MLB Waiver Wire What To Do's April 27th 2016
Waiver Wire What To Dos
Back to our regularly scheduled programming. If you were in a panic yesterday looking for my latest foray into the waiver wire you can relax now. These will come out on Wednesdays from here on out with an exception here or there when life gets in the way. But enough about me. You came here for fantasy baseball info and as always I am happy to oblige.
Jason Hammel, SP, Chicago Cubs (72% owned standard ESPN leagues)
Let me preface this by saying how alarmed I was that this guy is available in nearly 30% of leagues. Let me also say how overjoyed I was when I realized he was available in one of my leagues. That window to add him has closed for anyone else in my league but it might still be open in yours. Jake Arrieta gets most of the publicity in Chicago but Hammel has been nearly as good this year. He has picked up the win in his last three starts and has allowed just two runs on the year which helps account for a shiny 0.75 ERA and 1.04 WHIP. Last season in Chicago he averaged a strikeout per inning and he is on about the same pace this year with 22 Ks in 24 innings. He plays for a great team and should get plenty of offensive support which makes picking up a W even on an off day more reasonable. Hammel is also behind Arrieta and Jon Lester in the rotation so he typically avoids the opposition’s best pitchers. If Hammel isn’t universally owned soon he should be after what looks to be a cupcake matchup on Saturday agains the woeful Atlanta Braves offense. Your job should be to add him now ahead of that start and reap the rewards.
Aledmys Diaz, SS, St. Louis Cardinals (64% owned)
Entering the year St. Louis expected to have Jhonny Peralta manning short. When he went down with an injury it seemed like there would be a platoon with Diaz, Greg Garcia and the newly acquired Ruben Tejada. Diaz has done all he can to seize the job, at least offensively. The rookie shortstop is hitting an absurd .466/.492/.793 through 18 games and 12 of his 27 hits have been for extra bases. That kind of offense just isn’t found in your typical shortstop. I was late to the party on this one because I thought the initial hot streak would fade but it most certainly has not. Diaz is a must own in all formats right now. He is getting on base and hitting for power. The only knock on him thus far is his defense but unless your league uses fielding percentage as a category (like one of mine does) that shouldn’t matter to you at all. He is still available in a third of the leagues out there. Odds are he would be better offensively than what you are putting out there at short.
Travis Shaw, 1B/3B, Boston Red Sox (46% owned)
When the starting third base job was given to Shaw instead of Pablo Sandoval and his bloated contract (among other things) it was quite a shock. Three weeks into the season it looks like John Farrell knew exactly what he was doing. Shaw is slashing an impressive .324/.392/.521 and has hit safely in all but four games this season. With Sandoval ailing, and Shaw hitting, it appears the job is his for the long haul. He plays in a solid lineup which is capable of scoring runs in bunches so the runs/RBIs should be there for the taking. He played in 65 games last year so he isn’t a rookie which leads me to believe this type of production is sustainable. Dual positional eligibility is always a plus and Shaw looks like he will be a top 10 3rd baseman for the rest of the year and even if he isn’t, he has a top 10 nickname which I just learned. They call the kid the “Mayor of Ding Dong City”. Seriously.
Jose Berrios, SP, Minnesota Twins (34% owned)
Minnesota has called up top prospect Jose Berrios from AAA and he is slated to make his major league debut tonight in Cleveland. The Twins are running short in the rotation with an injury to Ervin Santana and Tyler Duffey also nursing a sore shoulder. Berrios is the Twins top prospect and was rated 16th overall by MLB Pipeline coming into the season. He has made three starts so far in the minors with great success allowing just eight hits to go along with 20 strikeouts in 17 innings. Oh, and he’s only given up two earned runs. Berrios may only be in the bigs for a short time but he is certainly worth adding and he carries more value if you play in a keeper or dynasty league. Go get him now while you can.
Yasmani Grandal, C, Los Angeles Dodgers (31% owned)
Grandal began the season on the disabled list but was activated two weeks ago and has been the primary catcher in L.A. Over his first 12 games he is hitting a solid .273 but he has yet to hit his first round tripper. That will come in time as Grandal has hit double digit home runs in each of the last two years. What’s even more impressive than his batting average is that he has drawn eight walks against just four strikeouts. If he is seeing the ball that well good things will come. He will have the occasional day off as most catchers do so that shouldn’t deter you from adding him. If healthy I believe he is a top five offensive catcher and he can be had in nearly 70% of leagues. As his power comes back so too will his ownership number rise.
Have questions about a player I didn’t mention? Feel free to leave comments or questions below and I will get back to you as soon as possible. Want to reach me in a more direct manner? Find me on Twitter @therichwhiteguy.
