As I am very well aware, I missed the Jacob Faria waiver wire bandwagon. When I looked at the players that were owned in less than 50% of leagues last week, I did not choose him because I wanted to wait one more week to see if he was for real. While I was waiting, his ownership on ESPN sites shot up to 61% and 85% in cbssports.com leagues. This is our lesson for the week. No matter what any us might say or write, if your gut tells you to pick someone up, do it. Not every pick up will rocket up the wire like Faria, but if you wait too long, they may be gone. Here is a look at this week’s recommendations of players owned in less than 50% of ESPN leagues. Stats as of June 23.
Matt Adams, 1B, Atlanta Braves
The Braves want to keep Freeman and Adams. So, there's a chance Freeman will move to third base https://t.co/Lh606DJxX6
— Mark Bowman (@mlbbowman) June 20, 2017
The announcement that Freddie Freeman may switch to third base when he returns from the disabled list has made Adams an even better pickup than previous. After the trade from the Cardinals, Adams has hit 11 home runs. In addition to the 11 home runs, Adams has hit .294 with seven doubles, 29 RBI, and an on-base plus slugging percentage of .993.
Mike Zunino, C, Seattle Mariners
Were you a Stephen Vogt owner and in need of a replacement at catcher after his DFA? Consider picking up Mike Zunino. He made mechanical tweaks at Triple-A Tacoma in May and has been hitting well ever since he was called back up to the majors. In his last seven games, Zunino has hit .286 with three home runs and seven RBI and then followed that up with a home run and three RBI in Friday night’s game against the Astros.
Tyson Ross, SP, Texas Rangers
Ross has one decent start and one ugly since coming off the disabled list. He’s has been on the disabled list since having surgery in October to repair thoracic outlet syndrome. After a solid opening performance against the Mariners, he struggled in his most recent outing against the Blue Jays. It may take a bit for Ross to fully recover, but he put up decent numbers in two full seasons as a starter for the Padres in 2014 and ’15, with a 23-26 with a 3.03 ERA.
Eduardo Escobar, SS/3B, Minnesota Twins
The super-utility player has been on quite a hitting streak lately, hitting .444 with three home runs and nine RBI in his last 15 games. Because of his hot streak, the Twins are finding ways to keep Escobar in the lineup, playing in 10 of the last 11 games.
Jason Hammel, SP, Kansas City Royals
Since the Royals coaching staff got Hammel to square his shoulders up more during a bullpen session in late May, he has delivered five out of six quality starts, lowering his ERA to 4.83, and has a 2.30 ERA in four June starts. In his last outing, Hammel didn’t walk a batter and induced nine ground balls through seven innings.
Carlos Gomez, OF, Texas Rangers
Carlos Gomez asked the public address announcer to play rooster crows as Joey Gallo’s walk-up music as a little joke since “Gallo” in Spanish means rooster. The announcer made a mistake and played the rooster crows for Gomez. So in that game, he homered twice and tied a career-high with five RBI. It looks like the rooster crows stay, and hopefully so does his hot bat. Since returning from the disabled list June 16, Gomez has five home runs in six games, compared to four home runs in 38 games before his time on the DL.
https://twitter.com/DFWSportsUpdate/status/878016916610179072
Matt Davidson, DH/3B, Chicago White Sox
Davidson is batting .265 and is ranked sixth in the American League with an 11.75 home run per at-bat ratio. He also leads the Sox with 17 home runs, including seven in his last 10 games, along with 11 RBI. Davidson has credited his ability to keep tension out of his body when he’s at the plate as the reason for his recent power surge and posting a .360 batting average over his last seven games. Adding third base eligibility has also helped his fantasy value trend upward. [the_ad id=”384″]
Ben Gamel, OF, Seattle Mariners
Most thought Gamel would spend a great deal of time in the minors, after being listed as fifth on the Mariners depth chart coming out of spring training. In late April, Gamel was called up from Triple-A Tacoma has hit .342 with three home runs and 24 RBI. If you are in need of some batting average help on your fantasy team, Gamel would be an excellent waiver wire addition.
Patrick Corbin, SP, Arizona Diamondbacks
Corbin pitched well in a loss to the Phillies on Friday night. He allowed just one run on eight hits and a walk with five strikeouts over 6.2 innings. Corbin now owns a very respectable 2.95 ERA and an impressive 18/4 K/BB over his past three starts. The Clay, NY native is hoping to rediscover his form after 2015 Tommy John surgery and has started to show signs of his old form in these recent starts.