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Points leagues are a different beast compared to rotisserie leagues, as you are looking for someone who can fill the whole stat sheet, and when you can find some of those guys on the wire, they are golden.
Here are a few guys who can contribute in deep points leagues, one at each position to consider for the next week. These are your deep points leagues waiver wire pickups for Week 10. Let's get to it.
Note: All ownership percentages are courtesy of Yahoo! Fantasy Sports.
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Points League Deep Waiver Wire Adds - Week 10
C - Tyler Flowers, Atlanta Braves- 14% owned
Flowers is rocking an exceptionally hot bat at the plate this season for Atlanta. Over 134 plate appearances he is hitting .363/.463/.469 with three home runs and 16 RBI. He is currently on a six-game hitting streak, with hits in 11 of his past 12 games overall. Flowers set a career-high in average last season with the Braves, hitting .270/.357/.420 over 325 PA with a .366 BABIP. This season his BABIP is at .452, which is bound to come down, the question will be how much. He has cut his strikeout % by nearly 10% this season (28% to 19.4%), so it’s not as if this production is all luck. Especially in two catcher formats, Flowers should be added while he’s in the midst of this hot streak.
1B - Joe Mauer, Minnesota Twins- 6% owned
In a points league you don’t need to provide big power, you can be plenty useful by maintaining a high average and limiting strikeouts. That’s exactly what Joe Mauer has done with the Twins this season. On the year he is hitting .293/.363/.425, however from May 2 until today he is hitting .351/.440/.553 with four HR and 16 RBI. Over that span he held a 0.82 BB/K, and his season 11.9% K% puts him at 11th in the league. His BABIP is lower than his career norm right now, so there is no reason to expect any huge drop off in his production. He can be had for pennies, and can bring your lineup consistent production that won’t hurt you.
2B - Whit Merrifield, Kansas City Royals- 28% owned
I usually don’t tackle players with such high ownership in this space, but two factors changed my mind this week: 1) Whit Merrifield has been that good and 2) there isn’t a lot of offensive production coming from lower-owned guys right now. It took Merrifield several years to make it, but last season at age 27 he finally got his first taste of the bigs. This season he has taken things up another notch, slashing .293/.349/.489 with six HR and six steals over 38 games played. Currently he is on an impressive 18-game hitting streak, during which he is hitting .387/.433/.629 with three HR and four steals. That alone should be enticing enough to pick him up in all formats. If he is somehow still lingering around, snatch him up.
3B - Wilmer Flores, New York Mets- 4% owned
Jose Reyes was brought in to play third base for the Mets, but it’s been Wilmer Flores who has provided them better production at the plate. Since May 16, over 50 PA he is hitting .375/.400/.563 with two HR and seven RBI. His BABIP is at a career-high .322, and given that his walk and strikeout totals are similar to his career norms it's clear there will be some regression coming for him. However, at 25 years old it wouldn’t be crazy to see him take the next step offensively, especially since he is hitting the ball harder than ever before at a 3.8% rate.
SS - Taylor Motter, Seattle Mariners- 6% owned
After a solid month of April where he hit five HR with 13 RBI, Taylor Motter’s power dissipated in May. He hit no HR with only four RBI during the entire month. In three June games since taking over for the injured Jean Segura at shortstop, Motter has hit .300/.417/.600 with a HR, four RBI, and a steal. He has walked more than he’s struck out during those games as well. If this is the start of another nice stretch of games for the young utility player, you’re going to want to get on this ride as early as possible to reap the most benefits. Even when Segura returns, Seattle has found him at-bats by plugging him in at left field and second base also.
OF - Gerardo Parra, Colorado Rockies- 14% owned
Parra doesn’t play every day for the Rockies, but finds enough playing time in the outfield and at first base to be useful for fantasy. Parra can be a streaky hitter, so you’re going to want to add him now while he’s hot. Since May 23 he is hitting .571/.581/.929 with two HR and 13 RBI. Hitting in Coors is a huge boost to any hitter, and Parra is no exception. David Dahl is due to return which would likely impact his playing time, but his return as been slow and full of setbacks which means Parra is safe for the immediate future. Even when Dahl returns there is no reason to play Parra less; on the season he is hitting .317/.344/.486, and has played solid defense in the outfield and at first base.
SP - Ty Blach, San Francisco Giants- 20% owned
Blach should see his ownership spike a bit after his last outing, but he has been pitching well enough to be owned all season. Over 15 appearances (eight starts), he holds a 3.24 ERA and 1.11 WHIP. His last outing was his most impressive; a complete-game shutout of the Philadelphia Phillies. His carries a very low K% of 9.9%, but he limits his walks with a 5.6% BB%. He has done a good job of limiting hard contact and fly balls, which has fueled his early success. His FIP/xFIP of 3.86/.4.64 show he will regress some, but pitch-to-contact arms like Blach normally have higher FIP/xFIP rates. He has the talent to be a solid middle of the rotation arm in points leagues.
RP - Will Harris, Houston Astros- 17% owned
Will Harris won’t get too many save chances with Ken Giles in town, but he earns a bunch of holds and provides excellent ratios from the bullpen. On the season he has a 2.31 ERA and 0.90 WHIP with an 8.33 K/BB. Opposing hitters bat only .207 off of him, and he is generating a career-high 22.6% soft contact %. His 11 holds are tied for sixth best in the league so far, and he’s also chipped in with two saves. He would likely be the next man up is anything happens to Giles, and would immediately be one of the better closers in the league thanks to his abilities and how many save opportunities the Astros provide.
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