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
Draft Rankings
Draft Simulator
Enter League Settings
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

Points Leagues Waiver Wire Pickups: Week 5

Players to target or add from the waiver wire in Week 5 for fantasy baseball points leagues. Andrew Le identifies the top pickups of the week based on fantasy value.

We march into Week 5 of the 2019 baseball season and vigilance of the waiver wire becomes increasingly important as we approach May. The impact of one awful or great game is starting to become less meaningful as players gradually approach steady state.

One luxury of Statcast data is the ability to compare actual with expected results. A key metric is the delta between weighted on-base average (wOBA) and expected weighted on-base average (xwOBA). Eventually, the numbers should be nearly identical. In 2018, the median variance for batters with over 500 plate appearances was just 0.002. In the early going, a wide difference could indicate initial results have been fluky, for better or worse.

Our points league waiver wire column will default to standard scoring and try to unearth three players under 50% ownership and three players under 25% ownership. For each group, we’ll identify an infielder, outfielder and pitcher. Let’s get hunting!

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

 

Points League Pickups to Consider

Niko Goodrum (1B/2B/3B/SS/OF, DET)

45% Owned

Based on his numbers last year (16 homers, 12 steals) and position eligibility alone, Niko Goodrum should be considered in any fantasy format. He’s off to a solid start in his first season as a full-time player and the results have been encouraging, slashing .247/.371/.438 with a pair of dingers and three stolen bags.

Goodrum’s xwOBA of .415 is a gap of -.062 against his wOBA (.353), with Statcast suggesting his average should be hovering closer to .300. He’s demonstrated the pop and speed are durable after 500 combined plate appearances between 2018 and 2019 while his walks are up (0.71 BB/K). Plus, he’s already contributed eight doubles. Goodrum fits anywhere on a fantasy lineup and is entrenched at cleanup on the Tigers. With a chance to test a 20/20 season, he should easily be owned in more than half of leagues.

 

Kendrys Morales (1B, OAK)

2% Owned

Using Goodrum’s xwOBA and wOBA variance as a baseline, the -.121 difference between Kendrys Morales’ metrics is a chasm. Morales currently owns the largest margin between actual and expected results, giving the veteran slugger plenty of forward-looking appeal in deeper leagues.

In 13 career seasons, Morales has surpassed 100 games seven times, cranking at least 20 jacks in each campaign. Morales has only one homer this season despite a crushing 54% hard-hit rate. If he continues pummeling the ball, the .204 BABIP is sure to creep closer to his .292 career norm. Throw in an excellent 0.90 BB/K rate, Morales is a bargain as a part-time fantasy asset with a reliable resume.

 

Harrison Bader (OF, STL)

33% Owned

Harrison Bader generated some offseason sleeper buzz, but his ownership has dipped after missing almost two weeks with an injured hamstring. Bader was activated from the IL on April 24 and will attempt to close the discrepancy between his .308 wOBA and .376 xwOBA.

It’s possible Bader fails to start every day due to his struggles with right-handers (.653 OPS), but his strong defense will likely allot him considerable opportunities. Bader smacked 12 homers and swiped 15 bags last season in 427 plate appearances and if he can raise his launch angle from a putrid 2.8 degrees to last year’s 12.5, the slugging numbers should follow. With his speed, Bader could be a doubles and triples machine now with healthy legs, enhancing his points league appeal.

 

Avisail Garcia (OF, TB)

16% Owned

Despite seasons with 18 and 19 home runs over the past two years, Avisail Garcia continues being an underrated power source for fantasy squads and deep leagues. Garcia has already gone yard four times this season and prevailing healthy trends in exit velocity and launch angle support a .360 xwOBA.

Through 91 plate appearances, Garcia is barreling a ridiculous 21% of balls which have translated into the aforementioned long balls and nine total extra-base hits. He’s batted between fourth and sixth in the order so should have sustained chances for run production. The knock on Garcia is his concerning strikeout rates (30%) but an uptick in walks from 5% to 7% should partially insulate that detraction. Extrapolated over a full season, Garcia has a legitimate shot at clearing the fence 25 times while racking up an additional 30 doubles, triples and 160 runs-plus-RBI.

 

Tyler Skaggs (SP, LAA)

36% Owned

The start of Tyler Skaggs’ season was delayed after just three starts with a sprained ankle. Returning this weekend, Skaggs will look to lower his wOBA of .367 closer to the more respectable xwOBA clip of .301. While Skaggs won’t blow batters away with a low-90s fastball, he’s succeeded throughout his career with a three-pitch mix highlighted by a killer curveball (8.1 wCH/C this season).

While no whiff artist, Skaggs holds a passable 9% SwStr% and a strikeout rate around 23%. He’s always demonstrated great control and has only issued two free passes in 15 innings for a 3% walk rate and 7.0 K/BB. If he handles the Royals on April 26 as this is being published, expect the ownership levels to spike.

 

Jerad Eickhoff (SP, PHI)

21% Owned

The key beneficiary of Nick Pivetta’s faceplant was Jerad Eickhoff, who assumed the starting position availed by Pivetta’s early-season implosion. He performed serviceably in his first start in challenging Coors Field, allowing four earned runs in six innings with eight strikeouts.

Eickhoff is no spring chicken at 28 years old, but he missed almost all of 2018 with a lingering lat injury. Having barely scratched 15 innings since his return last September, it’s fair to worry about his track record. The limited data supports promising metrics, with Eickhoff’s 2019 results suggesting paltry expected stats of .134 (average), .201 (slugging) and xwOBA (.198). Although he’ll likely have some innings limitations to work around, a 13% swinging strike rate always deserves fantasy attention.

Update: Eickhoff cruised past the Marlins on April 27, firing seven innings of scoreless ball, allowing just a hit, walk while striking out six. to pick up the victory.

More Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Advice




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Draft Rankings
Draft Simulator
Enter League Settings
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Nikola Jokić21 mins ago

Nikola Jokic Expected To Play On Friday
Hunter Brown28 mins ago

Registers Eight Strikeouts
Jonathan Kuminga32 mins ago

Back On Thursday Night
Christian Walker34 mins ago

Mashes Homer In Win
Freddie Freeman43 mins ago

Heading To Injured List
Miles Boykin2 hours ago

Heading To Chicago
Jalen Wilson3 hours ago

Sidelined On Thursday
Baker Mayfield3 hours ago

Tampa Bay Restructures Baker Mayfield's Deal
Case Keenum3 hours ago

Chicago Signs Case Keenum To One-Year Deal
Kyshawn George3 hours ago

Unavailable For Thursday
Richaun Holmes3 hours ago

Out Versus Magic
Khris Middleton3 hours ago

Out Again Thursday Versus Magic
D'Angelo Russell3 hours ago

Good To Go On Thursday
Noah Clowney4 hours ago

Done For Rest Of The Season
Jordan Poole4 hours ago

Unavailable For Thursday
Scottie Barnes4 hours ago

Available On Thursday
Cedric Mullins4 hours ago

Goes Deep In Loss To Boston
Jonathan Drouin4 hours ago

Martin Necas, Jonathan Drouin Unavailable Thursday
Tyrese Maxey4 hours ago

Expected To Miss Rest Of Season
Alexandar Georgiev4 hours ago

Nursing An Upper-Body Injury
Henry Thrun4 hours ago

Returns From Nine-Game Absence Thursday
Taijuan Walker4 hours ago

Blanks Rockies For Six Innings To Earn First Win
Tanner Houck4 hours ago

Picks Up No-Decision In Four-Inning Outing
Olli Määttä4 hours ago

Olli Maatta Returns To Utah Lineup Thursday
Alex Bregman4 hours ago

Fills The Box Score In Win Over Orioles
Dylan Guenther4 hours ago

Ready To Go Thursday
Jorge Polanco5 hours ago

Reinstated From Paternity List
Anthony Duclair5 hours ago

Takes Leave Of Absence
Carlos Rodriguez5 hours ago

Joining Brewers On Thursday
Alex Pietrangelo5 hours ago

On Track To Return Thursday
Brady Tkachuk5 hours ago

Out On Thursday
DJ LeMahieu5 hours ago

"About A Week Away" From Taking Live At-Bats
Devin Williams5 hours ago

To Return From Paternity List On Friday
Jake Fraley5 hours ago

Gavin Lux, Jake Fraley Sitting Against A Lefty
Trey McBride5 hours ago

Cardinals Making Trey McBride The Highest-Paid Tight End In NFL History
Geno Smith6 hours ago

Raiders, Geno Smith Agree To Two-Year Extension
Jeferson Quero6 hours ago

Set Back With Hamstring Injury
Eguy Rosario6 hours ago

Clears Waivers, Outrighted To Triple-A
Xavier Isaac6 hours ago

Rays Hopeful Xavier Isaac Will Return In A Couple Of Weeks
Angel Genao7 hours ago

Won't Return Until June
Austin Wells7 hours ago

Being Rested On Thursday
Paul Goldschmidt7 hours ago

Sitting In Finale Against Arizona
Masataka Yoshida7 hours ago

Not Ready For Rehab Assignment
Edward Cabrera7 hours ago

Goes Three Innings In Rehab Start
7 hours ago

Tyler Shough Could Be Day 2 Pick In NFL Draft
Jake McCarthy7 hours ago

Gabriel Moreno, Jake McCarthy Sitting On Thursday
Dallas Cowboys7 hours ago

Shemar Stewart Meeting With Cowboys Staff
New York Giants7 hours ago

Travis Hunter The Likely Pick For Giants?
Dallas Cowboys8 hours ago

DeMarvion Overshown Aiming For Comeback Player Of The Year Award
Washington Commanders8 hours ago

Commanders Sign T.J. Maguranyanga
Kansas City Chiefs9 hours ago

Mike Edwards Reunites With Chiefs
New Orleans Saints9 hours ago

Saints Could Take A Quarterback Early In The Draft
Joe Milton III12 hours ago

Traded To Cowboys
Anfernee Simons12 hours ago

Could Be Absent Again Thursday
Scoot Henderson13 hours ago

Misses Third Consecutive Game Thursday
Scottie Barnes13 hours ago

Iffy For Thursday
Immanuel Quickley13 hours ago

Takes Thursday Off
Jakob Poeltl13 hours ago

Sits Out Thursday's Game
Damian Lillard13 hours ago

May Return To Action Sooner Than Expected
Giannis Antetokounmpo13 hours ago

Likely To Suit Up Thursday
LeBron James13 hours ago

Probable Thursday
Jared McCann15 hours ago

Tallies Three Helpers On Wednesday
Jackson Blake15 hours ago

Scores Twice In Victory
Artemi Panarin15 hours ago

Tallies Three Points In Overtime Victory
Andrei Svechnikov15 hours ago

Exits Early On Wednesday
Jake McCabe15 hours ago

Suffers Injury On Wednesday
Jonathan Drouin15 hours ago

Exits Wednesday's Contest
Los Angeles Chargers23 hours ago

Chargers Sign Tight End Jordan Petaia
24 hours ago

Matthew Golden Making Pre-Draft Visit To Steelers
Cincinnati Bengals1 day ago

Trey Hendrickson Not Looking For Short-Term Deal
Tutu Atwell1 day ago

Rams Plan To Give Tutu Atwell A Bigger Role In 2025
Tampa Bay Buccaneers1 day ago

Bucs Restructure Antoine Winfield's Deal To Free Up Cap Space
Jrue Holiday1 day ago

Won't Play Against Miami
New York Jets1 day ago

Xavier Newman-Johnson Re-Signs With New York
Al Horford1 day ago

Sidelined Versus Heat
Evgeni Malkin1 day ago

Joins Penguins For Road Trip
Filip Chytil1 day ago

Could Miss Rest Of Season
Declan Chisholm1 day ago

Back In Action Against Rangers
Samuel Girard1 day ago

Exits Avalanche Lineup Wednesday
Joel Kiviranta1 day ago

Returning Against Blackhawks
Eeli Tolvanen1 day ago

Misses First Game Of The Season
Jaden Schwartz1 day ago

Unavailable Against Canucks
1 day ago

Kyle McCord Rising Up Draft Boards?
1 day ago

Ashton Jeanty To Raiders Continues To Gain Steam
Cameron Young2 days ago

A Player To Avoid At Valero Texas Open
Kurt Kitayama2 days ago

In Search Of Consistency At Valero Texas Open
Si Woo Kim2 days ago

Looking To Bounce Back At Valero Texas Open
Tom Hoge2 days ago

Looking To Build Off Strong Performance At The PLAYERS Championship
Matt Fitzpatrick2 days ago

Looking For Consistency At Valero Texas Open
Corey Conners2 days ago

Continues Strong Form Ahead Of Valero Texas Open
Patrick Cantlay2 days ago

Eyeing Victory At Valero Texas Open
Gary Woodland2 days ago

Showing Great Form Ahead Of Valero Texas Open
Akshay Bhatia2 days ago

Aiming For Repeat At Valero Texas Open
Alejandro Tosti2 days ago

A Volatile Choice At TPC San Antonio
Jordan Spieth2 days ago

Needs To Find Consistency At TPC San Antonio
Jake Knapp2 days ago

Making First Appearance At Valero Texas Open
Michael Kim2 days ago

Looking To Find The Magic Again In San Antonio
Tommy Fleetwood2 days ago

Is Nearly A Must-Play At Valero Texas Open
Tony Finau2 days ago

Hoping For Better Approach Play In San Antonio
Eric Cole2 days ago

Trending In Right Direction Ahead Of Valero
Sam Stevens3 days ago

Enjoys Nice Result In Houston
PGA3 days ago

J.T. Poston Seeks To Contend At Valero Texas Open
Denny McCarthy3 days ago

Keeps Making Cuts But Needs To Make More Putts
Brian Harman3 days ago

Off To A Subpar 2025 So Far
Ryan Preece3 days ago

Has Three Straight Top-10 Finishes For First Time In His Career
NASCAR3 days ago

Bubba Wallace After Third-Place Finish At Martinsville: "What a Great Day"
Todd Gilliland3 days ago

Has Mistake-Free Day At Martinsville, Grabs Another Top-10 Finish
Brandon Moreno3 days ago

Wins Back-To-Back Fights
Steve Erceg3 days ago

Losses Third Consecutive Fight
Drew Dober3 days ago

Gets Knocked Out At UFC Mexico City
Manuel Torres3 days ago

Gets Back In The Win Column
Harry Hall3 days ago

Bounces Back In Houston Last Week
CJ Vergara3 days ago

Gets Submitted
Édgar Cháirez3 days ago

Edgar Chairez Gets Submission Win At UFC Mexico City
Vince Morales3 days ago

Drops Decision At UFC Mexico City
Raul Rosas Jr.3 days ago

Gets Decision Win At UFC Mexico City
Saimon Oliveira3 days ago

Still Winless In The UFC
David Martinez3 days ago

Wins His UFC Debut
Kevin Borjas3 days ago

Earns His First UFC Win
Ronaldo Rodríguez3 days ago

Ronaldo Rodriguez Suffers His First UFC Loss
Christopher Bell3 days ago

Powers His Way To A Second-Place Finish At Martinsville
Chase Elliott3 days ago

Strong Martinsville Performance Ends With A Top-Five Finish
Kyle Larson3 days ago

Collects A Top-Five Finish At Martinsville
William Byron3 days ago

Places 22nd After Struggles At Martinsville
Joey Logano3 days ago

Claims His First 2025 Top-10 Finish After Up-And-Down Performance
Tyler Reddick3 days ago

Fails To Place In The Top 10 At Martinsville
Denny Hamlin4 days ago

Silences Doubters After Crew-Chief Change
Ty Gibbs4 days ago

Earns Best 2025 Finish At Martinsville Despite Failing Cool Suit
Ross Chastain4 days ago

Has A Great Day At Martinsville
Chase Briscoe4 days ago

Has Solid Run At Martinsville
Erik Jones4 days ago

Disqualified At Martinsville For Weight Violation
Josh Berry5 days ago

Has Top-10 Upside At Martinsville
Joey Logano5 days ago

Don't Overlook Joey Logano This Weekend
Ryan Preece5 days ago

Could Get First Three-Race Top-10 Streak Of His Career
Chase Elliott5 days ago

Looking To Continue Great Runs At Martinsville
Christopher Bell5 days ago

Wins Pole At Martinsville, But Can He Stay Up There?
Ryan Blaney5 days ago

Fast In Practice But Skeptical About Car
Denny Hamlin5 days ago

New Crew Chief Has Terrible Martinsville Record
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF