Another Waiver Wire Sampling

This is the time of year where you need things to go just right with your Fantasy squads but you know most times that simply won’t happen. At this late stage in the season, I’m sure you are well aware of the categories where you have a chance to gain points, but with trading deadlines over in most leagues, proper use of the waiver wire might be the only thing standing between you and a dirt nap for your squad.  Since I’m in the same situation, I took time to look at some players who have value and are owned in less than 35% of CBS Sports Leagues. I currently own three of them so I’m drinking the Kool-Aid as well.

John Jaso (Owned in 18% of CBS Leagues)

There are a number of things to like about Jaso. He bats leadoff for the Rays, has a .410 OBP, and he is hitting .333. Jaso has done all of this over a small sample of 105 PA’s and he has benefited from a ridiculous .387 BABIP. The really good news is that he has a career triple slash line of .264/.362/.404 and a wRC+ of 120, so at the catcher position his production certainly won’t kill you in any area. While he has only 1 HR this year, he did hit 9 HR’s in 344 PA’s last season so he is not completely devoid of power. Jaso doesn’t hit lefty pitching very well, so he’ll sit against some southpaws and will miss a game or two a week like most any other catcher.

Danny Valencia (Owned in 18% of CBS Leagues)

Released by the Blue Jays who are loaded with offensive talent this season, Valencia was claimed off waivers and is now batting in the heart of the Oakland order. I just picked him up in a deep mixed league after he homered again on Monday. Known primarily for his lack of success against righty pitching, with a .211 lifetime BA coming into this season, he is getting the chance to play against both more regularly with Oakland. Valencia is now batting .282 with a wRC+ of 138 this season in 114 PA’s against righties.  Eight of his 11 HR’s have come against right handed pitching. Currently, he sports a .294/.332/.534 line in 218 PA’s. Valencia has excellent bat speed and the chance to be a very nice run producer for your squad down the stretch. Multi-position eligibility is also a nice benefit. However, his 15.3% LD rate and lack of foot speed does not support his current .343 BABIP. The fact that he is a career .266 hitter strongly suggests that his .294 BA will not hold. Realistically, it is the middle of August and you can’t have everything. For more on Valencia, see David Wiers, 8-12-15 article entitled A Danny Valencia Discussion.

Jonathan Schoop (Owned in 30% of CBS Leagues)

Everything I said about him in my recent article, Narrowing the Schoop, holds and in fact some things have gotten better. When I last covered him on 7/31, he was batting 8^th for the Orioles. Since then, he has slowly moved up the lineup and is now batting 5^th. Although the HR pace has slowed, he is hitting .392 with a .970 OPS in August. I picked him up shortly after he returned from the DL and he has been great for me in my home 12 team mixed league.

Eugenio Suarez (Owned in 26% of CBS Leagues)

Suarez has been excellent for the Reds since Zack Cozart was lost for the season. In 55 games, he has a .296/.332/.483 line with 8 HR’s and a wRC+ of 121. Suarez bats 2^nd in the lineup, plays half his games in a great hitter’s park, and has the benefit of Votto and Frazier sitting behind him. Like some others we have discussed today, he does have an elevated .354 BABIP, which is certainly not supported by a 17.3% LD rate or great foot speed, but he does have a career BABIP of .332 so the regression might not be too severe.  He will score runs in this lineup, might nudge into double digits in HR’s, and has good splits so he has value at a very thin position. Shortstop had been a difficult position for me this season since I drafted Starlin Castro and later played Addison Russell.  I was looking for some MI depth at the SS position behind Yunel Escobar who I acquired in June, so I grabbed Suarez in a deeper mixed league late last week.

Aramis Ramirez (Owned in 34% of CBS Leagues)

Easily the most recognizable name on this list, it looks like Aramis Ramirez is starting to heat up. For most of the season Ramirez has been dealing with a low .253 BABIP, but a career track record of 2^nd half production points to some positive regression. He has been a career .297 hitter with a .377 wOBA after the All Star break. Currently he has a .251/.292/.415 line with 12 HR’s and 56 RBI’s. I know he is 37 years old, and his best years are clearly behind him, but he still has better than average bat speed and distance on HR’s. Ramirez remains a good contact hitter, and his FB% is a tick up over his last two years, so there is a chance that his recent 7-19 hitting streak with a HR and 6 RBI’s could be the start of a productive finish. I’m sure he wants to end his fine career on a high note after returning to Pittsburgh where he got his start in baseball. I owned Ramirez for a good part of the season in a deeper mixed league format believing that his 9% HR/FB rate would rebound but it didn’t and like many I dropped him. There will be a bit of uncertainty until we see how Manager Clint Hurdle handles the imminent return of Josh Harrison. In spite of all of this, Ramirez was scooped up this week in the league that I dropped him, so it remains to be seen if I come to regret that move down the stretch.