Week 2 Waiver Wire & FAAB Report

In the article, I cover the players using CBS’s (about 40% or less initial roster rate) and Yahoo’s ADD/DROP rates. Both hosting sites have the option for daily and weekly waiver wire adds. CBS uses a weekly change while Yahoo looks at the last 24 hours. Yahoo is a great snapshot of right now while CBS ensures hot targets from early in the week aren’t missed. The players are ordered for redraft leagues by my rest-of-season preference grouped by starters, relievers, and hitters.

Note: There has been a minor change to the CBS numbers in that they only mark players moving 4% or more. There were plenty of options at the 4% threshold this week, but there might not be as many later in the season. Hopefully this limit drops as the season goes on.

Batters (Note: I wrote these before the Saturday games started)

Ha-Seong Kim 김하성: Solid player with solid playing time. Should be rostered in all leagues.

TJ Friedl: Hit second and started in center field on Opening Day. He could end up a well-around contributor with power, speed, and not being a batting average sink.

Jose Siri: Siri might have a bit more power and speed than Friedl but he’s got quite a bit of swing-and-miss in his game (career 34% K%).

Brice Turang: A speedster with a bit of power (i.e. Siri or McCarthy) who is getting a chance to win the second base job.

James Outman: If he’s starting every day for the Dodgers, the 26-year-old he is a must-add in all formats. Last season across three levels, he hit 32 HR and stole 13 bases. He’s got some swing-and-miss in his game, especially against non-fastballs. Teams have tried to exploit this hole by only throwing him 40% fastballs last season and just 25% so far this season.

Joey Wiemer: Wiemer has a ton of potential, probably more than anyone I’m examining today. He’s also got decent speed (31 SB last season), but it will come with a .200 AVG. It’s not a good sign to have minor league swinging-strike rates in the high teens (20% SwStr% in AA, 17% in AAA).

Seth Brown: A nice 1B/OF with power and speed. Watch his playing time since he has historically struggled at lefties (career .527 OPS vs LHP, .793 OPS vs RHP).

Elvis Andrus: A steady bat who should be dual-position qualified (adding 2B) in a couple of weeks.

Jorge Mateo: If he can replicate his 2022 season, he’s a must-roster in all Roto leagues.

Esteury Ruiz: Should be a great source of steals if he can hit enough to stay in the lineup.

Adam Duvall: He’s expected to be the everyday center fielder for the Red Sox with 30 HR power.

Isaac Paredes: Even though his triple position eligibility gives him a value boost, he needs to be playing. Monitor his playing time closely.

Oswaldo Cabrera: The 24-year-old prospect could have a 15 HR/15 SB season but has some swing-and-miss in his game that could keep his AVG down.

Michael Massey: Power bat. I have a feeling that in a month or two, this ranking is going to look way too high or way too low.

Ji Hwan Bae: The 22-year-old is only qualified in the OF but should get second base soon. He could be a help with stolen bases (33 SB last season) and a small plus in batting average.

Spencer Steer: His Opening Day homer will have the 25-year-old on waiver wire radars. He just doesn’t have any standout skills and might end up as a home streamer.

Luis Rengifo: He’s qualified at two positions and has become a steady hitter.

Marcell Ozuna: He’s starting at DH, for now, but needs to begin to lower his launch angle to the 10 to 13-degree range when he was more effective.

Max Kepler: Power bat who doesn’t have much upside.

Dominic Smith: Looks to be getting everyday at-bats and has a series at Coors this upcoming week.

Elehuris Montero: In 9 PA so far this season, he has four hits (including a home run) and 5 strikeouts. The Rockie seems to be a fine third base streamer with some power and average in spacious Coors field. In two games so far, he’s hit fifth and sixth in the order.

Jurickson Profar: He finally got his visa issue figured out but has yet to start any games. Most likely he’ll end up as a stream-at-home guy.

David Hensley: He’s probably a better real-life player than a fantasy player (lots of walks and doubles). He has started both games so far with Altuve on the IL.

Garrett Cooper: Against two righties, Cooper hit third. When healthy (career-high 469 PA last season), the 32-year-old hits for a decent batting average (career .276 AVG) and low-teens home runs. Not the profile of an everyday first baseman, but a fine injury replacement.

Jake Fraley: His fantasy value comes down to how much he plays because he can’t hit lefties (career .472 OPS vs LHP, .803 OPS vs RHP).

Patrick Wisdom: Four games at Cincinnati make him an interesting stream next week.

Jon Berti: The Marlins infield has a few extra bodies with Berti’s best route to playing time would be a struggling Joey Wendle.

Kyle Lewis: Lewis has started both games so far but will remain the team’s primary DH. When healthy, he’s been an OK bat. I see his role as similar to Belt in Toronto, but Lewis has some upside if he can stay healthy.

Trevor Larnach: He might finally be healthy and the Twins hit him cleanup on Opening Day. The main issue holding him back is a 34% K% and limited power.

Carlos Santana: He should start most days and hit for a bit of power.

Orlando Arcia: He’s a sneaky add with his full-season projection standing at about 18 HR and 8 SB with a .245 AVG.

David Peralta: Platoon bat who is only expected to start against righties.

Alek Thomas: A part-time outfielder who hasn’t been good in the majors so far (.230/.274/.342). His main issue is his 58% GB%.

Brandon Belt: I’m not sure where his talent and health currently stand. At this point in the season, I’d like to take a chance on someone with more upside. Players like Belt can easily be found on the wire.

Brandon Crawford: He starts at shortstop every day and doesn’t do much else.

Josh Donaldson: He should usually start at third base and doesn’t do much else.

Catchers

Eric Haase: Power bat who isn’t a complete drain on batting average.

Blake Sabol: A decent dart in two-catcher leagues since he plays outfield.

Starters

David Peterson: It was nice to see him limit the walks in his first start (1 BB in 5 IP). There is a ton of upside if he keeps the walks in check.

Nick Martinez: He struggled as a starter last season (4.30 ERA, 4.6 BB/9) but is in the Padres rotation after a decent spring (1.93 ERA, 12.2 K/9, 2.6 B/9).

Graham Ashcraft: A trendy pick who struck out 25 batters in 17 spring innings. Besides the strikeouts, he has been a groundball pitcher (~55% GB%).

Eduardo Rodriguez: The hope is that he’ll rebound to pre-2022 levels when he had a 10 K/9 strikeout rate. In his first start back, his fastball velocity jumped up about 1 mph.

Clarke Schmidt: He’s been able to strike out a decent number of batters (8.8 K/9) in 70 IP in the majors. The issue is that he has walked too many (4.2 BB/9).

Kutter Crawford: Nice two-start week as he’s scheduled to face Pittsburg and Detroit.

Michael Grove: Nice two-start week as he’s scheduled to face Colorado (in LA) and Arizona.

Alex Wood: He’s been effective (career 8.6 K/9, 1.23 WHIP, 3.69 ERA) when healthy. Utilize him until he breaks.

Yusei Kikuchi: He’s been able to get strikeouts in the majors (career 8.7 K/9) but has always had a high WHIP (1.42 WHIP) and ERA (5.02 ERA). In 20 IP this spring, he had 31 strikeouts.

Jared Shuster: The 24-year-old rookie will get a start for the Braves on Sunday. Expect his results to drive his FAAB cost.

Dylan Dodd: The 24-year-old rookie starts Tuesday against St. Louis. He struck out 20 batters in 18 innings this spring.

Domingo Germán: Acceptable arm on the Yankees who needs his fastball velocity to rebound over 93 mph.

Mitch Keller: Four walks and a home run led to four runs allowed in four innings. At least his velocity was up and he get eight strikeouts.

Ryne Nelson: A tough two-start week coming up when he faces the Padres and Dodgers. It might be an instance where I roster him, don’t start him, and see how those two games go.

Kyle Muller: His Opening day start was a mixed bag. His fastball velocity was down 1.4 mph. He only walked one batter over five innings. Also, he only struck out three batters over those five innings. I’m interested in an add-and-monitor.

Seth Lugo: It’ll be interesting to see how Lugo makes it as a starter this season or if will he be forced back to the bullpen.

Brayan Bello: On the IL but expected to make a rehab start on Wednesday. I have a soft spot for high-strikeout, high-groundball pitchers (see Grahm Ashcraft).

Tanner Houck: He struggled as a starter last season (4.32 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 7.0 K/9). Hopefully, he improve on those results this season.

Roansy Contreras: A hard thrower on a weak team.

Germán Márquez: With his fastball averaging a career-high 96.1 mph, he could be an interesting road streamer.

Johnny Cueto: He’s starting and has always been able to maintain good ratios.

Zack Greinke: His fastball velocity is up 1.5 mph (89.2 mph to 90.7 mph) and could end up being a streaming option.

Dean Kremer: He got rocked for five runs in just three innings on Saturday. He doesn’t miss enough bats to be a reliable starter.

Kyle Bradish: An injury to Rodriguez is the only reason he made the rotation. While he has a decent strikeout rate (8.5 K/9) he walks too many batters (3.5 BB/9). Streamer against weak opponents.

Jhony Brito: His value will be set by his Sunday start against the Giants. It’s not an exciting profile and he is only in the rotation because of injuries to several members of the Yankees rotation.

Hunter Gaddis: In his debut, he had 4 K, 4 ER, and 0 BB in 3.2 IP. He leaned into his slider more than last season (23% to 37%) but had an 8% SwStr% on it.

Mike Clevinger: Struggled to be productive last season when his average fastball velocity was down at 93.5 mph. It doesn’t seem like it’s up.

Mike Clevinger said he was dealing with a sinus infection today. He identified it for why he felt like he was missing an "extra gear" and his fastball sat 92-94. A Clint Frazier solo shot on a 93 mph heater was his only run allowed in five innings.

— James Fegan (@JRFegan) March 22, 2023

Ken Waldichuk: His start on Sunday against the Angels will go a long way to determine his demand.

Shintaro Fujinami: Got rocked in his debut (8 ER in 2.1 IP) and I can understand moving on until he puts together at least two decent starts.

MacKenzie Gore: He’s never been able to stay healthy or throw strikes.

Josiah Gray: Home runs have always been an issue with him (2.3 HR/9) and he allowed three in his Saturday debut.

Nick Pivetta: Debuts this season with a start Tuesday against the Pirates. In 740 IP in his career, he has a 5.02 ERA.

Kyle Gibson: His average fastball velocity was down about 1 mph on Opening Day as he proceeded to get rocked for four runs in five innings.

Ryan Pepiot: He’s on the IL with an oblique strain with no guarantee he’ll be in the majors when he returns.

Walker Buehler: There is no reason to hold him unless a team has a ton of IL slots.

Minor league prospects

Gavin Stone: A 12.7 K/9, 3.1 BB/9, and 1.16 ERA in 23 IP in AAA last season.

Relievers (Saves-based ranks)

Michael Fulmer: Decent reliever who is the closer.

Reynaldo López: Decent pitcher who looks to be the closer.

Kyle Finnegan: Decent reliever who is the main closer.

A.J. Puk: Good reliever who is in the mix for Saves.

Seranthony Domínguez: Good reliever who is in the mix for Saves.

Brusdar Graterol: Good reliever who should get some Saves.

A.J. Minter: Good reliever who should get some Saves with Iglesias on the IL.

Dany Jiménez: Below-average reliever who could be the closer.

Jimmy Herget: Decent reliever who is in the mix for Saves.

Dylan Floro: OK reliever who is in the mix for Saves.

Brad Hand: Below-average reliever who might be in the mix for Saves.

Scott McGough: Unknown reliever who might be in line for Saves.

Jason Adam: Good reliever who should get a few Saves.

James Karinchak: Great reliever who is next in line for Saves.

Giovanny Gallegos: Good reliever who is the backup closer.

Michael King: Good reliever who is the backup closer.

Brad Boxberger: OK reliever who is the backup closer.

Ben Joyce: Elite arm but is still in the minors.