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Welcome back, Ke'Bryan Hayes. The top prospect was sidelined for two months with a wrist injury but hasn't missed a beat since returning from the IL. In his first game back, he collected two hits. In his second game, he collected two more, one of which was a home run.
Hayes' rostered percentage never approached levels low enough to be relevant for this column. Managers hung onto him through the wait. The same can't be said for a number of other injured corner infielders. The position is littered with IL tags, but a couple more names should shed that tag any day now.
For our purposes in this column, we are looking at Yahoo!'s rostered percentages, as well as its positional eligibility. We are searching for useful players rostered in fewer than 40 percent of Yahoo! leagues. With that being said, below are my first base and third base waiver wire pickups to consider for Week 11 - June 7 through June 13.
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Colin Moran, Pittsburgh Pirates
30% Rostered
We are all trying to make a move that benefits our roster before a competitor has the same thought. If you've ever been ousted from a FAB add on a random day where you thought there was no way another manager would be looking to add the same guy on the same, random day, you know how frustrating it can be to get sniped. Don't get sniped on Moran. He will be coming back very soon.
Moran hit the IL nearly a month ago with a groin injury. He just recently began his rehab assignment, which seems to be going well. Barring a setback, he should be back in the middle of the Pittsburgh lineup in no time. At that point, others will be clambering to add him off waivers. Get the jump on them.
When Moran went down, he was hitting a cool .297/.352/.468. He is a middle-of-the-order bat with four-category upside. The batted-ball figures were not as good as they were a year ago, but we are still seeing a player a level above the guy he was in earlier years. His line-drive rate is a career-high 33.3 percent; if he increases his 9.1 launch angle, the slugging percentage should continue to rise.
Brandon Belt, San Francisco Giants
18% Rostered
Like Moran, Belt has been on the shelf but is due to return very soon. Belt is dealing with an oblique strain, which is an infamously finicky injury. Nevertheless, Belt has returned to batting practice and could return to the lineup by the beginning of this coming week.
When Belt went down, he was being underutilized in fantasy. He ranks in the 97th percentile in barrel rate, 84th percentile in hard-hit percentage, and buoys that with a 15.3 percent walk rate. The batting average hurts in standard, 5x5 leagues thanks to a 33.6 percent K-rate, and yet he still has an .824 OPS. This is a three-category performer who should never have been dropped in OBP leagues and should be scooped back up in most others.
Jonathan India, Cincinnati Reds
12% Rostered
What do we have here? India getting hot again and batting...leadoff? It was only one game, but this is a fantastic sign for his future prospects. As an overall hitter, India has shown a great eye at the plate (10.6% walk rate, 75th percentile in chase rate). His production faltered in a major way after a hot start though. That is thanks to a lack of elite power. It relegated India to little fantasy upside.
Another hot streak, including a power burst, and moving him to the top of the Reds lineup opens the door for so much more. India already possesses great speed. Ranking in the 90th percentile in sprint speed was why it wasn't the end of the world that he was accumulating a 50 percent ground-ball rate. And yet, getting more balls in the air is going to be his key to potential five-category production, assuming Cincy gives him more time in the one hole.
Ride the Hot Hand
Jonathan Schoop, Detroit Tigers
33% Rostered
Over the past seven days, Jonathan Schoop is the number one fantasy first baseman (depending on league settings). Schoop is a streaky player who can reach the upper echelon of exit velocity, and that's pretty much it. Right now, he is in the midst of one of those hot streaks. Schoop has six home runs, 11 RBI, and six multi-hit games over his past 10 contests. Be prepared to bail, but use him while he's useful. That will be the case against a poor Seattle rotation to start the week, and then comes an immediate rematch series against the White Sox.
Patrick Wisdom, Chicago Cubs
25% Rostered
The number two fantasy 1B this past week behind Schoop? Patrick Wisdom. Wisdom is also the number two third baseman over the same timeframe! Wisdom found his way into the Chicago lineup thanks to back-to-back injuries to Anthony Rizzo and Jason Heyward. Rizzo returned, and Heyward is due back soon. Thus, Wisdom will be out of playing time, at least consistently. Use him while you still can and while the bat is hot, especially against a scuffling St. Louis staff in the back half of the week.
Willi Castro, Detroit Tigers
11% Rostered
The Tigers have been a fascinating home to positional flexibility this season. Castro is yet another Tiger eligible at the corner spots, along with Schoop, Jeimer Candelario, Niko Goodrum, Miguel Cabrera, and Harold Castro. Schoop may be the hottest among them, but Castro isn't too far behind. The third-year man who had a breakout pandemic season in 2020 is finally putting together a string of good games this season. The batted-ball data does not breed any confidence for a long-term change, but those looking for average, runs, and RBI can do worse than the streaking Castro.
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