Digging Deeper - Waiver Wire Options for Week 25

Matt Wallach outlines his favorite week 25 waiver wire pickups and adds for deep leagues, and AL-only or NL-only fantasy baseball leagues for the 2021 MLB season.

Welcome back to the NL-only and AL-only pickups column. Each week, I'll look at five players who are under 15% rostered in Yahoo! leagues and who can be considered as options to add in deep-league formats, such as 15-teamers or AL or NL-only leagues.

I'll also include a recommendation for what to do with each player on your roster. And lastly, I'll take a look at some of my picks from the previous week to see how they're performing.

Without further ado, let's get into it.

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Harrison Bader - OF, Cardinals

8% rostered
Recommended move: Add for a few weeks 

It's been an up-and-down season for Bader this year, as he got off to a slow start, heated up, got injured, missed nearly a month, came back strong before struggling mightily to now ultimately, heating up again. It hasn't been the most consistent season, that's for sure, but it does appear that Bader will be playing a factor for fantasy teams down the stretch, as he has been raking in the month of September so far with a .333/.378/.548 slash line (151 wRC+).

It's been a dramatic difference from how he fared in the month of August, in which he hit just .152/.229/.192 in just over 100 plate appearances. His strikeout rate in August was a high 26.6%, which was up considerably from his full-season rate of 19.8%. It is good then to see Bader's strikeout rate trend back to that full-season rate with a 17.8% mark here in September. Cutting down on strikeouts has been a big part of Bader's success this season, as his rate this season is a substantial improvement from the 29.1% rate he had coming into the year, with that coming from career-highs in both contact rate (78.4%) and swinging-strike rate (9.9%). With that being the case, Bader could be seen as having more upside for fantasy purposes than he once died.

Combine that with excellent sprint speed that places him in the 97th percentile per Statcast, and Bader would look like a decent bat with the ability to swipe bags, something that he could perhaps do down the stretch. He's playing everyday as the Cardinals' primary center fielder, so he should have plenty of opportunities for the remainder of the year.

Jesus Sanchez - OF, Marlins

7% rostered
Recommended move: Add for a few weeks

Sanchez's overall .241/.309/.471 slash line for the season won't overwhelm many, but it does translate to a solid 110 wRC+, and is probably worthy of more fantasy consideration, especially when considering just how well he's been hitting as of late.

For the month of September, he's hitting .244/.326/.585, as he is showing a considerable amount of power, with four home runs hit in just 46 plate appearances. Things have been even better since last weekend, with Sanchez crushing the ball to the tune of a .375/.412/1.063 triple slash (280 wRC+) with a whopping three home runs hit in his 17 plate appearances with six runs batted in to go along with it. His high 30% strikeout rate will limit just how high of a batting average he will hit for, as we've seen throughout the season, but right now he's hitting the ball with too much authority to be left on the waiver wire, especially in deep formats.

Sanchez has been platooned a bit throughout the season, but with this impressive stretch and the subsequent trades of a few other outfielders back in July, he has cemented himself as the team's everyday right fielder, at least for the remainder of the season, which is quite deserved. As it appears, playing time should not be an issue going forward, and he could be a sneakily solid add for the final few weeks of the season for some plus power output.

DJ Peters - OF, Rangers

4% rostered
Recommended move: Add for a few weeks 

Peters was recommended last week as a one-dimensional power-only type of bat. There are a lot fo red flags in his profile-- most notably his high 35.7% strikeout rate, and these one-dimensional type of hitters are often quite prone to extended slumps and periods of less production. When they're going well though, it makes a lot more sense to roster them, especially if a manager is in need of some home runs and other counting stats, as Peters has been a strong option in those departments in recent weeks.

Since August 24th, Peters still has been that one-dimensional type of slugger as shown by his .237/.253/.539 slash line, as his strikeout rate is still above 30%, dragging his batting average all while walking at a minuscule 1.3% rate, which explains the low on-base percentage. But the power display has been real, with an incredible .303 ISO in that span to go along with seven home runs and 17 runs batted in, in just over 80 plate appearances-- both of which are among the highest totals in the game in that span.

As long as he keeps putting balls in the seats and driving in runs, he should have fantasy appeal, at least on teams where a manager can stomach the issues in the rest of his game. However, the surplus of counting stats could potentially be a difference-maker in the roto standings or playoffs during the last few weeks of the season, which could be too juicy for a manager to turn down.

Ramon Urias - 2B/3B/SS, Orioles

2% rostered
Recommended move: Add for a few weeks 

Like Peters, Urias was also recommended last week as a solid, if unspectacular triple-eligible option that does a little bit of everything, but not with something that truly stands out. He has quietly had a solid season in what has been a forgettable season for the Orioles with a .275/.361/.413 slash line. He sat out a couple of games late last week which limited how productive he was, but when he did return to the lineup and play, he did do well with a .400/.571/.400 line, albeit in just seven plate appearances.

Nevertheless, Urias has still been playing very well for the Orioles since August 16th, with a .296/.398/.465 line-- good enough for a 141 wRC+. It hasn't come with much in terms of power (just two home runs) or runs batted in (just 12), and not a single stolen base, but it definitely has not the hurt fantasy lineups he's been inserted to.

At the least, Urias is a solid bat that can be plugged and played into three of the four infield spots on any given day and shouldn't be a negative to fantasy teams. With options on the waiver wire looking bleaker and bleaker by the week, a player like Urias could help provide some stability to a team making a push in the late part of the year.

Luis Garcia - 2B/SS, Nationals

1% rostered
Recommended move: Add for a few weeks 

Garcia was recommended earlier in the year mainly due to him being a dual-eligible middle infield option with everyday playing time. He was inserted into the everyday lineup for the Nationals just shortly before the trade deadline, and he got off to a rough start, hitting just .216/.256/.360 slash line through August 31st, mainly due to a low .244 BABIP and a 60% groundball rate.

It does look like he has started to get going in the month of September so far. His groundball rate has dropped big time to a much better 38.1%, which has corresponded with a jump in his overall performance to a .245/.275/.531 line-- which translates to a solid 102 wRC+. The power increase is what is most notable here, as he has hit two home runs in the month, again likely due to him hitting more balls in the air, with his average launch angle more than doubling this month up to 12.6 degrees to just a 4.6 degree mark for the whole season, but also hitting the ball harder, with a 7.1% barrel rate for the month compared to just a 4.8% rate for the season overall. These two things would back up the jump in power, but probably not to this extent. Still, it is good to see him bouncing back and doing well after a dreadful start to his time as an everyday player.

With the Nationals just looking to ride out the final few weeks of the season, Garcia is expected to start pretty much every game for the team for the time being, and while it is again not the most glamorous profile, if he can remain a roughly league-average type of hitter for the rest of the year, he should be a solid option in deep formats, especially with eligibility at both second base and shortstop.

Reviewing Last Week's Picks

At the end of each week's post, I'll review what happened with last week's picks and offer a suggestion for them in the future.

Edmundo Sosa (2B/SS, STL) 

Last week: 8% rostered. This week: 5% rostered. 

Sosa's roster rate dropped this week, as he didn't have a particularly standout week, hitting for just a 73 wRC+, but it did come with a .313 batting average-- there just wasn't anything else there in terms of power and just two runs driven in, while also not playing a few games during the weekend. It may not have helped much, but with dual-eligibility and what should be everyday playing time, he can hopefully recover and be a good option down the stretch.

Current recommendation: Hold.

Lane Thomas (OF, WAS)

Last week: 8% rostered. This week: 18% rostered. 

As Thomas continues to play well, his roster rate spikes along with it. He didn't hit for a high average last week, but his overall .217/.357/.478 line is still strong as he continues to hit for good power. Overall since becoming a National, it's been an impressive .293/.383/.515 line, which will certainly be useful for fantasy purposes.

Current recommendation: Hold. 

Bradley Zimmer 

Last week: 3% rostered. This week: 2% rostered. 

It was just sporadic playing time for Zimmer last week as Cleveland faced a few left-handed starters, and it doesn't help that Zimmer failed to get a single hit in one of the 12 plate appearances he did get when he was in the lineup. He was showing promise as an under-the-radar power-speed option, but it is too late in the season to be hoping for a bounceback right now. This looks like a clear drop.

Current recommendation: Drop.   

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