It’s crunch time, folks. The finish line to the fantasy baseball season is in sight, and there are only a couple of FAAB periods remaining. That means we need to continue working the fantasy baseball waiver wire for players with favorable remaining schedules who can help us in categories where we can gain — and maintain — points.
The player recommendations below are rostered in fewer than 70% of Fantrax leagues and can add oomph to our squads, depending on team needs. With that, let’s get to the Week 26 fantasy baseball waiver wire targets, and good luck in the playoffs!
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Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Targets
Henry Bolte, OF, Athletics (57%)
Henry Bolte has been swinging a hot bat since August. He’s hitting .320 with a .915 OPS across his last 166 plate appearances to go with seven homers and seven steals. Bolte also made a solid amount of quality contact in that stretch, registering a 9.9% barrel rate, 51.5% hard-hit rate, and 92.4 mph AVG EV. More than 60% of Bolte’s hits are grounders, which isn’t great. But he’s able to lean into his 100th percentile sprint speed to beat them out. On the whole, Bolte offers a nice blend of pop and speed from the top of the lineup. He produces across the board and is a solid addition to fantasy lineups as we near the finish line.
Javier Sanoja, 2B/3B/SS/OF, Marlins (51%)
Javier Sanoja is in the middle of a 10-game hitting streak that includes six multi-hit efforts, two long balls, one double and one triple. The heater continues a strong stretch of hitting for Sanoja since August 1. In that 36-game span, Sanoja is slashing .349/.387/.543 with five dingers and three steals. He also tacked on eight doubles and one triple to go with 22 RBI and 16 runs. Sanoja flexes a sub-9% strikeout rate and plays all over the field. He’s a perfect plug-and-play who won’t hurt you in any category.
Jeff McNeil, 1B/2B/OF, Athletics (53%)
It’s been a tale of two halves for Jeff McNeil. After putting up a woeful .592 OPS and 60 wRC+ in the first half of the season, he’s come on strong to close out the year. Since the break, McNeil has a .335/.361/.484 slash line and 130 wRC+ across 170 plate appearances. He’s been a hitting machine in that 44-game stretch, piling up 54 hits, including nine doubles and five home runs, to go with 27 RBI, 22 runs scored and seven steals. McNeil doesn’t provide much power, but he hits in the two-hole against righties while contributing a little everywhere. He’s also eligible all over the field, which comes in handy.
Leo Bernal, C, Cardinals (23%)
Leo Bernal hasn’t skipped a beat since his promotion at the start of the month. He reached base safely in eight of nine games, while popping two dingers in that stretch. Over his 40 plate appearances, Bernal is hitting .278/.350/.472 with a 129 wRC+. Most encouragingly, he hasn’t looked overmatched at the plate, posting a 10% walk rate and 17.5% strikeout rate while making contact in the zone at an 87% clip. The switch-hitter bats in the heart of the Cardinals’ order and could be a sneaky source of RBI down the stretch. If you need an upgrade at the catcher position, Bernal is well worth picking up in 15-teamers or 2C leagues.
Josue De Paula, OF, Dodgers (63%)
Dodgers top prospect Josue De Paula is expected to make his major league debut this Friday, with Shohei Ohtani landing on the IL. De Paula will skip Triple-A entirely after lighting it up in Double-A; across 588 plate appearances there, he smacked 27 dingers and stole 31 bases while boasting a .303 BA and .948 OPS. It’s a significant jump for De Paula, but if the Dodgers think he’s ready for the majors, fantasy managers should take notice. It’s unclear how much playing time De Paula will receive, but he’s well worth an add to see if he can carry over some of that pop and speed in the remaining few weeks.
Brett Bateman, OF, Blue Jays (29%)
If you’re playing catch-up in the runs column, Brett Bateman can help you out. He’s been the Blue Jays’ leadoff hitter since mid-August and logged 14 runs scored and three steals in those 22 games while slashing .349/.418/.407 with a 140 wRC+. There’s no power here, but Bateman maintains a hefty 92.4% clip in that stretch and an 87th percentile sprint speed. He’s best suited for 14-teamers, but can be an asset in shallower leagues as he can get on base and sprinkle in some stolen bases.
Cal Quantrill, RP, Rangers (60%)
Cal Quantrill has been excellent in his last six trips to the mound. He hasn’t allowed more than three earned runs in any of those starts while boasting a 1.70 ERA and 0.84 WHIP across 37 innings. While a 90% LOB% and .224 BABIP have helped suppress his results, Quantrill’s 3.38 xFIP and 19.9% K-BB% are more than playable. Plus, he’s picked up five quality starts in that stretch to go with four wins. Quantrill’s remaining schedule isn’t a cakewalk, but it also isn’t too scary (@ARI, vs TOR, @MIN). He’s a solid add for the homestretch.
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