The Top First-Half Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Gems for 2026

July 12, 2026

Mike discusses the top fantasy baseball waiver wire gems from the first half of 2026. These players have been the best waiver wire pickups so far this year.

Every season, fantasy players look for those guys who go late in drafts or are totally undrafted. We pride ourselves on finding "our guys" that other people might not believe in, or guys they have misapplied value to in their preparation. 

There have been a handful of waiver-wire players who have turned into fantasy superstars. In this article, we will look at 12 of the biggest first-half waiver wire gems for fantasy baseball. All 12 of these players were going outside the top 250 in NFC leagues in 2026 fantasy baseball drafts. 

As a reminder, every league is different. So, some players on this list might have gotten drafted in the later rounds of your fantasy leagues and never made it to the waiver wire. However, many of these guys were not drafted in most leagues. Let's look at these first-half gems. 

Brandon Marsh, OF, Philadelphia Phillies

The story about Marsh was always that he had the talent to put it together and become a star player for Philadelphia. However, he had struggled over the years against left-handed pitching and found himself in a persistent platoon.

He largely went undrafted or very late in drafts as a flyer and was on the waiver wire in most leagues on Opening Day. Well, Marsh went ahead and changed that narrative while earning a full-time job.

He followed a .286 batting average, four home runs, 15 RBI, two stolen bases, and 12 runs scored in April with a torrid .333 batting average in May, followed by a nine-homer, four-stolen-base June.

The talent was always there, and then it coalesced when he got the full opportunity. Marsh is hitting .305 with 15 home runs (one away from his career-high of 16), 46 RBI, eight stolen bases, and 50 runs scored this season. Those who rostered him are likely doing well in their leagues so far.

Cole Young, 2B, Seattle Mariners

I would like to acknowledge my friend Sam Wirsching for the Young recommendation. As I was heading into the room for the Tout Wars mixed auction draft, Sam, a diehard Seattle Mariners fan, told me to think about taking Young late in the draft.

He felt Young would get daily playing time and perform well. So, I took him late, and that is about all that has gone well for that team this season!

Young has been an important cog in the machine for Seattle, hitting .254 with 10 home runs, 42 RBI, two stolen bases, and 42 runs scored while holding down the second base job. There has been some bad luck with his batting average, as his expected average is actually .278.

That's not bad for a guy who was expected by most to ride the Triple-A shuttle for most of the season. Young looks like he is here to stay. Thanks, Sam!

Josh Jung, 3B, Texas Rangers

Another shout to my podcast partner, Dave Funnell, for reminding me about Jung. With the dearth of top-line third basemen available, many fantasy players decided to wait on the position or try to create an amalgam of a third baseman late in drafts.

Dave told me to take a long look at Jung, and so I did. All Jung has done is be excellent: .297 batting average, nine homers, 34 RBI, one stolen base, and 41 runs scored. And he's been healthy, having played in 83 games. His 96 hits and 22 doubles have him atop the leaderboard in both stats.

Given the injuries to top third basemen like Jose Ramirez and Matt Chapman, and the down year of Alex Bregman so far, Jung has been a great prize off the waiver wire.

Jake Bauers, 1B/OF, Milwaukee Brewers

Bauers was always the type of guy who would land a bench job in Spring Training and find his way to 250+ at-bats for a major league team. However, a hamate bone injury to timeshare partner Andrew Vaughn led to Bauers getting daily playing time in Milwaukee.

That has led to a career-high .265 batting average, 16 home runs, 54 RBI, five stolen bases, 52 runs scored, and a daily lineup spot on a first-place team.

Take a look below, and the metrics back it up. Bauers is hitting the ball harder than ever and walking at a high clip. His 12.6% walk percentage is in the top 20% in the game. He should continue to see at-bats on a very good team, and with dual positional eligibility, he can really help fantasy squads.

Jake McCarthy, OF, Colorado Rockies

McCarthy was an afterthought in most leagues, seen as a speed filler late in drafts or off the waiver wire. With the glut of outfield options in Colorado, few predicted a starting job. Well, here we are. He is now a starter there, showing no signs of slowing down.

He is hitting a robust .302 with a career-high nine home runs, 51 RBI, 14 stolen bases, and 37 runs scored. He hit .326 in June and is hitting .323 in July thus far. He has surprised in the power department, but ride the wave until it crashes. Maybe it won't.

Miguel Vargas, 1B/3B, Chicago White Sox

A lifelong White Sox fan, Vargas has become my favorite player on a team of overachievers. Vargas was either going very late in drafts or undrafted in most leagues. Knowing that he had a secure job, 500 at-bats in front of him, and eligibility at both corner infield spots made him attractive.

While his .242 batting average is not much help, Vargas has 20 home runs, 56 RBI, a surprising 11 stolen bases, and 61 runs scored. All of those stats have him in the top 10 in the American League. Check out his Statcast below; what is not to like?

He makes hard contact, does not strike out, does not chase pitches, takes walks, and has a 15% barrel rate. This is the type of player that wins the league for you.

Brayan Rocchio, 2B, Cleveland Guardians

Rocchio has stormed the league this year, and he's hitting .272 with seven home runs, 40 RBI, 15 stolen bases, and 37 runs scored. He has done most of his damage from the number six spot in the order. More importantly, Rocchio has stabilized the shortstop position for a team fighting for a playoff spot.

Jacob Latz, P, Texas Rangers

Latz was not drafted in many leagues because there was no clear role for him. Some knew the stuff would play in the rotation or the bullpen, but no one saw the level of success Latz has achieved in the closer role.

He has been lights out, posting a whopping 11 saves in June and terrific ratios to help your team. There is no reason to think that this success cannot continue. Latz is a fantasy stud. Just look at his splits below.

Foster Griffin, P, Washington Nationals

Griffin was signed back to play in the major leagues by a team looking for veteran starters to come in and eat innings. Griffin has done far more than that this season. All he has done this year is win 10 games, post a 2.77 ERA, a 1.02 WHIP, and an impressive 109 strikeouts in 110 innings.

How is he doing it?

By limiting hard contact and getting guys to chase, all while posting a nice 24.5% K% and a 45.2% ground-ball percentage. Griffin makes a nice trade piece for the second half if you don't believe in his first-half success.

J.T. Ginn, P, Athletics

Ginn was on the waiver wire in all but the deepest of leagues. He is an interesting study to me. Known for having a powerful arm, Ginn has refined his arsenal this year and given up some of the strikeout potential to actually become a better pitcher.

Ginn has seven wins, a nice 3.10 ERA, a 1.22 WHIP, and a helpful 86 strikeouts in 98 innings. Rostered to stabilize the back of fantasy rotations when injury and ineffectiveness hit, Ginn is now a mid-rotation staple for many teams.

Andre Pallante, P, St. Louis Cardinals

Pallante was the definition of a streamer for years. Fantasy managers might pick him up and use him for a spot start against a bad team and hope to get some decent results. However, Pallante has been the bedrock of a refurbished St. Louis rotation.

He earned his tenth win last week in a 17-1 shellacking of the Chicago Cubs. Across 17 starts, the veteran has a 3.60 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP. There's not much help with strikeouts (70 in 95 innings), but that feels like a quibble.

In essence, Pallante has been the ace of a surprising Cardinals' staff and team. He has a 54.6% groundball percentage and an 87.3 mph average exit velocity. He limits walks, and while he doesn't get a lot of swings and misses, he gets tons of outs.

Need wins and good ratios? Look at Pallante. He is still available in more than half of Yahoo! leagues.

Sean Burke, P,  Chicago White Sox

Some drafters took a flyer on Burke late in drafts, but many took a wait-and-see attitude toward the young right-hander, which was a smart move. Burke has pitched well recently for the White Sox.

Burke has been good for the Sox, nabbing five wins, a 3.56 ERA, a 1.22 WHIP, and 106 strikeouts in 98 innings. He has pitched at least six innings in his last two outings, so he is giving some length in games.

What intrigues me about Burke is the increase in his strikeout rate. He has at least six punchouts in his last seven outings. Burke has a 3.29 ERA and a somewhat high 1.35 WHIP over that time, but if he is getting wins and strikeouts, I can live with a slightly higher ratio there.

If you have him at the back-end of your rotation, you are probably having a good season. Evaluating starting pitching is very difficult, and finding guys like Burke is a great feeling.

Justin Wrobleski, P, Los Angeles Dodgers

Wrobleski is another in a long line of Dodgers' pitchers who make a big contribution when he gets the opportunity. He has 10 wins, a sparkling 2.69 ERA, a tidy 1.02 WHIP, but a low strikeout total of 73 in 100 innings. He was on the waiver wire in most leagues to start the year.

As fantasy players, we should be interested in any pitcher who starts games for the Dodgers. They are more likely, at least on the surface, to be in line for wins. Teams that are starved for wins should be looking more at guys like Wrobleski.

There were several other guys considered for this piece, and more that will have stellar second-half performances. Who is on your list of first-half waiver wire gems? The lesson here is that there is life to our teams after drafting. The process of improving teams should always be ongoing.

Enjoy the coming break next week, and get prepared for a fast-moving second half to follow.

More Fantasy Baseball Advice