This isn’t the time to slow down. Even when you think your team is settled and locked in, it never is. Don’t stop looking for ways to improve your team, as there are multiple types of players that can fit the bill.
In doing our weekly diligence, the criteria for inclusion will generally be any player rostered in less than 50% of Fantrax leagues (as of 5/20 ), with some exceptions. The popularity of Dynasty leagues on Fantrax does sway some of these percentages compared to other platforms, but these are players who should be on your radar.
Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Recommendations
Drake Baldwin, C, Atlanta Braves
A Spring Training injury to Sean Murphy forced the Atlanta Braves’ hand this winter. That led to Drake Baldwin heading north with the Braves. The prospect has done a great job of taking advantage of the situation. What’s good news though, is that even with Murphy’s return, Baldwin has continued to earn more playing time.
That trend has progressed over the past two weeks, and it’s time to, once again, focus on Baldwin. Even if he’s not playing on a every day basis, Baldwin is still receiving consistent playing time. And in those at-bats, Baldwin is capitalizing.
In 25 at-bats over the last 14 days, Baldwin is hitting .560 with two home runs, eight RBI, and five runs scored. On the season, Baldwin’s hitting .357 with five home runs and 15 RBI. The catcher has a .316 xBA, and as a young player, it’s impressive that he’s only striking out 15.6% of the time. With his .226 ISO power is present. More importantly, between Baldwin’s 12.9% barrel rate and 61.4% hard hit rate, he’s punishing the ball.
Robert Hassell, OF, Washington Nationals
The top prospect has had an up and down professional career to this point. It’s all about the tools and the upside for the young outfielder, and now we get a chance to see what he can do at the major league level. Injuries to Jacob Young and Dylan Crews led to the promotion of Hassell. His defensive ability and versatility helps here and should help with playing time.
Health has been an issue for Hassell, but he’s heading to Washington on a high note. After a rough start to the season, he’s hitting .339 with four home runs and 14 RBI to this point in May. Last year, Hassell made it through just 85 games and hit just .241 with five home runs and 44 RBI although he did steal 15 bases.
Hassell will run, so that helps from a fantasy perspective. At this point, the power is light, but Hassell still has some developing to do. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t warrant your attention though.
Matt Shaw, 3B, Chicago Cubs
Heading into the season, hopes were high for Matt Shaw. Hitting in the big leagues is hard though. It really shouldn’t be a surprise that Shaw struggled. In 20 games, he hit just .209 with one home run and 12 RBI. He struck out 24.7% of the time and when he did make contact, the quality was subpar at best. If you’re looking for optimism though, Shaw did have a 13% walk rate.
The time in Triple-A did serve Shaw well though. Based on his track record, that shouldn’t come as a surprise. Over 24 games, Shaw hit .286 with six home runs, 22 RBI, and five stolen bases. What stands out though, is Shaw did bring his strikeout rate down to 10%.
Shaw is now back in the big leagues, so that also means he should be back on your fantasy team. That’s not to say it’s going to be a completely smooth ride with Shaw, but the talent and upside is undeniable.
Jake Meyers, OF, Houston Astros
The defense from Jake Meyers gets him into the lineup, along with a true need, but his bat is keeping him there. He’s turned himself into an everyday player and Meyers has moved a little north in the batting order.
Over his last 13 games, Meyers is hitting .326 with one home run and seven RBI. He’s currently in the midst of his best offensive season hitting .307 with three home runs, 22 RBI, 16 runs scored, and eight stolen bases. While the full statistical package has value from a fantasy perspective, it’s really the stolen bases that stand out. After stealing 11 bases in 148 games last year, Meyers is well on his way to surpassing that.
Ryan Weathers, SP, Miami Marlins
Based on the way he’s pitching, you would never know that Ryan Weathers started the year on the Injured List. The young pitcher has hit the ground running with two strong starts to begin the season. In 10 innings, Weathers has a 1.80 ERA with nine strikeouts and just one walk.
After Weathers posted a 3.63 ERA in 2024 over 86.2 innings, this was the next progression in his young career. Granted he did have a 4.11 FIP, but the quality of contact against Weathers wasn’t especially strong with an average launch angle against of just 10.4 degrees.
He should strike out about a batter per inning while keeping the walks to between two and three per nine innings. Weathers also kept the ball on the ground last year with a 46.6% ground ball rate.
Regardless of the week, Weathers has emerged as a viable starting option, but this week that value does increase. We get two starts from Weathers as he faces the Giants at home and the Padres on the road.
Ryne Nelson, SP, Arizona Diamondbacks
As we head into the upcoming week, there’s a lot to like about Ryne Nelson. We know that pitching for Arizona, he’s going to get strong run support. This week, Nelson benefits not only from making two starts, but also from both of them coming on the road. The fact that he’s facing the Pirates and Nationals also helps.
Through 31.1 innings this year, two starts, Nelson has a 4.60 ERA, but his 3.57 FIP offers up some optimism. He’s not going to truly dominate the opposition, but Nelson will strike out a batter per inning. Quite frankly, he doesn’t need to dominate this week, Nelson just needs to have two solid starts. And that, is something he’s capable. It’s also a good sign that his opposing barrel rate is just 6.8%.
Last year, Nelson also limited the quality of contact from the opposition with a 7.5% barrel rate. The right-hander finished with a 4.24 ERA and even after this week, he should be a solid streaming option.
Jordan Leasure, RP, Chicago White Sox
Finding saves is difficult and frustrating. That doesn’t mean we get to be off the hook though. For as bad as the Chicago White Sox are, Jordan Leasure did save a game for them on Tuesday. And that puts him on our radar.
Leasure pitched a scoreless ninth inning for his third career save. It has been a solid year for Leasure who has seven holds on the season along with a 3.86 ERA and 24 strikeouts in 16.1 innings. With a 2.94 xERA, there’s a little room for optimism, and we can expect to see Leasure pick up a few more saves.
Yimi Garcia, RP, Toronto Blue Jays
At this point, how much longer can we trust Jeff Hoffman. He has an injury history and doesn’t appear to be sharp as of late. That should slide Yimi Garcia onto our radars as we look to be proactive.
So far this season, Garcia already has three saves. In past seasons, Garcia has had limited opportunity in the role, but he has had success. He consistently strikes out over 11 batters per nine innings which is what you want to see out of your relievers. With a 3.32 ERA and 2.98 FIP, Garcia is having a strong season despite walking almost five batters per nine innings. He generally comes in around half of that so there’s some room for improvement after that mark normalizes. This is a situation where you want to be ready in case he receives more save opportunities.
