With just 10 days until the All-Star break, all fantasy baseball waiver wire options can be sorted into two categories — those who may provide help for the rest of the season, and those who offer short-term assistance until we all enjoy a well-deserved rest for the Midsummer Classic. Fortunately, there are a few men from each bucket in the list below.
Apparently no one told Miranda that he was supposed to be squeezed out of a job when Royce Lewis returned from the IL. The 26-year-old has shown that good hitters find a way to stay in lineups, bouncing between 3B and DH while maintaining a .312 average and an .859 OPS. There’s no way the Twins will move one of their best hitters to the bench, especially when they are sitting in a wild-card spot. And of course, the oft-injured Lewis is already back on the IL, this time with an adductor strain. If you need one more reason to add Miranda, Thursday he went 5-for-5 with three RBIs and four runs scored.
Neto and Garcia are the perfect solutions for anyone who is looking to solve a middle infield problem with a high-floor player. And they can both be used to illustrate the same point — players who contribute to all categories but are special in none tend to be undervalued by fantasy managers. Both men have a chance to post a 20-20 season, as Neto has 11 homers and 12 steals while Garcia has collected nine round-trippers and 11 swipes. And among players who are available in more than half of Yahoo leagues, Garcia sits third in RBIs and Neto places sixth. While other managers try in vain to find the next 30-homer slugger or 30-steal speedster, wise managers will grab balanced contributors like Neto and Garcia.
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Truthfully, I’m not sure where things will go from here for Kjerstad. But what I do know is that his ceiling is high enough to make him worth a roster spot in most leagues during the coming days. The No. 2 overall pick of the 2020 MLB Draft toyed with Triple-A pitchers this year, posting a .998 OPS and homering 16 times in 56 games. And after mostly leaving Kjerstad on the bench during his initial MLB trial, the O’s have played him more often this time around. The 25-year-old has hit .333 with two homers and a 1.095 OPS in 28 plate appearances since June 24, which should get him into the…