The first few weeks of the season always seem to create a bit of a frenzy on the waiver wire with fantasy managers trying to catching lightning in a bottle with hot-starting players. As long as fantasy managers aren’t dropping players drafted in the early and mid-rounds it’s a viable strategy to make speculative adds early in the season. In fact, it often can pan out with the likes of Garrett Crochet, Jurickson Profar and others emerging from the waivers in many leagues just last year. That’s why this week’s deep league waiver wire targets article focuses on several low risk and high-reward potential players to pursue with any fungible bench spots.
Deep League Waiver Wire Targets for Week 3
15-Team Mixed League Targets
1. Easton Lucas, SP, Blue Jays (23% rostered)
Every year a low-profile starting pitcher emerges from the depths of the waiver wire to reach must-own status in all fantasy league formats. One early candidate for such a meteoric rise to fantasy stardom, or at least fantasy relevance, is Easton Lucas of the Blue Jays. So far in his first two outings, Lucas has allowed no runs and only seven baserunners in 10.1 innings pitched. While this isn’t reflective of his debut season outings last year, where he had a 10.80 ERA, is does represent his steady minor league production with a 2.75 ERA in AAA. Obviously teams will score on him in the future but his ability to prevent base runners bodes well for his breakout potential.
Easton Lucas, 6th and 7th Ks thru 5. pic.twitter.com/NacPNOjJ69
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 9, 2025
2. Alex Call, OF, Nationals (16% rostered)
If you’ve played in deep league fantasy baseball formats the last couple of years you’ve likely searched the waiver wire for Alex Call at least once. Though never spectacular in the minor leagues, he’s always seemed to produce in the majors when called upon. In fact, last season he batted .343 with a .425 OBP in his 113 plate appearances. While this was an anomaly in his resume, he proved a possible league winner for many teams in NL-only leagues. Now a near regular in the Nationals lineup this season, he’s picking up where he left off from last season with a .422 batting average and .522 OBP in his first 23 plate appearances. That’s definitely not a sustainable pace but it shows the short-term boost potential that Call can bring for fantasy managers needing a steady replacement fifth outfielder from the waiver wire.
Call answered!
Watch a catch by Alex Call 😮 pic.twitter.com/tBzmCZ9Ay8
— MLB (@MLB) April 7, 2025
AL-Only League Waiver Wire Target
Matt Brash, RP, Mariners (27% rostered)
Sometimes the best waiver wire additions are proven players who can only offer potential future value, especially as they work back from a prolonged injury absence. That’s the case with Matt Brash, who may very well be on your league’s waiver wire still, as he’s not providing any contributions right now and likely won’t earn saves upon his return to the bullpen. However, what we should remember about Brash is that he was rising to become one of the most dominant relievers in the game in 2023 before his elbow injury. If he can reclaim his elite slider movement when potentially activated in the coming weeks, he could offer a significant boost for strikeouts with little risk to the ERA and WHIP ratios for AL-only managers.
Matt Brash is out on the field throwing a live batting practice this morning. pic.twitter.com/1VyHaT4WKN
— Zac Hereth (@ZacHereth) April 9, 2025
NL-Only League Waiver Wire Target
Tim Tawa, 1B/2B, Diamondbacks (14%)
With Ketel Marte’s recent hamstring injury, the broad assumption was that Diamondbacks’ star prospect Jordan Lawlar would get the call-up to fill in. Instead, it was the far less known prospect Tim Tawa that got the call. While Tawa doesn’t have any spectacular tools, he is known for his consistent production at the plate. In fact, he somewhat quietly hit .304 at AAA last season. Despite getting a hit his first at bat in the majors, Tawa hasn’t done a lot yet, but the Diamondbacks continue to give him opportunities to succeed. With three RBI in his last three games started it’s clear there’s potential for a viable contributor in NL-only leagues.
Tim Tawa hits a single in his first career MLB at Bat.
How cool, love to see this!
— 🌵 Mr. Az (@MrAzSports) April 5, 2025
Got a few deep league waiver wire targets of your own? Don’t be greedy! Drop some names in the comments below.
