7 Must-Add Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 12 Fantasy Baseball (2026)

June 13, 2026

Andy breaks down his must-add fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups for Week 12 of the 2026 MLB season. Add these players now off the waiver wire and win more.

Hello RotoBallers! Welcome back to another edition of our 7 Must-Adds ahead of Week 12 of the fantasy baseball season. Every week, we spotlight seven players (all under 40% rostered on Yahoo) and even name a few players who are geared for deep leagues who are worth viewing as targets on the waiver wire.

This week, we will look at two recently promoted prospects, a veteran hitter who has become a full-time player, and a top-injured starting pitcher who is emerging as an elite stash option.

So, let's look at the best waiver wire targets!

2026 Fantasy Baseball Week 12 Waiver Wire Adds

Braden Montgomery, OF, Chicago White Sox

35% rostered

Headlining the call-ups of the week was White Sox rookie Braden Montgomery. While Montgomery is quickly nearing the 40% roster mark, those in weekly waiver-wire leagues will likely have an opportunity to pick up the budding star on Sunday, as his rostership rate is likely skewed toward daily leagues.

Montgomery sits as the team's No. 2-ranked prospect and the overall No. 21 prospect in the sport per MLB.com. Montgomery was selected with the 12th overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft by the Red Sox but was eventually moved to Chicago in the Garrett Crochet deal.

This season, the young outfielder began the campaign with Double-A, where he appeared in 27 games and posted an elite .313/.429/.606 line with a 1.035 OPS. During this short stint, Montgomery went deep six times, swiped two bags, and held a 32:21 K:BB. This impressive start earned him an early ticket to Triple-A, where he needed just 29 games before heading to the South Side.

With Charlotte, Montgomery looked even more comfortable, posting a .315/.417/.495 line with four long balls and three stolen bases before moving up to the majors. In his MLB debut, Montgomery wasted little time making an impact, launching a walk-off home run with a 2-for-5 line with three RBI. In his second contest, Montgomery stayed hot, hitting two doubles.

With elite prospect pedigree and a clear path to everyday at-bats, Montgomery is a priority pick-up in all standard leagues.

BRADEN MONTGOMERY HITS A WALK-OFF HOMER IN HIS MAJOR LEAGUE DEBUT! pic.twitter.com/ifxPs2t57F

— MLB (@MLB) June 10, 2026

Cole Carrigg, OF, Colorado Rockies

5% rostered

The other major call-up of the week was in Colorado. While Cole Carrigg does not have the same prospect pedigree as Montgomery, he possesses an elite skill set for fantasy. Carrigg is currently viewed as the team's No. 6-ranked prospect on MLB.com.

The 24-year-old spent the entire 2025 season at the Double-A level and was moved up to Triple-A to begin 2026. Given his lack of experience at the top level, Carigg was not in the picture to debut in the first half. However, given his quick adjustment to the top pitching, Carriggs put himself on the stash radar.

Through 57 games with Albuquerque, Carrigg posted an elite .338/.414/.529 slash line with 15 doubles, five triples, six home runs, and 30 stolen bases. Last summer, Carrigg swiped 46 bags over a 123-game stint at Double-A.

His elite speed is the reason why fantasy managers in category leagues should consider picking him up. Like Montgomery, Carrigg also made an impact in his MLB debut, going 1-for-4 with a triple and a walk.

While his overall upside for power is not overly high, playing half of his games at Coors Field should open the door for a double-digit home run campaign if he continues to see everyday at-bats. However, his elite speed is why managers should pick him up. Carrigg has the skill set to push for a near 30-SB campaign over the remainder of the season, especially if his career .362 OBP in the minors can translate to the big leagues.

With Mickey Moniak and Brenton Doyle both on the IL, Carrigg figures to be the primary center fielder in Colorado for the coming weeks.

Paul Goldschmidt, 1B, New York Yankees

15% rostered

The veteran first baseman was a feature player in my bargain basement hitters piece earlier this week, but has put himself on the "must-add" radar given his impressive secret stretch of play. While his play was enough to warrant the attention of some managers, the Yankees have finally begun to provide him with every day at-bats, at the expense of Aaron Judge joining Giancarlo Stanton on the injured list.

Since May 20 (the last 18 games), which marked the start of Goldschmidt's everyday role in this lineup, the veteran has done more than hold his own despite facing mostly right-handed pitchers, carrying a .288/.333/.452 slash line with three doubles, three home runs, and a 15:3 K:BB. Since May 31, the Yankees have even more of him up the top half of the lineup, and made him the predominant leadoff man against southpaws.

Earlier in the season, Goldschmidt was very productive but not a suitable fantasy option, as he only saw starting opportunities on the weak side of a platoon at first base. Over his first 24 games (which were mostly against left-handers), Goldschmidt would post a strong .286/.398/.600 line (over 83 PAs) with five long balls.

Overall, against left-handed pitching this season, Goldschmidt has been borderline elite, carrying a .397/.500/.776 line with a 1.276 OPS. While managers looking at his pedestrian .212 AVG and .617 OPS against right-handers may think this recent surge is a flash in the pan, the veteran carries quite impressive metrics under the hood.

The 38-year-old has generated a .378 xwOBA, .285 xBA, and a .507 xSLG, all of which are in the 88th percentile or higher. He is also generating hard contact with an 11.5% barrel rate and optimizing his swing with a 20.4% Pull AIR%, both of which sit well above the average marks.

Goldschmidt should remain a high-end source for counting stats and power.

Dalton Rushing, C, Los Angeles Dodgers

20% rostered

For those needing a catcher, consider picking up Dalton Rushing. While Rushing was best left for deeper two-catcher leagues for most of the early going due to his role as the team's No. 2 option behind Will Smith, Smith hit the IL on Thursday, opening the starting role for the young backstop. The 25-year-old made his MLB debut last summer, but would appear in only 53 games in a part-time role.

This season, he has begun to see somewhat more stable playing time, appearing in 38 games as of Friday, June 12. During these 38 games, the former top prospect would post a .277/.362/.536 slash line with five doubles, eight home runs, and a 30:12 K:BB. While the sample size for his advanced metrics is relatively small (and he does not have enough plate appearances on Baseball Savant to qualify), he does carry impressive marks.

The 25-year-old has generated .364 xwOBA, .276 xBA, and a .468 xSLG, which suggests he should remain an above-average hitter while moving to a full-time role. He is also barreling the ball at a 9.8% rate while posting a 35.4% LA Sweet-Spot%. However, the most impressive component of his profile is his elite Pull AIR%.

While this mark should continue to gradually regress as he gets more at-bats, he is impacting the ball very effectively, as shown by the 25.8% Pull AIR%, which puts him in the elite class of hitters. With a full-time role in one of the game's top lineups and an optimized swing, Rushing should carry top-12 upside at the position while Smith is on the injured list.

Dalton goes oppo! pic.twitter.com/0UTXP5AJdd

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 21, 2026

Mick Abel, SP, Minnesota Twins

15% rostered

The first starting pitcher we will spotlight is currently on the shelf. Mick Abel hit the 15-day IL in late April with right elbow inflammation. This was a tough blow for the budding right-hander as he appeared to have begun to find his footing at the MLB level. Before the injury, Abel tossed back-to-back shutout outings, logging 13 clean innings with a 16:3 K:BB and a 0.85 WHIP.

Before this hot stretch, Abel endured some growing pains, allowing nine runs over his first 7 1/3 innings of the campaign. However, Abel was an intriguing late-round target heading into draft season due to his overall showing in camp and his production before his injury, suggesting he was beginning to show this form in the regular season.

During camp, Abel looked quite comfortable, logging 22 innings with a 2.05 ERA and a 0.86 WHIP (27:4 K:BB).

Much of his improvement can be credited to his change in pitch mix. In accordance with his 2025 season (as depicted below), Abel has begun to rely on his changeup and slider as his No. 2 and No. 3 offerings while lowering his usage of his sinker and curveball.

His changeup has generated a stelalr 31.3% whiff rate with a .263 xwOBA under the hood. Additionally, the increased use of his changeup has made his fastball a far more effective whiff option, as it has generated swings and misses at a 33.8% rate this season, a drastic jump from 25.9% in 2025.

The 24-year-old possesses elite swing and miss potential to become a high-end option for strikeouts as soon as he returns. In his first rehab outing with Triple-A, Abel has already begun to show impressive upside, tallying five punchouts over three scoreless innings.

Kumar Rocker, SP, Texas Rangers

15% rostered

The final starting pitcher we will spotlight is a former top prospect. Rocker made his MLB debut during the back half of the 2024 campaign and logged 11 2/3 innings to the tune of a 3.86 ERA with the Rangers. In 2025, the right-hander received his first full taste of the majors and endured some significant growing pains, logging 64 1/3 innings with a rough 5.74 ERA.

As a result, entering 2026, Rocker was not on the fantasy radar of many despite his former high-end prospect pedigree. The right-hander began the season looking like his 2025 self, tossing 32 1/3 innings of work with a 5.01 ERA and a 1.52 WHIP. During this stint, Rocker would strike out just 27 hitters and serve up 13 free passes.

However, since this cold start, the 26-year-old has begun to find his footing, making him a worthy wavier with a target. Since May 13 (his last six starts), Rocker has posted a strong 2.16 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP with a 25:5 K:BB over 33 1/3 innings of work. During this stretch, Rocker allowed more than two runs in just one game and even kept the score sheet clean in three of them.

While the sample size for this year's data is still relatively small, Rocker has begun tweaking his pitch mix, which has been the driving force behind his recent surge. As shown in the visual below, Rocker has opted to drop his sinker usage and instead leaned more on his cutter and four-seamer at nearly the same rate in June.

This has been a worthwhile change as his sinker has not found much success in 2026. So far, this pitch has generated a .432 xwOBA with a high .340 xBA. However, his four-seamer has been a far more effective fastball, posting a .226 xwOBA with a solid 17.3% whiff rate.

The lead pitch in his repertoire, his slider, has remained a top-tier option, boasting a .179 xBA, .214 xwOBA, and a 34.3% whiff rate.

While Rocker is not a top-tier option for strikeouts like Abel, he is showing far more success at the MLB level and could provide solid SP4 value with more untapped upside for the remainder of the season.

Yoendrys Gomez, RP, Minnesota Twins

10% rostered

Our closer of the week will be Yoendrys Gomez of the Twins. While Alex Lange of the Royals is the preferred target, given that we spotlighted his last week and is quickly approaching the 25% rostership mark, we will look a bit deeper ahead into Week 12.

The Twins began the season using a committee in the ninth inning with Cole Sands, Anthony Banda, Taylor Rogers, and a mix of others, splitting time in the final frame. However, over the past few weeks, Gomez has begun to emerge as the preferred option in these situations.

Over his last 7 1/3 innings (eight appearances), Gomez has tallied three saves while carrying a 1.23 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. During this stretch, the right-hander has struck out 10 hitters while serving up four free passes. Prior to this stretch, Gomez held a 4.68 ERA with two saves over his first 25 innings of work.

Under the hood, Gomez posted a rough 5.58 xERA but has continued to show solid strikeout potential, sitting at a 22.4% K% that has increased over the course of the campaign. While the 26-year-old is likely to face some regression, he has claimed the ninth-inning role, which has put him firmly on the fantasy radar.

His upside may not be as high as some of the closers we have identified in this column earlier in the season, but for now, he is the best source of saves on most waiver wires.

Other Waiver Wire Targets

• Alex Lange, KC
• Gage Jump, ATH
• Colt Emerson, SEA
• Curtis Mead, WSH
• Bryce Eldridge, SF
• Spencer Horwitz, PIT
• Edwin Arroyo, CIN
• Zack Gelof, ATH
• Grant Taylor, CWS
• Jacob Gonzalez, CWS
• River Ryan, LAD

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