Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire: Peters Powers Up

It’s hard to believe there’s only a month left in the fantasy baseball season. With only four FAAB periods remaining, the fantasy baseball waiver wire is more crucial than ever for streaming players who can benefit our rosters. Remember, it’s all about team needs and acquiring players who can help us in categories where we can gain — and maintain — points in the standings.

The players listed below are rostered in 70% or fewer of Fantrax leagues. All suggested targets can boost categories and should be considered, depending on what your team requires. With that, let’s get to the Week 24 fantasy baseball waiver wire targets.

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Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Targets

Tristan Peters, OF, White Sox (41%)

Tristan Peters is on a heater, smacking five homers in his last five games. He contributed across the board in that stretch with nine RBI, seven runs scored, and a stolen base. Peters’ hot streak is a continuation of a strong August. Across 23 games this month, Peters boasts a .349/.438/.730 slash line and 223 wRC+ to go with six home runs, 14 RBI, 13 runs scored and a couple of steals. He’s also flexing strong plate skills in that stretch with a 12.3% walk rate and 16.4% strikeout rate.

Overall, Peters brings a nice blend of pop and speed to the fantasy table. He has 12 long balls and seven steals across 400 plate appearances this year to go with a .282 batting average. While he’s not a set-it-and-forget-it player as a strong-side platoon bat, Peters is a solid five-category contributor when playing — and he should be in the lineup plenty next week with seven right-handed starters on the docket. Scoop up Peters everywhere.

Spencer Jones, OF, Yankees (68%)

Spencer Jones is starting to find his rhythm at the plate since his latest recall at the end of July. He logged five homers and seven steals in those 99 plate appearances while slashing .242/.303/.484 with a .376 xwOBA. Jones’ 32.3% strikeout rate isn’t ideal, but it’s in line with his career rates throughout the minors. Plus, fantasy managers should be able to set aside Jones’ swing-and-miss, as it comes with beefy power numbers under the hood.

Across that 27-game span, Jones boasts a 23.7% barrel rate, 55.9% hard-hit rate and 95.2 mph AVG EV to go with a .242 ISO. That power, combined with 92nd percentile sprint speed, is a tasty pairing for the homestretch. Few players on the wire offer as much power/speed upside as Jones; he’s a must-add in 12-teamers.

Rafael Flores Jr., C/1B, Pirates (36%)

Rafael Flores Jr. started receiving consistent playing time over the last couple of weeks and is taking advantage. Over his last 13 games, he smacked five dingers and tacked on 12 RBI and eight runs while slashing .273/.319/.659 with a 155 wRC+. Most encouragingly, Flores’ results come with strong quality contact metrics, including a 21.4% barrel rate and .494 xSLG in that limited sample.

In addition to providing plus power skills, Flores has a knack for getting on base. He maintained a career 12% walk rate and .361 OBP in the minors — marks not far off from his 11.5% BB% and .333 OBP he has across 78 major-league plate appearances this season. To keep his bat in the lineup, the Pirates have been playing Flores at first base, which is good news for fantasy managers. Flores is a solid add for teams in need of an upgrade at backstop.

Mickey Gasper, C, Red Sox (16%)

There’s no shame in riding a hot hand, which is exactly what Mickey Gasper is. He’s been lights-out since his recall in mid-August. In that nine-game stretch, he piled up 10 hits across 33 plate appearances, including five homers and three doubles, and racked up 12 RBI.

Gasper has had sporadic playing time for most of the season, but is still hitting a steady .275/.364/.466 across 152 plate appearances with a .365 xwOBA. He also brings strong plate skills to the table with a 10.5% walk rate and 14.5% strikeout rate, while registering an elite 95.6% zone contact rate. Gasper is best suited for deep leagues, but could become a viable option in shallower formats if Adley Rutschman misses time with an elbow injury. In the meantime, ride Gasper until the wheels fall off.

Mason Montgomery, RP, Pirates (56%)

Mason Montgomery has been phenomenal in the second half, boasting a 1.08 ERA (0.69 xFIP) and 0.66 WHIP with a whopping 42.9% K-BB in 16.3 frames. He picked up five of his six saves in that span while getting batters to swing and miss at an eye-popping 50.8% clip. While a 15.4% SwStr% doesn’t fully back those results, fantasy baseball managers shouldn’t mind, as Montgomery is also keeping balls on the ground at a 61.5% rate. High Ks, high GBs, and saves? Sign me up. Montgomery is criminally under-rostered and could be a difference-maker down the stretch.

Tyler Mahle, SP, Braves (70%)

Tyler Mahle has sure looked good since his trade to the Braves. He’s yet to allow more than two earned runs in any of his four starts with his new team, sporting a 1.52 ERA and 1.01 WHIP with 23:5 K:BB across 23.1 innings. While a 95% strand rate helped his results, we can’t complain about a 3.37 xFIP and 19.4% K-BB% under the hood. Plus, Mahle swapped his cutter in favor of a splitter with the Braves, which improved his .265 BAA to a .218 mark. Mahle is worth picking up to see if he can maintain things down the stretch.

Jacob Lopez, SP, Athletics (60%)

You wouldn’t know it by looking at Jacob Lopez’s season numbers (4.98 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, 10.3% K-BB% in 94 IP) that he’s been one of the better starters coming out of the All-Star break. He hasn’t yielded more than two earned runs in any of his last seven starts while showcasing a 2.33 ERA and 1.03 WHIP across 38.2 innings.

Lopez hasn’t been a true sub-2.50 ERA talent in that stretch (4.00 xFIP), but it’s tough to ignore his second-half gains: Lopez’s 29.9% strikeout rate is a 13.5-point improvement from the first half, and his 8.3% BB% is a near five-point drop. The result is a hefty 21.7% K-BB% in the back half of the season. Lopez is a nice K-upside arm down the stretch, with favorable matchups against the Blue Jays and Mariners on the docket; both clubs have struggled against southpaws this season.