Last Minute Stolen Base Pickups

Are you in a daily transaction league and in need of a couple extra stolen bases over the last four days of the season? You’re in luck! Let’s review a handful of lightly owned hitters that have run often over the last two weeks. I calculated stolen base attempts per game over the last 14 days and then handpicked these names that were all over 0.40 SBA/G.

Luke Williams | ATL

Since his recall on Aug 15, Williams hasn’t played much. In fact, he’s only appeared in a game six times in over a month, thanks to the Braves loaded lineup. He did sneak in a start recently at third base though. Even with the lack of playing time, he stole two bases as a pinch runner last week, which was enough to rank him high on this list.

Williams had stolen 28 bases at Triple-A this year in about two-thirds of a season, which put him on a near-40 steal pace over a full year. Since it’s impossible to predict when he’ll pinch hit or pinch run later in the game, he’s clearly a guy you would only consider adding if you see he’s in the starting lineup.

Drew Waters | KC

Waters has been in the lineup the majority of the time, rotating between center field and right field. Most recently ranked as the team’s 11th best prospect, he has offered a nice little power/speed package this year.

He has already swiped 16 bases in about a half season and has actually attempted five steals, succeeding four times, over the last two weeks. That’s a 72 steal pace over a full season, given that he has appeared in just nine games over that stretch!

Aside from the speed, I like his power upside. His 112.2 MPH maxEV and 10.4% Barrel% suggest better than just a 10.1% HR/FB rate and .150 ISO. So you might even get a surprise homer or two over the remainder of the season, in addition to his potential for steals.

Parker Meadows | DET

The younger brother of Austin Meadows, Parker was most recently ranked seventh among Tigers prospects. Though he swiped just 17 bases in 2022 and 19 at Triple-A this year before his recall, he’s already at seven over just 121 PAs. A full 600 PA season would result in nearly 35 steals given his current pace.

He’s also taken it up a notch the last two weeks, as he has attempted five steals, succeeding four times, putting him on a 53 steal pace if just looking at the last two weeks. Although he wasn’t a big basestealer in the minors, he was only caught twice since last year, going a combined 36 for 40 for a 90% success rate. If you’re that good at stealing bases, you should do it more often!

We shouldn’t worry about him not being in the lineup and he last batted leadoff, which would be a big boon to his fantasy value and stolen base potential if he sticks. There’s some power here too, so like Waters, you might not only get steals if you do decide to roster him.

Chas McCormick | HOU

After swiping just eight bases over the previous two seasons in 727 PAs, McCormick has run wild this year, already stealing 19. That’s 15 more steals in just 38 more PAs this year versus last. Over the last two weeks, he has attempted five steals, succeeding on three of them. That’s a pace of nearly 50 steals over a full season using his season success rate!

Like Waters and Meadows, there’s power here too. In fact, he’s been a surprisingly nice power/speed contributor, swatting 22 home runs, along with those 19 steals. So that’s a 20.8% HR/FB rate driven by a double digit Barrel%, making him a legit power source.

He’s probably long gone in deeper leagues, but might be available in some shallower leagues, as he’s 77% owned in CBS formats.

Brice Turang | MIL

The team’s second best prospect and 72nd overall has been brutal offensively, posting just a .264 wOBA, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t helped fantasy owners. He’s put his 70/70 grade Speed to good use by swiping 26 bases in about two-thirds of a season, while getting caught just four times.

He’s done this despite just a .288 OBP, so imagine if his BABIP improves and he gets more chances to run. He stole 24 bases at Triple-A last year with a .360 OBP, and that even came along with 13 home runs. So the upside is here to become something like a 10 home run, 30 steal guy.

Turang has started most games at second base, but gets the day off here and there against left-handed starters. So you’ll want to make sure he’s in the lineup if a southpaw is starting before deciding to activate him.