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We are officially in the home stretch of the 2020 season as the calendar flips to September. Fantasy playoffs are right around the corner, and league championships are on the line. That means that playing the waiver wire and playing it well is as important as ever. There are still many deep options available on the wire that can be difference-makers down the stretch for fantasy purposes.
This article will be a look at players that are under 15% rostered in Yahoo leagues that are options to be considered in deeper leagues, or in the case of the Year of Coronaball, injury replacements with upside that have the possibility of sticking on rosters even beyond a few games or couple of weeks.
Without further ado, let's get into it.
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Jason Heyward (OF, CHC)
12% Rostered, Recommended Move: Add for the long haul.
Heyward is quietly having an extremely productive season for the Cubs. He's currently sporting a .286/.402/.560 triple slash, with exactly as many walks as strikeouts. He's also extremely hot at the plate right now, with a 1.257 OPS over his past 12 games.
Additionally, his Statcast metrics are just as strong. His expected batting average is in the 86th percentile, and his expected wOBA is in the 80th percentile. This is a nice, strong profile that deserves to be rostered at a greater than 12% rate. The catch is that he's not going to play against lefties, with the Cubs deadline acquisitions of Cameron Maybin and Jose Martinez essentially guaranteeing that. Even with that being the case, Heyward can still be a positive contributor for fantasy purposes, especially in daily leagues.
Jacob Stallings (C, PIT)
8% Rostered, Recommended Move: Add for the long haul.
Stallings was recommended last week and now shows up here again. He was rostered at just a 2% rate a week ago, and now he's up to 8%, so some people are starting to get it. However, he is still readily available in most leagues, which is a little puzzling considering the state of the catching position. Stallings has been one of the lone bright spots in a disastrous season for the Pirates. The lack of interest surrounding the Pirates may be what is keeping Stallings' roster rate down, as an everyday catcher with a .324/.403/.426 line is surely going to be useful on many fantasy teams.
Of course, his main selling point is the strong batting average, as he is not going to be hitting for much power at all, and what is ultimately keeping him in the bottom half of a weak Pirates lineup, but still, we shouldn't be too picky about that. He has continued his strong play over the past week, albeit in just five games, with a .950 OPS in that span, with two extra-base hits. Stallings deserves a little more love, and he could be a nice addition to fantasy teams struggling at the catcher position.
Ke'Bryan Hayes (3B, PIT)
6% Rostered, Recommended Move: Add and stash for a few weeks.
Okay, so let's do back-to-back Pirates, why not? The 23-year-old Hayes came into the year as a top-30 prospect per FanGraphs, and he is finally getting the call to the Majors to make his debut. There's little reason for the Pirates to not play him every day, with the team having the worst record in baseball.
This is very much a speculative pick, as there is no guarantee of how a prospect will fare in his first stretch in the big leagues, especially during a time period where there is not any minor league ball being played. If you need stability in your roster, then feel free to skip over Hayes. Still, for one of the top prospects in baseball, his roster rate still seems a little light considering the circumstances. The scouting reports for Hayes include a lot of high-quality contact and plus speed. If that translates to the Majors, then Hayes should be a valuable fantasy contributor and well-worth rostering.
Sam Haggerty (OF/2B, SEA)
5% Rostered, Recommended Move: Add and stash for a few weeks.
Haggerty has only received 50 plate appearances so far this season, and the vast majority of them are only because breakout stud Dylan Moore landed on the injured list in late-August. Still, though, Haggerty, a waiver claim by the Mariners in January, has made the most of the opportunity. He's hitting just fine with a .277/.320/.426 batting line, but more encouraging is that he already has four stolen bases in just 12 games. He has outstanding speed, with a 28.6 feet per second sprint speed mark per Statcast, which is good enough for the 93rd percentile.
He's not just a one-trick pony, either. While the Statcast offensive numbers aren't anything special, he does have an above-average 39.4 hard-hit rate and a 90.3 average exit velocity in the small sample. He is also doing a good job keeping the ball off the ground so far at just a 39% rate, which is much better than the league average. It remains to be seen if this will stick, but these are encouraging signs. As an additional plus, Haggerty is a switch-hitter and has been penciled into the number two spot in the Mariners lineup for the past week. He'll have plenty of opportunities to drive in runs, score runs, and swipe bags while hitting in front of the Mariners big bats in Kyle Lewis and Kyle Seager. The dual eligibility is nice as well, and he's also been playing a little bit of third base, so eligibility there may not be too far away. Haggerty is a nice option for stolen bases, but he also has the potential to do more.
Garrett Cooper (1B/OF, MIA)
5% Rostered, Recommended Move: Add for the long haul.
Cooper was one of many Marlins forced to miss time due to their COVID-19 outbreak earlier in the season. He has now returned and should be fantasy relevant. Cooper came into the season as a deep sleeper with playing time questions, ultimately causing many to lose interest. Those playing time issues are legitimate, as a right-handed bat in a somewhat-crowded offensive picture in Miami, but since returning, Cooper has played every single game and against both lefties and righties, all while hitting second, third, or fourth in the lineup.
The reason why he looks like a priority for the Marlins is that he hits the ball so well. Last season, he was one of the league leaders in average fly ball distance and exit velocity on fly balls and line-drives, which helped drive his expected stats past his actual ones. As for the actual ones, he hit 15 home runs and hit .281 in 421 plate appearances last season. It was a good showing for Cooper in his first real opportunity for everyday playing time. Unfortunately, COVID struck him, costing him even more playing time, but he has been strong yet again in the games he has played this season. He's hit two home runs and has already driven in six runs in just 25 plate appearances. Cooper hits the ball well, and the Marlins know that, which is why playing time should not be an issue. He should be a nice, solid option for the stretch run of the season.
Rowdy Tellez (1B, TOR)
3% Rostered, Recommended Move: Add and stash for a few weeks.
Tellez was recommended back in week two, but his performance kept him from being a real factor and ultimately was not recommended again until now. He looks like he's finally turning it on and at the right time too for a surging Blue Jays team.
Tellez has huge power and hits the ball well, but now it is finally showing up in his statistics. Tellez hit .296/.367/.667 in the last two weeks with three home runs and eight RBIs. He has a 46.3% hard-hit rate, a .294 expected batting average, a .554 expected slugging, and a .385 expected wOBA. He's also striking out a lot less and walking a bit more, helping him become a more well-rounded player. Of course, there are playing time concerns with Tellez, as he is pretty much a strict platoon player and not getting many appearances against lefties. This drives his fantasy value down for sure but does leave an opportunity for many to scoop him up and play him when the matchups dictate it. There was also some concern when the Jays acquired Daniel Vogelbach, but Vogelbach has started just one game since becoming a Blue Jay, so it's not likely that he'll replace Tellez any time soon.
Looking Back on Last Week's Picks
At the end of each week's post, we'll end with a brief look back on last week's picks along with a brief recommendation on what to do with the said player for the future.
Corey Dickerson (OF, MIA)
Last week: 12% rostered. This Week: 12% rostered.
Dickerson did not have a great week last week, with just a .524 OPS, but he should remain solid for the remainder of the season. He's still hitting at the top of the Marlins order every day as well, so there's little risk of him losing playing time. Dickerson should be just fine, and the reasons for rostering him are still valid a week later. Hold him for now. Current Recommendation: Hold.
Justin Smoak (1B, MIL)
Last week: 5% rostered. This Week: 5% rostered.
Smoak's roster rate is still holding steady, and it looked like he was coming out of his early-season funk, but he did not register a single hit in the last week, and he's not even playing every day. There's too much at stake right now to keep him rostered and hoping that he bounces back to his old form. This is a drop. Current Recommendation: Drop.
Evan Longoria (3B, SF)
Last week: 5% rostered. This week: 19% rostered.
Longoria is playing well, and many are starting to realize it as his roster rate has jumped to 19%, and he is now ineligible for an add recommendation. He had a .435/.480/.652 triple slash last week and his Stacast profile is red in all of the things you want to see. It's been a nice bounceback for Longoria, and this is an obvious hold. Current Recommendation: Hold.
Joey Wendle (2B/3B/SS, TB)
Last week: 5% rostered. This week: 6% rostered.
Wendle will never get much love in fantasy as a platoon player, but he continues to do well. He had a .836 OPS last week, mainly due to a .550 slugging percentage coming from one home run and three doubles. Wendle will be in there at all times against righties and towards the top of the Rays order, so he's still going to be valuable in daily leagues. With triple eligibility as well, this is a hold. Current Recommendation: Hold.
Evan White (1B, SEA)
Last week: 4% rostered. This week: 4% rostered.
White was definitely more of a speculative pick last week, with those managers in a more flexible spot having the ability to wait and see what White can do. He had a better week overall with a .308/.357/.385 triple slash, but it is notably light in the power department, which is the opposite of what would be expected. He dealt with some injuries that caused him to miss three games last week, but he is back and fully healthy and playing every day for the Mariners. Those managers rostering him are only doing it if it makes sense for them, so the recommendation again is to hold if already rostered and have the flexibility, but feel free to pass if something more stable is needed. Current Recommendation: Hold.
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