Fantasy Baseball League Winners: Unlikely Aces Worth A Roster Spot? (Week 15)

July 8, 2026

Frank's deep dive into starting pitcher fantasy baseball breakouts, waiver wire adds for Week 15 of 2026. Are these unlikely aces potential league winners?

It's time for the Week 15 edition of our Unlikely Aces column for the 2026 fantasy baseball season. This is an article where we dive into pitchers who are performing above expectations, hence the term "Unlikely Aces." The goal here is to take a closer look to see if there are any tangible improvements worth noting.

This season, it's been extremely difficult for pitching, as there have been several injuries, most notably to Garrett Crochet and Cole Ragans, who have been out for a while. Ragans is out for the year. That's why it's even more necessary for unlikely aces, as they're able to keep your starting rotation afloat while you navigate injuries. The big question to consider here is, can they keep it up? Or are they more likely to regress?

This week, we're focusing on Ian Seymour, Sean Burke, and Brady Singer. Two of these players are hot-ticket waiver wire items right now, but the third is probably having you question why he's even included. Let's dive in, using rostered percentages from Yahoo! leagues.

Ian Seymour, Tampa Bay Rays

48% Rostered

Seymour has a 4.11 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP with a 28.7% strikeout rate and an 8.4% walk rate in 61.1 innings so far. But part of these numbers are skewed from when he pitched in relief. If we narrow that down to his last six appearances, those numbers look even better: 2.97 ERA, 0.79 WHIP, 33.3% strikeout rate, and a 5.1% walk rate. The underlying metrics look phenomenal during this stretch, as highlighted by a 2.69 SIERA and a 13.5% swinging-strike rate.

The Rays' lefty is coming off a dominant outing against the Yankees, where he went 5.1 innings, allowing three runs on five hits with zero walks and 12 strikeouts. In his last three starts, Seymour has 27 strikeouts with only two walks. That's ace-like production. The Rays seem to have found their latest gem here.

Ian Seymour is up to a DOZEN strikeouts 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/GEYSgUsPwl

— MLB (@MLB) July 8, 2026

Seymour has a robust arsenal:

• Changeup (31.4% usage, .230 xwOBA, 35.5% whiff rate)
• Sweeper (24.6% usage, .234 xwOBA, 38.0% whiff rate)
• Four Seamer (23.9% usage, .292 xwOBA, 26.0% whiff rate)
• Sinker (14.3% usage, .467 xwOBA, 8.3% whiff rate)

He also has a slider, curveball, and cutter, but they combine for about 5% usage.

Despite his sinker getting crushed, we can see that Seymour has two legit weapons in his changeup and sweeper, giving him a pair of pitches to rack up whiffs.

It's clear that this is a case where a pitcher was slowplayed into a starting role, and now seems to have adapted to his new situation. He has become comfortable and gotten into a rhythm, making me bullish about his outlook going forward. The Rays should have put Seymour in the rotation earlier than they did, but at least they finally made the move. The training wheels are off, and Seymour is ready to make an impact for the rest of the year.

Verdict: The Rays are a top-tier organization that knows how to get more value out of its players. Seymour is the latest success story of a pitcher who has developed into a stud. There's no reason to believe that he'll fall off right now, as his advanced metrics all look great, so enjoy the ride if you were able to pick him up off the wire. When you add in the fact that the Rays look like contenders, so the wins will be there, this is an absolute smash pickup.

Sean Burke, Chicago White Sox

58% Rostered

Burke has been rock-solid for the White Sox, putting up a 3.56 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP with a 25.8% strikeout rate and an 8.0% walk rate in 98.2 innings. The underlying metrics look good as well, as highlighted by a 3.71 SIERA. But if we narrow the sample down a little bit, we see even more encouraging signs from Burke.

In his last seven starts, Burke has a 3.04 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP with a 31.1% strikeout rate and a 10.5% walk rate in 50.1 innings. During this stretch, he's registered a 3.46 SIERA and a 12.7% swinging-strike rate. Most recently, we saw Burke rack up 11 strikeouts in six innings vs. the Guardians. He now has 19 strikeouts in 11.1 innings in his last two outings.

Sean Burke's 9th, 10th and 11th Ks...thru 6 pic.twitter.com/2vXaybIxmL

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) July 5, 2026

Burke primarily throws the following:

• Four Seamer (37.4% usage, .287 xwOBA, 24.9% whiff rate)
• Knuckle Curve (21.4% usage, .281 xwOBA, 25.6% whiff rate)
• Slider (17.5% usage, .276 xwOBA, 32.6% whiff rate)
• Sinker (15.0% usage, .363 xwOBA, 11.4% whiff rate)

He's increased his sinker usage from 4.8% to 15.0%, giving him a weapon to use when he needs to induce a ground ball. The slider has been his main weapon to rack up whiffs.

Now in his age-26 season, Burke looks like a pitcher who is finally putting it all together. The White Sox are one of the biggest surprises of the first half, putting themselves firmly into postseason contention. Burke has been a major contributor to this success.

Verdict: While Burke doesn't have the same kind of gaudy whiff numbers that Seymour has, making the uptick in strikeouts feel a bit less sustainable, this is a dependable arm to round out your rotation. There's a good chance that he'll be able to stick on your roster all year. The White Sox seemed to have turned the corner. This front office knows what they're doing, specifically in getting more value out of their players.

Brady Singer, Cincinnati Reds

16% Rostered

Here's where you're probably reading this article with a confused look on your face. After all, Singer currently has a 5.03 ERA and a 1.54 WHIP with a 19.0% strikeout rate and an 8.0% walk rate. The underlying metrics look poor as well, including a 4.51 SIERA. The veteran righty has given up a ton of hard contact, including a 10.9% barrel rate. So, what are we doing here?

Well, if we break down this into a smaller sample, we see a case of a veteran righty who is starting to get into a rhythm. In his last six starts, Singer has a 3.16 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP with a 25.7% strikeout rate and a 10.3% walk rate. This includes a more respectable 4.00 SIERA. The biggest improvement here has been strikeouts, as his rate has jumped 6.7%. Singer has at least six strikeouts in three consecutive outings.

Terry Francona on Brady Singer:

“He didn’t command right from the get go. Like always, he competes like crazy.”#Reds pic.twitter.com/kvyOyck0jQ

— Chatterbox Sports (@CBoxSports) July 4, 2026

When you look at the pitch mix, nothing has really changed here. This is still a sinker-baller who mixes in a slider and sweeper to try to help get strikeouts.

The biggest factor here is that it's a veteran who was performing below expectations, but is now back to career norms. Remember, Singer had a 4.03 ERA and a 3.71 ERA in the past two seasons. He's an innings eater that can provide fantasy value while he's in a rhythm. That's why it's a good idea to pick him up now to see if you can hop onboard what looks like a hot streak.

Verdict: Unlike Seymour and Burke, Singer isn't your typical "Unlikely Ace" that you'd find in this column. Rather, I'm trying to highlight an under-the-radar arm that can give you a short spurt of fantasy value while he's in a groove. It wouldn't surprise me to see him provide a few quality starts with five or more strikeouts for you. Pick him up as a streamer.

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