and allow two or three runs, just as he's done for his previous seven starts. Nothing fancy but over those starts (since allowing 6 ER to the Nationals) Anderson has a  3.38 ERA over 40 IP.
  • Drew Smyly, ATL - Our guy Smyly has only lasted four innings in each of his past three starts, allowing a total of 6 ER for a 4.50 ERA. He has a shaky two-step in Week 20, as Washington has crushed LHP to a tune of a .347 wOBA.
  • Michael Pineda, MIN - Tampa Bay has a .325 wOBA vs RHP but a 25.6% K%, and Pineda has been solid in the second half, posting a 3.00 ERA over four starts and 21 IP.
  • Vladimir Gutierrez, CIN - Gutierrez has been excellent since the start of July, running a 3.31 ERA over six starts and 35.1 IP, with a record of 4-0. And that includes an outing against the Mets where he allowed 6 ER in four innings.
  • Kris Bubic, KC - Bubic faces the Cardinals, who continue to be extremely weak vs RHP, posting just a .311 wOBA. Over his four starts in the second half, Bubic has a 2.63 ERA over 24 IP.
  • Marco Gonzales, SEA - Gonzales has finally started to turn things around, posting a 2.48 ERA over his last five starts. He'll get a chance for revenge against Texas, who lit him up for 7 ER last month and currently have a .285 wOBA and 23.2% K% vs LHP.
  • Madison Bumgarner, ARI - Bumgarner has been serviceable but faces a tough start against the Padres, who have a .316 wOBA and 22.8% K% vs LHP.
  • J. A. Happ, STL - This might be a Happ-trap but the mediocre left-hander has two starts against subpar competition, facing the Pirates and Royals on the road.
  • Tyler Alexander, DET - In his last start, Anderson shut out Cleveland for 5.1 IP, striking out four and picking up the win. His opponent this week? Cleveland.
  • Zach Thompson, MIA - Thompson's first start of the week against San Diego is tough but facing the Cubs in round two is extra spicy. Chicago has just a .300 wOBA and 26.4% K% vs RHP and recently traded away all of their best hitters.
  • Wily Peralta, DET - The wheels can come off in any given start but Peralta faces the future Guardians of baseball, who have just a .300 wOBA vs RHP.
  • Kyle Muller, ATL - Muller struggled some in his last start, allowing 3 ER in 4.2 IP against the Nationals but faces a Reds team in Week 20 that has a .309 wOBA and 23.6% K% vs RHP.
  • Luis Gil, NYY - Gil was excellent in his debut (and has four strikeouts through two innings on Sunday), I'm just not sure he'll get a start this week, depending on the availability of Gerrit Cole and Jordan Montgomery.

 

Desperate Adds

 

Notable IL

 

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.

Notable IL

With the trade deadline shaking bullpens up all over the league, we're going to do things a little differently, going through each team that currently has a relevant (according to our roster% threshold) bullpen situation.

Arizona Diamondbacks

In the Mix: Tyler Clippard (got a save on Tuesday, blew a save on Thursday), Sean Poppen (got a save on Friday).

Baltimore Orioles

Baltimore collected zero saves in zero chances this past week.

In the Mix: Cole Sulser (loss on Wednesday), Paul Fry (loss on Friday), Dillon Tate, Tanner Scott.

Boston Red Sox

All of the opportunities are going to go to Matt Barnes but given his usage and strikeouts, Garrett Whitlock is still a viable option in those playing in daily leagues.

Chicago Cubs

The Cubs bullpen remains mostly an unusable mess since their trade of Craig Kimbrel.

In the Mix: Manuel Rodriguez (loss on Friday, save on Wednesday), Codi Heuer(hold on Wednesday), Kyle Ryan, Dan WinklerRowan Wick (currently on the IL but may ultimately be the favorite).

Cincinnati Reds

Mychal Givens got the Reds last save but Michael Lorenzen might be the favorite to take hold of the job. It's still a mess.

In the Mix: Amir Garrett (hold on Saturday), Mychal Givens (save on Thursday), Michael Lorenzen (save on Wednesday), Heath Hembree (loss and blown save on Tuesday).

Kansas City Royals

In the Mix: Scott Barlow (hold on Thursday), Greg Holland (hold on Thursday), Jake Brentz (save on Thursday).

Miami Marlins

In the Mix: Dylan Floro (saves on Monday and Tuesday), Anthony Bender (save on Thursday).

Minnesota Twins

With an injury to Tyler Rogers, Alex Colome has "reclaimed" the job, picking up saves on Tuesday and Thursday.

New York Yankees

With the injury to Aroldis Chapman, the Yankees bullpen is thrown into flux.

In the Mix: Jonathan Loaisiga (save on Saturday, win on Wednesday), Chad Green (win on Thursday), Zack Britton (hold on Thursday).

Philadelphia Phillies

Ian Kennedy got saves on Friday and Saturday but Jose Alvarado (save on Tuesday) and Archie Bradley (save on Thursday, blown save, and win on Monday). Good luck guessing this one on a daily basis.

Pittsburgh Pirates

In the Mix: David Bednar (win on Tuesday), Chris Stratton (blown save on Tuesday), Chasen Struve (blown save on Wednesday).

Seattle Mariners

Seattle is the land of blown saves, as of late, with Diego Castillo, Paul Sewald, Anthony Misiewicz, and Erik Swanson all blowing one in the last week.

Texas Rangers

It's Spencer Patton's job but the Rangers are bad, without a save opportunity since last Monday.

Washington Nationals

It's Kyle Finnegan's job. Pick him up.



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 Points Leagues Analysis




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

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

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

NFL13 mins ago

Justin Hardee Sr. Waived With Non-Football Injury
Isaiah Stewart13 mins ago

To Return For Game 1
Ausar Thompson18 mins ago

Available For Game 1
Rui Hachimura26 mins ago

On Track To Play Saturday
Austin Reaves32 mins ago

Ready To Go For Game 1
NFL35 mins ago

Bills Release Armani Rogers, Branson Deen
Luka Dončić38 mins ago

Luka Doncic Removed From Injury Report
Brandon Young42 mins ago

Set To Make MLB Debut On Saturday
LeBron James47 mins ago

Listed As Probable For Game 1
Ben Sheppard53 mins ago

Probable For Saturday's Game 1
Jacob Lopez54 mins ago

Recalled From Triple-A
NFL56 mins ago

Kolton Miller Absent From Raiders' Voluntary Offseason Program
Kevin Durant58 mins ago

To Houston Already Losing Steam
Matt Canterino1 hour ago

Twins Designate Matt Canterino For Assignment
Lauri Markkanen1 hour ago

Wants To Stay With The Jazz
NFL1 hour ago

Ross Blacklock Let Go By New York
Mickey Gasper1 hour ago

Sent To Triple-A St. Paul
Bennedict Mathurin1 hour ago

Expected To Play In Game 1 Saturday
Nicky Lopez2 hours ago

Designated For Assignment
Josh Smith2 hours ago

Still Out Of Lineup Friday Night
Pascal Siakam2 hours ago

Available For Playoff Opener
Zach Neto2 hours ago

Reinstated From Injury List, Will Make Season Debut Friday
Tyrese Haliburton2 hours ago

Returning From Two-Game Absence Saturday
Cade Cunningham2 hours ago

Available For Game 1 Against Knicks
Shohei Ohtani2 hours ago

Out Of Friday's Lineup For Birth Of First Child
Josh Hart2 hours ago

Back In Knicks Lineup Saturday
Eugenio Suárez2 hours ago

Eugenio Suarez Hits Grand Slam In Friday Afternoon's Loss
OG Anunoby2 hours ago

Good To Go For Game 1
Ian Happ2 hours ago

Hits Grand Slam In Massive Day At The Plate
Jalen Brunson2 hours ago

Available For Saturday's Game 1
Jazz Chisholm Jr.2 hours ago

Suspended For One Game, Will Appeal And Is Playing Friday
Karl-Anthony Towns2 hours ago

Returning To Action Saturday
Kyle Tucker2 hours ago

Hits Go-Ahead Homer In Cubs Win
Pelle Larsson2 hours ago

Good To Go Friday
Nikola Jović2 hours ago

Nikola Jovic Available Friday
Carson Kelly2 hours ago

Crushes Two Homers In Crazy Cubs Win
Trae Young3 hours ago

Officially Active On Friday
Giannis Antetokounmpo3 hours ago

Not On Game 1 Injury Report
NFL3 hours ago

Raiders Considering Drafting A Quarterback
Irv Smith3 hours ago

Sticking With Texans
Ryan Lindgren3 hours ago

Set To Return Saturday
NFL3 hours ago

Texans Expected To Draft Wide Receivers
Greg Dortch3 hours ago

Returning To Cardinals
Josh Manson3 hours ago

Available For Game 1
Mark Andrews3 hours ago

Could Be Traded Soon
Ondrej Palat3 hours ago

To Return For Start Of Playoffs
David Savard3 hours ago

Will Retire After Playoffs
Gavin Sheets4 hours ago

In Padres Lineup Against Astros
NFL4 hours ago

Raiders, Falcons Could Have Interest In Jalen Ramsey
Robert Thomas4 hours ago

Good To Go Saturday
Shea Langeliers4 hours ago

Back In Lineup On Friday
Matthew Tkachuk4 hours ago

Expected To Return For Game 1
4 hours ago

Raiders Are High On Ashton Jeanty
Alex Verdugo4 hours ago

Hitting Leadoff In Season Debut On Friday
Jason Robertson4 hours ago

Considered Week-To-Week
Rome Odunze4 hours ago

To Hopefully Get More Involved
Dylan Moore4 hours ago

Not In Lineup On Friday
NFL4 hours ago

Dolphins Could Draft A Quarterback
Parker Meadows4 hours ago

Cleared To Begin Throwing Program
James Cook4 hours ago

Could Stay Away From Voluntary Workouts
Chandler Simpson4 hours ago

Called Up By Rays
Alex Bregman6 hours ago

Back From Paternity Leave
Noah Davis6 hours ago

Dodgers Recall Noah Davis From Triple-A
Leon Draisaitl11 hours ago

Wins First Rocket Richard Trophy
Nikita Kucherov12 hours ago

Bags Third Art Ross Trophy
Bryan Rust12 hours ago

Scores Twice In Season-Ending Win
Igor Shesterkin12 hours ago

Shuts Out Lightning With 27 Saves
Dylan Cozens12 hours ago

Picks Up Three Points In Regular-Season Finale
Matvei Michkov12 hours ago

Caps Off Rookie Campaign With Three-Point Effort
Brady Tkachuk12 hours ago

Makes Early Exit For Precautionary Reasons
Jake Tonges21 hours ago

Signs Exclusive-Rights Tender
Denver Broncos21 hours ago

Broncos To Focus On RB Position In Next Week's Draft
Drew Lock21 hours ago

Sam Howell, Drew Lock Expected To Compete For Backup Job
New York Giants21 hours ago

Giants Leaning Toward Taking Best Player Available At No. 3
New Orleans Saints21 hours ago

Ryan Ramczyk Announces His Retirement
Buffalo Bills21 hours ago

Tre'Davious White Reunites With Buffalo
Aaron Rodgers21 hours ago

Willing To Play For $10 Million A Year
Jakob Chychrun1 day ago

Returns Against Penguins
Rasmus Andersson1 day ago

Out Against Kings
Jonathan Huberdeau1 day ago

Sits Out Regular-Season Finale
Ryan Pulock1 day ago

Out On Thursday
Jake Sanderson1 day ago

Back In Action Thursday
Thomas Chabot1 day ago

To Be Rested Against Hurricanes
Claude Giroux1 day ago

Active On Thursday
Lucas Glover2 days ago

Looks To Rebound After Poor Performance
Daniel Berger2 days ago

Looking To Continue Solid Play At RBC
Sepp Straka2 days ago

Looking To Bounce Back At RBC
Justin Thomas2 days ago

Looking To Shake Off Poor Masters At RBC Heritage
Xander Schauffele2 days ago

Still Looking For Year's First Win At RBC Heritage
Maverick McNealy2 days ago

Is An Intriguing Play At RBC Heritage
Shane Lowry2 days ago

Looks To Shake Off Poor Masters Sunday At RBC Heritage
Will Zalatoris2 days ago

Eyes A Bounce-Back At RBC Heritage
Gary Woodland2 days ago

Could Add Some Surprise At Hilton Head
Sam Burns3 days ago

Hoping For Better Times At RBC Heritage
Sahith Theegala3 days ago

Still Trying To Put It All Together
Aaron Rai3 days ago

Might Be That Guy For Hilton Head
Robert MacIntyre3 days ago

All Or Nothing At RBC Heritage
Tom Hoge3 days ago

Still Playing Solid Heading To Hilton Head
Nick Dunlap3 days ago

Continues To Have Rough Stretch
Keegan Bradley3 days ago

Looks To Move On From Masters Performance
Matt Fitzpatrick3 days ago

A Boom-Or-Bust Option At RBC Heritage
Patrick Cantlay3 days ago

A Strong Play At RBC Heritage
Jordan Spieth3 days ago

Targets Another Strong RBC Heritage Showing
Collin Morikawa3 days ago

Eyeing Victory At RBC Heritage
Max Homa3 days ago

Breaks Through At The Masters
Alexander Volkanovski4 days ago

Reclaims Featherweight Title
Diego Lopes4 days ago

Drops Decision At UFC 314
Paddy Pimblett4 days ago

Remains Undefeated In The UFC
Michael Chandler4 days ago

Suffers TKO Loss
MMA4 days ago

Patricio Freire Gets Dominated In His UFC Debut
Yair Rodriguez4 days ago

Gets Back In The Win Column
Bryce Mitchell4 days ago

Gets Submitted At UFC 314
Jean Silva4 days ago

Gets Submission Win At UFC 314
Dominick Reyes4 days ago

Wins Third Fight In A Row
Austin Dillon4 days ago

Nabs His First Top-10 Finish Of The 2025 Season At Bristol
Ryan Blaney4 days ago

Bold Strategies Fall Flat, Still Musters A Top-Five Finish At Bristol
Christopher Bell4 days ago

Finishes In The Top 10 After Falling Back Midway At Bristol
Ty Gibbs4 days ago

Earns His First Top-Five Finish Of The 2025 Season At Bristol
Chase Briscoe4 days ago

Quietly Scores First Career Top-Five Finish At Bristol
William Byron5 days ago

Denny Hamlin Cuts Into William Byron's Points Lead
William Byron5 days ago

Makes Best Of His Mediocre Qualifying Run With Sixth-Place Finish
Alex Bowman5 days ago

Despite Engine Failure, Alex Bowman's Improved Speed Looks Promising
NASCAR5 days ago

A.J. Allmendinger Enters Playoff Picture With Surprise Bristol Top-10 Finish
Kyle Larson6 days ago

Will Compete For The Win At Bristol
Chase Elliott6 days ago

Is One Of The More Favorable DFS Options Available For Bristol
William Byron6 days ago

Is A Solid DFS Option For Bristol Lineups
Tyler Reddick6 days ago

Could Tyler Reddick Be A Sneaky DFS Option For Bristol?
NASCAR6 days ago

Is Bubba Wallace Worth Rostering For Bristol This Week?
Ross Chastain6 days ago

Could Ross Chastain Be A Worthy DFS Choice For Bristol?
Carson Hocevar6 days ago

Is Carson Hocevar Worth Rostering For Bristol DFS Lineups?
NASCAR6 days ago

Should Fantasy Managers Avoid Rostering A.J. Allmendinger In DFS For Bristol?
Ryan Preece6 days ago

Is Ryan Preece Worth Rostering For Bristol Lineups?
Austin Dillon6 days ago

May Be One Of The Top Value Options For Bristol DFS This Week
Noah Gragson6 days ago

Should DFS Players Consider Noah Gragson For Bristol Lineups?
Riley Herbst6 days ago

Is In Play For Bristol DFS Lineups
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF