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Five hot fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups, streamers, and sleepers for Week 5 (2026). Undervalued hitters outperforming their ownership percentage and should be more widely owned.
With another week of MLB action behind us, it's time to take a deep dive into five hitters who are widely available in Yahoo leagues and are emerging as sneaky waiver wire targets.
This week, we take a look at a young utility in St. Louis and a super utility man in Cleveland who have been tapped into their power upside. As always, the players referenced are rostered in under 25% of current Yahoo leagues.
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Nathan Church, OF, St Louis Cardinals
10% rostered (Yahoo)
After posting a .115/.148/.115 slash line with a low .264 OPS over the first nine games, Nathan Church was available in nearly all leagues and was potentially in danger of losing his starting gig in left field, especially with the top outfield prospect Joshua Baez looming at Triple-A. However, since this cold start, Church has looked like a completely different hitter and is emerging as a viable short-term option in deeper leagues.
Over his last 17 games, Church has posted a much higher .320/.357/.640 slash line with one double, five home runs, and three stolen bases. He has tallied 11 RBI and scored nine runs during this stretch as well. In his last seven games, Church has had only one hitless game and posted three double-digit-hit efforts.
Is this surge sustainable or nothing more than a flash in the pan? When looking at his profile, Church has the makings of a power hitter with sneaky speed, which makes him intriguing for fantasy.
Per Baseball Savant, the former 11th-round selection has generated a high 11.1% barrel rate and a 37.0% LA Sweet-Spot%, both of which are well above average. While his 37.0% hard-hit rate is below average, Church is impacting the ball well and hitting at optimal angles. The most notable component of his hitter profile is his elite 241.% Pull AIR% rate.
If Church can maintain this high rate with this optimal swing, he should push for a double-digit home run campaign, especially if he continues to see everyday at-bats.
Nathan Church (@SCSpikes '21) did it AGAIN on Sunday with his third 💣 in his last two games for the @Cardinals! 💪 🦌
His fifth home run of the season, Church ends the week 8-for-19 with 4 home runs, 7 RBIs and 4 runs. pic.twitter.com/0LbHr8ScdO
— MLB Draft League (@mlbdraftleague) April 27, 2026
Overall, the 25-year-old holds a .307 xwOBA and a .238 xBA, which do not jump off the page. However, in addition to his optimized swing and high barrel rate, Church has high-end speed. Per Savant, Church currently sits in the 89th percentile in sprint speed and has already swept three bags in the early going of the campaign.
In relation to his short 27-game stint in the majors last season (his MLB debut), Church has been able to lower his ground-ball rate (from 65.9% to 48.1%) and raise his fly-ball rate (19.5% to 25.9%). While he may not be a reliable source of batting average, Church's swing is suited for home runs, and his raw speed should continue to add another component to his fantasy profile.
Given that he is currently above average in all fielding metrics on Baseball Savant, he should maintain his current role and push for a 15/15 season with a sub-250 AVG.
Nolan Arenado, 3B, Arizona Diamondbacks
15% rostered
After looking at a second-year hitter, let's take a look at the most experienced name on our list, Nolan Arenado. Arenado is a 14-year MLB veteran and was once viewed as a top third baseman for nearly his entire career. However, after a disappointing showing in 2025, where he posted a .237/.289/.377 line, managers opted to fade the 35-year-old in their drafts this spring.
A chance of scenery may have been the missing piece for Arenado, as he has looked like his former self during his first month of action in the desert. Through 26 games with the Diamondbacks, Arenado has held a .283/.316/.435 line with a .751 OPS. During this stint, Arenado has gone deep four times, tallied 14 RBI, and scored 14 runs.
However, unlike Church, who has shown an optimized swing, most of his profile is not overly promising. Throughout the opening month, Arenado has generated a low .302 xwOBA, .397 xSLG, and a .268 xBA, all of which suggest he has outperformed his current metrics. Additionally, Arenado has posted a low 24.7% hard-hit rate and a 6.8% barrel rate, both of which are well below average.
The former El Toro HS product has drawn walks at a low 4.2% rate and generated a weak 71.0 average mph bat speed.
In relation to last season, Arenado's hard-hit rate has actually dropped eight points, and his average exit velocity has fallen by three points. The lone component keeps his power numbers after having been his impressive 27.4% Pull AIR%. While he has always been a high-end hitter in this category (which has produced home run totals throughout his career), his hard-hit rate continues to plummet, and his current production may not be sustainable in the long term.
While he is a fine target in deep leagues to ride out during this hot surge, managers should expect some regression to kick in. He does have a streaming appeal during home games in Arizona or on the road at Coors Field, but in the long term, Arenado should take a significant step back from his current production.
Daniel Schneemann, 2B/3B/SS/OF, Cleveland Guardians
20% rostered
One of the more interesting names on our list is Daniel Schneemann of the Cleveland Guardians. The utility man has seen his rostership rise over the past two weeks and now meets the benchmark for this piece.
Through 25 games, Schneemann has been nothing short of dominant, posting a .311/.386/.568 slash line with 17 doubles, four home runs, and a stolen base. While his box score performance is quite impressive, he has held a high 30.1% K%, which hurts his value points leagues, but his above-average 10.8% BB% helps balance it out.
Daniel Schneemann lead-off BOMB pic.twitter.com/7FggRy2fYy
— Dillard Barnhart (@BarnHasSpoken2) April 24, 2026
Last summer, Schneemann spent his first "full" season with the Guardians, appearing in 131 games but was never very productive for fantasy, holding a .206/.283/.354 line with a .637 OPS. What has changed?
While the sample size for Schneemann may be small, the BYU product is hitting the ball harder than before and has been one of the game's best hitters according to many advanced metrics. Schneemann has generated an 82nd-percentile xwOBA (.277 xBA) and a .504 xSLG. He has posted a strong 12.2% barrel rate while placing in the 100th percentile in LA Sweet-Spot% (49.0%).
The major improvement Schneemann has made is his pull rate. While his LA Sweet-Spot% has helped bolster his power totals, his 24.5% Pull AIR% has been a major driving force as well. Compared to 2025, this mark is 10 points higher. While it is too early to tell whether it will be sustainable for an entire season, Schneemann is making major strides in how he impacts the ball.
The 29-year-old should continue to hold down the center field job for the foreseeable future, especially if his bat continues to produce like this. Given his impressive quality of contact and batted-ball marks, Schneemann is a top waiver wire pickup among the names listed here, as he could fill in a top streaming option at nearly all positions.
Hyeseong Kim, 2B/SS/OF, Los Angeles Dodgers
15% rostered
Kim began the campaign with Triple-A Oklahoma City, but after a hot start and an injury to Mookie Betts, Kim quickly rejoined the Dodgers in early April and has held his own ever since. At Triple-A, Kim posted a strong .346/.438/.385 slash line over six games before the call to Los Angeles.
With the Dodgers, Kim has continued to hit for a high average, holding a .294 AVG with two doubles, one home run, and five stolen bases (in just 20 games). Last season, Kim made his MLB debut and held a solid .280 AVG, but did not contribute much else for fantasy, hitting only three home runs and stealing 13 bases over a much larger 71-game stint.
Although the sample size in 2026 is small, Kim has been making major strides against MLB pitching. In 2025, Kim generated a weak .242 xBA against fastballs but has seen this production soar in 2026. Through the early going, Kim has generated a nearly doubled .409 xBA with an elite .466 xwOBA against fastballs.
He has also taken a step forward against breaking balls, posting a .321 xwOBA, compared to the .239 xwOBA he posted as a rookie. While his .129 xwOBA against offspeed pitches remains below average, seeing him improve against two other pitch types, and especially fastballs, is a great sign for his development.
When looking at his general profile, the 27-year-old carried a .280 xBA, which suggests his high batting average is somewhat sustainable, but his .390 xSLG shows there may not be much room for power growth. He has also posted a low 5.1% barrel rate and a 23.1% hard-hit rate, both well below average.
However, he has impacted ball efficiency, as shown by his 51.3% LA Sweet-Spot%, and pairing it with a high (and unsustainable) 35.9% LD%, which has helped keep his average afloat. Given that his line-drive rate is sure to regress, Kim should see in the upper-to-mid .280s, which will be very valuable for fantasy.
His speed should remain a strong component of his game, as evidenced by his 76th-percentile sprint speed, and his willingness to run more in 2025. A 30+ SB comparison is not out of the question if he can remain on the strong side of the platoon at second base/shortstop.
While Betts will soon take over shortstop, Kim could remain at the keystone, especially if Alex Freeland continues to slump at the plate and Tommy Edman (ankle) remains on the IR. He is a strong short-term answer to boost your stolen base totals and batting average, but be wary when expecting him to be your long-term answer.
Ryan Jeffers, C, Minnesota Twins
20% rostered
As always, we will wrap up our piece with an option behind the dish. While Moises Ballesteros was going to be this week's target, his rostership has soared over the past few days and is now quickly entering "must-add" territory. Instead, we'll look at the backstop in Minnesota, Ryan Jeffers.
Jeffers has put together a strong start to the season, holding a .282/.414/.465 line with a .879 OPS. He has gone deep three times, tallied 18 RBI, and scored 14 runs. After a down season in 2025, where Jeffers hit just nine home runs with a .266/.356/.397 line, the catcher appears to be returning to his 2024 form, where he went deep 21 times.
Through the early going, Jeffers has posted an elite .385 xwOBA (86th percentile), along with a .259 xBA and a .476 xSLG. While his batting average should drop, his power production appears to be sustainable. The backstop has also posted a 14.0% barrel rate (85th percentile) while showing a strong eye at the plate with a 17.0% K% and a 17.0% BB%, both of which are on track to be career highs.
While it is still early in the season, Jeffers has raised his launch angle from 15.0 to 23.2 compared to last season and has more than doubled his barrel rate (from 6.3% in 2025). Additionally, his 21.9% Pull AIR% is on pace to be the highest of his career, and pairing that with his elite barrel rate, Jeffers may not only reach his 20-HR upside but also set a career-high mark.
Lastly, while Jeffers has always performed well against southpaws, he has stepped up his production against right-handers, which is worth noting. Last season, he posted a modest .248/.305/.388 against righties, but has posted a .297/.435/.459 line this season.
Given that he received a high workload behind the dish (19 games started) and has already seen time as the DH, Jeffers is entering low-end C1 territory for standard leagues and is a top streamer in a favorable week.
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