Dustin Ackley (2B / OF, SEA) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add In Very Deep Mixed and AL-Only Leagues ANALYSIS: Since his rookie season in 2011, Dustin Ackley has done nothing but disappoint Mariners fans and fantasy owners. In 2012, he had still-standing career-highs in home runs, stolen bases and runs, but only managed a .294 OBP. For a guy with a .397 OBP... Read More

Robinson Chirinos (C, TEX) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep AL-Only Leagues or Leagues with Two Catcher Slots ANALYSIS: Heading into the 2014 season, Robinson Chirinos had one career home run and seven RBI with a .189 batting average. Which begs the question: How did this 30-year-old lifelong minor leaguer become the starting catcher for a team that has two... Read More

Drew Stubbs (OF, COL) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add In NL-Only Leagues, Deep Mixed Leagues ANALYSIS: Drew Stubbs will likely never again be the 20-30 guy he was with Cincinnati back in 2010. He has, however, reestablished himself as a legitimate outfielder, both in fantasy and in real baseball, after he seemed destined to disappear from the realm of major league... Read More

Starting Pitcher Rookie Sleepers: Week 20 Waiver Wire Pickups

Jacob deGrom, Marcus Stroman, Yordano Ventura and Jesse Hahn are the only rookie starting pitchers with at least 10 starts that are owned in more than 50% of Yahoo! leagues, but they aren't the only rookies performing at a high level in 2014. Five other pitchers currently sit with an ERA below 4.00 in their... Read More

Caleb Joseph (C, BAL) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Leagues / All Two-Catcher Leagues ANALYSIS: Caleb Joseph may be baseball's hottest hitter, with a home run in five straight games now after Saturday night's game against the Cardinals, making him the most recent add to our waiver wire sleepers list. The 28-year-old rookie is a career .268 hitter in... Read More

Vance Worley (SP, PIT) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Most Leagues ANALYSIS: Vance Worley has made quite a resurgence with the Bucs this year after getting rocked on a consistent basis to the tune of a 7.21 ERA in 2013 with the Twins. Now back in the National League, he has regained his form, with a 2.43 ERA in 55.2... Read More

Jason Castro (C, HOU) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add In AL-Only Leagues, Mixed Leagues With Two Catcher Slots ANALYSIS: The 27-year-old catcher Jason Castro has taken a major step back this year after a breakout season in 2013. In 339 at-bats, he has posted just a .230 batting average with 11 home runs and 43 RBI. He is struggling equally against righties and... Read More

Mark Reynolds (1B / 3B, MIL) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add In Very Deep Leagues For Power Boost ANALYSIS: This isn't the same Mark Reynolds who hit 44 bombs back in 2009, but he can still drive the ball out of the park. However, that's about where his fantasy appeal ends. He hasn't posted a batting average over .240 since his breakout 2009... Read More

Javier Baez (SS, CHC) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add Immediately In Most Leagues ANALYSIS: Javier Baez is one of many top prospects currently in the Cub's farm system, along with Kris Bryant and Addison Russell. Second baseman Arismendy Alcantara was the first to get the call in early July, and now Baez is right behind him. Baez, a shortstop at the... Read More

Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Pickups: Boston Red Sox Edition

There Is A Casting Call For Young Live Arms In Boston Prior to the July 31 trade deadline, the Boston Red Sox held a complete fire sale of their starting pitchers, dealing away four out of five of their opening day rotation. Jon Lester, Jake Peavy, John Lackey and Felix Doubront were all shipped out... Read More

Ike Davis (1B, PIT) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Ignore In All But Deepest Mixed and NL-Only Leagues ANALYSIS: The Ike Davis that hit 32 round-trippers in 2012 has ceased to exist ever since. With only 16 homers in 580 at-bats since his breakout 2012 campaign, Davis has cemented himself as a platoon hitter with no real fantasy value in all but... Read More

Mike Moustakas (3B, KC) - Waiver Wire Analysis

BALLER MOVE: Ignore in Most Leagues, Consider Adding in Very Deep Leagues ANALYSIS: Once one of the top prospects in all of baseball, and on many popular sleepers lists, Mike Moustakas has been one of the biggest fantasy baseball busts in the last few years. In 2010, his final full season in the minors, he blasted... Read More

John Jaso (C / DH, OAK) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in AL-Only Leagues, Most Mixed Leagues ANALYSIS: The 30-year-old Jaso has found his place in baseball within Billy Beane's platoon system. He has been playing half his time at DH, the other half behind the dish. Now, with Yoenis Cespedes out of Oakland, things should open up for Jaso to play everyday,... Read More

Anthony Gose (OF, TOR) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in AL-Only / Deep / Deep Keeper Leagues ANALYSIS: Gose seems destined to accumulate his most single-season at-bats this year, and for good reason. In 152 at-bats to date, he has posted a .347 on-base percentage, exponentially higher than that of his first two partial seasons. Gose is known mostly for his... Read More

Yasmani Grandal (C / 1B, SD) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in NL-Only Leagues, Mixed Leagues with Two Catcher Spots ANALYSIS: After a promising rookie campaign in 2012 in which he belted eight home runs and posted a stellar .394 OBP over 192 at-bats, the once-highly-touted prospect Yasmani Grandal has struggled, not only at the plate, but to stay in baseball, as well.... Read More

Nick Kingham (SP, PIT) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep NL-Only Leagues Upon Call-Up / Continue Scouting ANALYSIS: Kingham was promoted to Triple-A by the Pirates in June with the intention of getting him to the majors sooner than later. Despite a shaky performance in his most recent outing, he owns a 3.04 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP with 91... Read More

Starting Pitcher Sleepers: Week 18 Waiver Wire Pickups

The average major league pitcher is just over 6'2'', but you'd be surprised at how many of the top pitchers are between 6'4" and 6'7". Being unusually tall seems almost imperative for a pitcher in today's game. The league average, however, is brought down a bit by a handful of pitchers who are well undersized... Read More

Jon Niese (SP, NYM) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Leagues ANALYSIS: Upon being placed on the disabled list with a shoulder injury in early July, Niese's ERA stood at 2.96 (the latest in an MLB season he had ever had a sub-3.00 ERA). The 27-year-old has improved dramatically since coming into the big leagues, and is on pace for his... Read More

Danny Santana (SS, MIN) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep Leagues ANALYSIS: Throughout his time in the minor leagues Danny Santana went from organizational depth, destined to never reach the big leagues, to one of the better pure hitters in the Twins' farm system. He has just about no power, but he has proven in 147 at-bats so far that he can... Read More

Lucas Duda (1B, NYM) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep Leagues ANALYSIS: Lucas Duda, the Mets' first baseman, is enjoying by far the best season of his career. With the 16 home runs, he has already surpassed his previous career high of 15. His 51 RBIs is just shy of his career-high 57 set in 2012, and he needs just two more runs... Read More

Jarred Cosart (SP, HOU) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Super Deep Leagues; Continue Scouting in Most ANALYSIS: Jarred Cosart is one of my favorite up-and-coming young pitchers in the game. The high school righty was drafted in the 38th round of the 2008 MLB Draft by the Phillies, and after a solid start to his minor league career, he wasshipped... Read More

Starting Pitcher Sleepers: Week 17 Waiver Wire Pickups

  Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Sleepers As the second half of the season gets into full swing, you might consider giving up on those pitchers who failed to live up to your expectations in the first half. When doing so, it is important to find someone who won't destroy your staff numbers. Chances are you aren't going... Read More

Matt Garza (SP, MIL) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Most Leagues ANALYSIS: Matt Garza has been a model of consistency since he came up to the big leagues in 2006 with the Twins. In the eight of his nine seasons in which he has thrown at least 80 innings, Garza has posted an ERA between 3.30 and 4.00. His biggest... Read More

Chris Carter (1B / OF / DH, HOU) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper / AL-Only Leagues (if looking for power) ANALYSIS: Chris Carter broke out with the A's in 2012, belting 16 home runs in just over 200 at-bats as a 25-year old, and was on some fantasy baseball sleepers lists after that. Despite hitting only .239, he found ways to get on-base, and... Read More

Second Half Fantasy Baseball Starting Pitching Sleepers

Starting Pitcher Sleepers For The Second Half For this week's column, I am going to discuss three starting pitchers who are second half sleepers in fantasy baseball. These pitchers are ready for a stronger second half after some struggles to start the year. Not coincidentally, all three have a history of improving beyond the All-Star... Read More

B.J. Upton (OF, ATL) - Waiver Wire Analysis

You need to enable JavaScript to run this app. BALLER MOVE: Continue Scouting / Ignore in Most Leagues ANALYSIS: B.J. Upton has been a complete and utter disappointment to both the Braves and to fantasy baseball owners over the past two years. In his 2014 campaign, Upton has managed just a .215 batting average with seven home... Read More

Robert Refsnyder (2B, NYY) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Continue Scouting ANALYSIS: For the first half of the season, the Yankees have had little to no production at second base between Yangervis Solarte, Brian Roberts and Brendan Ryan. The second half may be different, however, as Robert Refsnyder has been absolutely raking in the minors, with 12 home runs, 46 RBI and a... Read More

Arismendy Alcantara (2B, CHC) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in NL-Only / Deeper Leagues / Keeper Leagues ANALYSIS: Arismendy Alcantara was called up to make a two-game major league debut for the Cubs on Wednesday, with Darwin Barney out on paternity leave. Well, those two days are up, and Alcantara isn't going anywhere just yet. The sixth highest-ranked hitter the Cubs... Read More

Lorenzo Cain (OF, KC) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep Leagues ANALYSIS: Lorenzo Cain is one of my favorite sleepers in all of baseball. At 28, he is really coming into his own, getting on base 36% of the time so far in 2014. Still, he is only owned in 22% of Yahoo! leagues. An above-average outfielder, Cain has almost... Read More

Matt Joyce (OF, TB) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in AL-Only Leagues / Deeper Mixed Leagues ANALYSIS: To me, Matt Joyce is one of those guys who is always towards the top of the free agents list in average-sized mixed leagues. Maybe he gets picked up as a result of an injury, but he isn't likely to maintain control of a... Read More