Welcome to Waiver Wire Watch, where I review my favorite waiver wire adds and drops for each week of the MLB season.
The premise is pretty straightforward. I’ll try to give you some recommended adds each week based on recent production or role changes. When I list a player, I’ll list the category where I think he’ll be helpful or the quick reason he’s listed. I hope it will help you determine if the player is a fit for what your team needs.
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For a player to qualify for this list, he needs to be UNDER 40% rostered in Yahoo! formats. I understand you may say, “These players aren’t available in my league,” and I can’t help you there. These players are available in over 60% of leagues and some in 98% of leagues, so they’re available in many places, and that can hopefully satisfy readers who play in all league types.
MLB: New York Yankees at Cleveland Guardians
Jordan Romano, Hayden Birdsong and Matt Shaw join the Top 300 this week.
Waiver Wire Hitters
Will Benson – OF, CIN: 35% rostered
(RECENT CALL-UP, POWER UPSIDE)
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Last week, Benson was just 1% rostered in his first week after being recalled. Now, he almost doesn’t qualify for this list after going 12-for-32 (.375) with five home runs, 11 RBI, and one steal in his 11 games. Those are certainly exciting numbers, but we’ve seen this before from Benson. He has tremendous power/speed potential, but also a frustrating approach at the plate. Even in Triple-A this season, he was striking out 29% of the time with a 70% contact rate and 13% swinging strike rate. I think this will probably wind up just being a hot stretch, and there’s a chance that you missed the best part of it, but I wouldn’t begrudge you crossing your fingers and hoping for the best. If you’re in a daily moves league, you could opt for Trevor Larnach – OF, MIN (14% rostered), who has gone 13-for-43 (.302) over his last 11 games with two home runs and nine runs scored. Larnach has seven home runs and 23 RBI on the season, and the Twins’ lineup is getting healthier. He’s going to play against all right-handed pitching, which makes him a valuable piece in a daily moves league.
Jordan Beck – OF, COL: 33% rostered
(HOME PARK BONUS, PROSPECT GROWTH)
Most of Jordan Beck’s value comes from playing in Coors Field, but he’s also a young hitter with some power and speed who has a 16% barrel rate on the season His…