Jason Heyward (OF, CHC) - Week 15 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues

OWNED IN: 22% of leagues

ANALYSIS: Chicago Cubs outfielder Jason Heyward was seen as a free agent bust after a few rough offensive seasons, but has shown some good signs of late. He has a .303 batting average since the beginning of June, posting a .471 slugging percentage and .168 isolated power. Heyward only has a .336 OBP in the same time period, but his average and extra-base hits are very attractive.

Heyward has three home runs and 11 doubles since the beginning of June, knocking in 17 runs and scoring 21 times. The doubles and run production are very nice for fantasy owners and his .327 BABIP shows that his strong performance of late is not that lucky. A lot of his strong performance has come from 21.2% line drive rate and 34.3% hard hit ball rate. He still has a 47.1% ground ball rate since June 1, but the line drive rate and hard hit ball rates are very nice.

The Cubs offense has been hot of late, even without Kris Bryant, and Heyward has frequently been batting second for Chicago. As long as Heyward is hitting near the top of the lineup for Chicago, he is a good addition in deeper fantasy leagues and should be a starter.