April 7, 2016

Kyle Bishop's first base (1B) and third base (3B) fantasy baseball waiver wire adds. Pickups and corner infield sleepers for Week 1 of the 2016 MLB season.

Well, RotoBallers, we made it through another long, cold, lonely offseason. Baseball is back, and that means we are, every man-jack of us, already fretting over our fake teams. This season, I’ll once again be scouring the waiver wire for corner infield options to discuss each week.

Most of you know the drill, but for the sake of any new readers (hi!) and completeness, a reminder: The following players are corner infield-eligible and available in over 50 percent of Fleaflicker leagues. They may not carry that eligibility in your league, or be available in the majority of leagues on your chosen platform, or be available in your league(s). But, probably, they are! Let’s talk about them, shall we?

Editor’s Note: to read about even more waiver wire options, be sure to check out our famous waiver wire pickups list which is a running list that is updated daily. Prefer using your phone? Our free waiver wire app is available for download in the Apple & Android Stores.

Early Week 1 Corner Infield Waiver Wire Targets

Travis Shaw, 1B/3B, Boston Red Sox (43 percent Fleaflicker)

Never a highly regarded prospect, Shaw nonetheless produced at every stop in his minor league career. He subsequently became a rare bright spot in Boston's lost 2015 season, hitting 13 homers and posting an .814 OPS in 248 plate appearances. With the somewhat surprising news that Shaw will be the primary third baseman instead of $90 million man Pablo Sandoval, the 25 year old has taken on sudden mixed-league relevance.

Pedro Alvarez, 1B, Baltimore Orioles (31 percent Fleaflicker)

Now 29, it’s safe to say we know who Alvarez is at this point. He’ll hit homers, he’ll strike out a lot, he’ll be terrible against lefties. But leaving the Pirates and the pitcher paradise they call home for the friendly confines of Camden Yards could lead to a boost for Alvarez’s fantasy value. The Orioles ought to score enough runs that even hitting in the bottom half of their order, Alvarez will see his share of RBI opportunities.

Justin Bour, 1B, Miami Marlins (30 percent Fleaflicker)

Like Alvarez, Bour mashes right-handers and doesn’t do much else. Well, he doesn’t have the track record Alvarez does, but when a guy hits 23 homers in 409 plate appearances and none of them come at the expense of a southpaw, “righty masher” seems apropos as a descriptor. And that’s fine! It turns out that many pitchers throw with their right hands. A clear majority, by gum. Also, Bour is hitting behind Dee Gordon, Christian Yelich, and Giarcanlo Stanton until at least one of them gets hurt. So as long as he keeps hitting a lot of home runs against RHP, he’s a worthy CI option in many formats.

Nick Castellanos, 3B, Detroit Tigers (23 percent Fleaflicker)

A quick glance at his numbers suggests that Castellanos is a mediocre player who didn’t show much in the way of improvement in 2015, his sophomore season. But he produced at every stop in the minors despite routinely being young for his level, and only turned 24 this month. He also hit much better in the second half last season than his overall numbers would have you believe, slashing .275/.323/.481 with nine homers. The usual caveats about sample size and arbitrary endpoints aside, Castellanos is precisely the sort of player from whom using half splits might actually be useful – a young player with pedigree. He’ll need to cut down on the strikeouts to facilitate a breakout, but his all-fields approach and quality of contact suggest untapped batting average upside.

Chris Carter, 1B, Milwaukee Brewers (13 percent Fleaflicker)

Carter is the right-handed hitting version of Alvarez. Big time power, lots of swing and miss to his game, defensive liability…check, check, check. But Carter’s power and ability to take a walk have kept him above replacement level, and he was a useful piece in the two seasons prior to last year’s rough showing. Now he’s in Milwaukee, who literally has no one else to play first base. Carter’s averaged just under 40 homers per 600 plate appearances in his career so far. Even with a batting average around the Mendoza line, that kind of pop has value.

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