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Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire: Chris Sale's Return Is Imminent
Catcher
Carson Kelly
Despite a quiet return (1-for-13) after five weeks on the injured list with a wrist injury, Kelly was one of the better catchers in the league over the first three and half months of the year. (.271 over 144 at-bats with 22 runs, eight home runs, and 26 RBI). He remains a free agent in 38 percent of 12-team leagues. His approach (six walks and five strikeouts) looks intact, pointing to a power surge coming.
First Base
Joe Connor
The Rockies have yet to commit to Connor with an everyday job, but his bat continues to trend forward. He made six starts over Colorado’s previous nine games, leading to 10 hits in 26 at-bats with two home runs and seven RBI. From 2018 to 2019, Connor hit .300 with 151 runs, 32 home runs, 123 RBI, and four steals over four steals. More of a rotational play in deep leagues until his playing time increases.
Second Base
Andy Ibanez
Ibanez should be found in the free-agent pool in almost all leagues. He is a power option at second base. Over his previous 15 games, he hit .292 with three home runs and seven RBI over 48 at-bats. His play improved over his past two seasons at AAA (.309 with 111 runs, 26 home runs, 90 RBI, and eight stolen bases over 572 at-bats. Ibanez controls the strikeout zone while owning underlying developing power.
Third Base
Carter Kieboom
After a quiet start to the year at AAA (.236 with five home runs and 23 RBI over 148 at-bats), Kieboom stepped up his game after his call-up to the Nationals. He has a five-game hitting streak (8-for-18) with four runs, two home runs, and five RBI. Kieboom flashed in 2019 at AAA (.303 with 16 home runs, 79 RBI, and five stolen bases over 412 at-bats), setting a path for a long career of success in the majors. His success makes him viable as a starting option in 12-team formats, where he is a free agent in 99 percent of leagues in the high-stakes market.
Shortstop
Jack Mayfield
After spending six seasons exclusively in the minors, Mayfield struggled (.170 with two home runs and eight RBI) in limited at-bats (106) over two seasons with the Astros. His swing in 2021 with the Angels barely had a pulse over his 33 games of action (.188 with four home runs and 11 RBI over 85 at-bats). Despite his struggles, trades and injuries forced LA to start him for the past 15 games. The bump in playing time led to a flash in power over his previous three matchups (5-for-11 with two home runs and three RBI). The bet here is on his growth at AAA in 2019 and 2021 (.296 with 31 home runs, 91 RBI, and eight stolen bases over 456 at-bats) and a full-time starting job. Mayfield falls into the flier category in deep formats.
Outfield
Alex Dickerson
With the Giants continuing to win games and score runs, it was Dickerson’s turn to get hot over the first four games in August (5-for-14 with two home runs and seven RBI). Before 2021 in the majors, he hit .273 with 26 home runs, 92 RBI, and six steals over 578 at-bats. His downside comes from a bench role against lefties (.278 with one home run and four RBI) on most days. Dickerson is only in play in 15-teams or larger with week-to-week value.
Oscar Mercado
Cleveland had Mercado in their starting lineup over their past six games, leading to seven hits over 27 at-bats with three runs, one home run, and three RBI. His production remains short (two home runs, seven RBI, and three steals over 84 at-bats), but Mercado does offer a balanced skill set with a higher ceiling if he stays locked in. My flier would be on his success in 2019 (.269/15/54/15 over 438 at-bats).
Sam Hilliard
After a good game (2-for-4 with a home run) against the Padres, Hilliard followed through in his next three starts at home (three hits over 10 at-bats with two home runs and five RBI). His weakness comes from a high strikeout rate (35 over 93 plate appearances). However, he has massive power with the wheels to still 20-plus bags over an entire season of at-bats. Hilliard looks viable as a home start in bi-weekly formats while he's showing power.
Starting Pitching
Chris Sale
The Red Sox desperately need starting pitching improvement. Sale should be called up next week after making his fifth rehab start. His arm has been electric over his first 15.1 innings in the minors (three runs, two walks, and 27 strikeouts). He won't be a free agent on any 12 and 15 teams leagues in the high-stakes market, but Sale may have slipped through the cracks in shallow leagues with minimal benches.
Daniel Lynch
Despite struggles over his first three appearances (14 runs and 23 baserunners over eight innings), Lynch found his stride over his last three starts (1.89 ERA over 19 innings with 13 strikeouts) after being called back up to the majors. His next two starts came against the Yankees and Astros at home, painting a risky picture. Buy the talent only if your team is chasing wins and strikeouts.
Eli Morgan
No one will fight for Morgan in any format this week by looking at his ERA (6.75). On the positive side, he did pitch at least five innings in his last six starts with Cleveland. Home runs allowed (12 over 37.1 innings) have been a problem, but he has shown strikeout ability (42) and strength in his command (6 walks). Over his last four starts, he has a 4.71 ERA and 1.14 WHIP, highlighted by his success on Monday against the Blue Jays (two runs over six innings with nine strikeouts). He posted a 3.08 ERA and 360 strikeouts over 319 innings from 2017 to 2019 in the minors. Morgan is only an option in deep leagues with any eye on making up ground in strikeouts. Any help in ERA and WHIP being a bonus.
More MLB:
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- Mariners' One-Run Magic Has Them Firmly in Postseason Contention
- Breaking Down the NL MVP Race Without Acuña, Tatis and deGrom
Senior analyst Shawn Childs is a multi-sport, high-stakes fantasy legend with lifetime earnings in the high six-figures. He has been providing in-depth, analytical break downs for years all while helping his subscribers to countless titles and winnings across season-long & DFS. A inaugural inductee of the NFBC Hall of Fame, Shawn can teach you how to prep like a champ!
