Chad Pinder (2B/3B/OF, OAK) - Week 3 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ team leagues

OWNED IN: 27% of leagues

ANALYSIS: A lot of people probably didn't even know who Pinder was before this year, even though he hit a combined 28 home runs with the A's in 2017-18 in 197 games. But he's also never hit more than 16 homers in a season. His status as a utility player in Oakland holds him back from a playing-time perspective but also gives him some usefulness to fantasy owners for roster flexibility. The 27-year-old is in the upper percentiles in almost every batted-ball metric in the last two years, per Statcast, suggesting that his best days could be ahead. His expected slugging percentage of .508 and expected wOBA of .358 in 2017-18 are very encouraging.

Pinder has always had decent pop in his bat, but improvement in his plate discipline this year has led to him hitting .333/.353/.604 with three home runs and eight RBI in his first 16 games (51 plate appearances). In the last three games, Pinder has filled in at third for Matt Chapman, right field for Stephen Piscotty and left field with Khris Davis serving as the designated hitter. As long as he keeps hitting this well, the A's will try to get his bat in the lineup semi-regularly.