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Five hot fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups, streamers, and sleepers for Week 18 (2025). Undervalued hitters outperforming their ownership percentage and should be more widely owned.
It's shopping season in Major League Baseball with the MLB trade deadline on Thursday, and general managers across the sport are looking to swing the right deal to add missing pieces for a playoff push. If you're looking to do the same for your fantasy team, there are some fun batters to keep an eye on who can help your team in the remaining weeks of the fantasy baseball season as well.
Whether your season has been a disaster or a success, it always makes sense for smart fantasy baseball managers to keep a close eye on the waiver wire for emerging options who can fill in any gaps or even just be strong depth additions. In this post, we're diving deeper than the obvious waiver wire pickups and shopping for hidden values each week. These options won't cost a considerable chunk of your FAAB or require you to have top waiver priority, but they can be good plug-and-play options that can be scooped and started in most formats. If injury or ineffectiveness is forcing you to search the waiver wire this week, there are some fun young bats to consider to give your team solid production the rest of the way. All stats are through games played on Tuesday, July 29, unless otherwise noted.
Which widely available hitters should be on your shopping list? Let's dive in!
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Colson Montgomery, SS/3B, Chicago White Sox
16% rostered
The White Sox have been trending upward over the last few weeks, and their offense has shown some legitimate signs of progress so far in July. There are two White Sox options in these Bargain Basement hitters for this week. Coming into play on Tuesday, the White Sox have scored the fourth-most runs in the majors in July with an average of 5.1 runs per game.
One of the young hitters at the center of the surge has been Montgomery, who made his MLB debut on July 4 and has performed very well from both positions on the left side of the infield.
In his 20 games, Montgomery is hitting .273 with four homers, 16 RBI, six walks, and a .364 wOBA. He has a 32.7% hard-hit rate overall with a 10.2% barrel rate, but he has locked in and been getting much better contact lately with a 50% hard-hit rate and 25.0% barrel rate over his last six games. All four of his homers have come in that six-game span.
Since reaching the majors, Colson Montgomery has caught fire 🔥
The White Sox infielder launched his fourth homer in six games and is slashing 273/.333/.515.
(📽️: @whitesox)pic.twitter.com/GW6b8jUycA
— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) July 29, 2025
Montgomery hit .218 in Triple-A this year but did showcase that power potential with 11 homers and a .324 wOBA before his promotion. He had 18 homers in 130 games in the minors last year.
The big concern with Montgomery has been his strikeout rate in the minors. At Triple-A, he had a 29% strikeout rate last year and a 34% strikeout rate this year. He has managed it better than expected in the majors, though, with a 24.7% strikeout rate since his promotion and just a 16.7% strikeout rate in his last six games.
While he may not ever be a contact-first hitter with a high batting average, if he keeps his strikeout rate that low, he should be worth owning, given how much power potential he brings. If you need a patch on the left side of your infield, Montgomery is a great short-term addition for as long as he keeps up his current power binge.
Brice Matthews, 2B/3B/SS, Houston Astros
8% rostered
Another great young option in the infield is the Astros' Brice Matthews, who made his MLB debut a week after Montgomery on July 11. Matthews hasn't been quite as hot as Montgomery, but he does bring more flexibility with his second base eligibility and also brings more speed potential.
In his 73 games at Triple-A before his promotion, Matthews hit .283 with 10 homers, 25 stolen bases, and a .393 wOBA. His strikeout rate was still over 30% in Triple-A this season, but it was improved from last year, when it was 31.4% overall in the minors and 39.6% in Triple-A.
Matthews went 1-for-12 in his first four games, but then he had a few huge games against the Diamondbacks, going 3-for-8 with three homers and seven RBI.
The kid does it again
Brice Matthews' 3rd HR in 2 games gives the @Astros the lead! pic.twitter.com/mZm9pBE9rm
— MLB (@MLB) July 23, 2025
He cooled back off and has gone just 1-for-15 since then, and he has dropped back down to a .143 batting average. He has yet to attempt a stolen base, but he still has more stolen base upside if the Astros eventually give him the green light on the bases.
The big concern with Matthews, like with Montgomery, is his low contact rate. In his 35 at-bats, Matthews has 18 strikeouts for a 45% strikeout rate in the majors. He'll need to cut that back and make more regular contact if he wants to stay in the lineup long-term.
However, Matthews has enough power and speed potential to be on the fantasy baseball radar for as long as he has a starting job in the majors. If the Astros make a move at the deadline or even just get healthy, he could lose his starting role.
Montgomery is more secure in his role, so he's a safer pickup and play going forward. However, Matthews also brings a high ceiling and a little extra speed in his profile, along with the extra positional flexibility.
Brett Baty, 2B/3B, New York Mets
6% rostered
Baty is in a little bit of a logjam for playing time with the Mets, but the situation could change at the trade deadline since the Mets will likely remain active in the market. Baty, Ronny Mauricio, and Mark Vientos are all getting time at third base, and Baty is also getting some games at second base for now.
However, both Vientos and Baty have been rumored to be potentially on the move. If Vientos is traded away, Baty could get more consistent playing time and be an excellent pickup, or he could be a great pickup with his new team, depending on the situation.
Baty has been one of the team's top prospects for several seasons, but the 25-year-old hasn't been able to establish himself as a key contributor in the majors until this year. He played 50 games in the majors and 62 games at Triple-A last year after logging 108 games in the majors in 2023. He only hit .212 in the majors in 2023 and .229 last year, but he did flash a little bit of power. This season was more of the same until he turned things around with a good stretch of production since late June.
In his last 29 games, Baty is hitting .279 with five doubles, three homers, two stolen bases, and a .338 wOBA.
Brett Baty has had one heck of a July, smashing the ball while playing good defense. As of now he seems like the season long (and possibly the long term) Solution at 3rd base.
🔷 .345 OBP
🔶 15.4% Barrel%
🔷 136 wRC+
🔶 4 DRS (season) pic.twitter.com/V9fhGgnkhh— Dom B (@DomB92_) July 26, 2025
He still has plenty of room to grow to realize his potential, and his Statcast metrics have been very strong during that stretch of success. If he gets consistent playing time down the stretch, he can help your infield with good power numbers and better contact rates than the other two infielders discussed above.
Questions remain about his role heading into the deadline, but we should have a clearer idea of how much competition he'll have for playing time in the next few days.
Chase Meidroth, 2B/3B/SS, Chicago White Sox
9% rostered
Another option in the infield with a different set of strengths is White Sox rookie infielder Chase Meidroth. It's important to know what you're shopping for on the waiver wire since different players can be the right option to meet your team's needs.
Meidroth doesn't usually bring nearly the home run potential of the other options discussed in this post, but he does bring better contact rates and added potential since he usually hits near the top of the team's batting order. He has hit either first or second in the order almost the entire season, which helps his counting stats, run-scoring opportunities, and stolen base chances to pile up.
In his 81 games, he's hitting .253 with 12 doubles, three home runs, 11 stolen bases, 36 runs scored, and a .297 wOBA. In his last nine games, he has given his average a big boost by going 14-for-40 (.350) while adding five doubles, a homer, and seven runs scored.
CHASE MEIDROTH WITH THE LEADOFF 💣 TO GET THE SCORING STARTED IN THE CROSSTOWN CLASSIC pic.twitter.com/HkklRpVTzA
— Always Next Year (@ANYSportsChi) July 25, 2025
He doesn't have the impressive hard-hit rate and barrel rate that Baty and Montgomery bring, but he does make good, consistent contact and has an advanced approach at the plate that makes him a good option for batting average and on-base percentage leagues with good run-scoring and stolen base potential.
He won't hurt your contact categories as much as some of the other options in this list, so give him a look if you can't afford the sacrifice to get more power. He should stay a solid bargain basement option as long as he's locked into such a favorable spot in the lineup.
Isaac Collins, OF, Milwaukee Brewers
5% rostered
We highlighted Isaac Collins a few weeks ago in this Bargain Basement Bats post, and the young Brewers switch-hitter has stayed hot and mostly off the radar despite Milwaukee's surge in the standings.
Isaac Collins ranks among NL rookies
2.3 fWAR (1st)
128 wRC+ (2nd)
.379 OBP (1st)
.352 BABIP (2nd)
37 runs (2nd)2025 National League Rookie of the Year pic.twitter.com/KBR3NSuUZp
— Ryan (@BrewPack8) July 29, 2025
Collins offers a well-rounded profile, hitting .278 with six homers, 11 stolen bases, and a .351 wOBA on the season. He doesn't have one spectacular category, but he can contribute across the board as an everyday option in the outfield.
He has hit safely in nine of his first 10 games after the All-Star break, going 14-for-37 (.378) with two doubles, a home run, and a stolen base. He also has six walks and just six strikeouts during that stretch, continuing to show an excellent plate approach and a very high floor.
The Brewers could make some moves at the deadline, but as long as they don't block Collins with an addition, the 28-year-old should get the chance to continue his breakout season and continue to establish himself as one of the team's key young pieces going forward.
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