Joaquin Benoit (RP, SD) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Stash in Deeper Leagues OWNED IN: 14% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: The San Diego Padres have been at the center of big name trade talks before Friday's trade deadline, and the leaders of San Diego's bullpen Craig Kimbrel and Joaquin Benoit are being mentioned by many buyers this week. Benoit has earned the attention […]

Edward Mujica (OAK, RP) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Saves Leagues OWNED IN: 20% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: After the A's traded Tyler Clippard to the Mets on Monday, the ninth inning is up for grabs in Oakland. Drew Pomeranz could be a factor, but there's still a chance he transitions back into the rotation. For this reason, Mujica could run […]

J.J. Hoover (RP, CIN) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Stash in Deeper Leagues OWNED IN: 5% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: The Cincinnati Reds are blowing up their team and with that fallout comes opportunities for other players to become fantasy relevant. With the potential trade of Aroldis Chapman looming on the horizon, J.J. Hoover should be taking over the ninth in the Queen City. Even including Hoover's […]

Michael Conforto (OF, NYM) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team / NL-Only Leagues OWNED IN: 17% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: It took quite some time for the New York Mets to put ailing OF Michael Cuddyer on the shelf. But they didn't wait long at all to add another Michael to their roster to help bolster their hitting which has slumped […]

Ken Giles (RP, PHI) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Saves Leagues OWNED IN: 41% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: The Philadelphia Phillies just traded current closer Jonathan Papelbon to the Washington Nationals. While setup man Ken Giles is already owned in 41% of fantasy baseball leagues, he is still being written about as he should be grabbed everywhere now that Papelbon is out of the picture. […]

Patrick Corbin (SP, ARI) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Stream in NL-Only and Deep Mixed Leagues Ownership: 15% Yahoo!, 15% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Patrick Corbin finally earned his first win of the season in his last outing. The Diamondbacks are hoping that his 10-strikeout, seven-inning performance will continue against the offensively-challenged Mariners on Wednesday. Seattle owns a somewhat healthy 20.5% K rate against lefties. […]

Edward Mujica (RP, OAK) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Saves Leagues OWNED IN: 3% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: The Oakland Athletics just traded current closer Tyler Clippard to the New York Mets. This opens the question of who will be the next closer for Oakland? Based on current game usage, the answer would seem to be Edward Mujica. Although his numbers haven't […]

Aaron Nola (SP, PHI) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues OWNED IN: 24% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: The Year of the Youth carries on with Aaron Nola, the highest rated pitching prospect (28th overall) to reach the majors this year. The Nola hype train only added more coal to its burners in his debut (6 IP, 1 ER, 6/0 K/BB), so what’s […]

Ervin Santana (SP, MIN) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 10+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 50% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: Like a scorned lover, fantasy owners kept Ervin Santana out of sight and out of mind for his 80 game suspension, but he’s come storming back into our hearts and deserves our attention. Through his first four starts he’s racked up a 2-0 […]

Tom Koehler (SP, MIA) - Waiver Wire Analysis

BALLER MOVE: Add in 14+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 26% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: The Marlins have been a sneaky source for a quality pitching this year and the buck doesn’t stop with Tom Koehler. Koehler has arguably been the Marlins #2 behind Jose Fernandez since the start of June. Koehler was excellent last time out at the […]

Danny Duffy (SP, KC) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 14+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 21% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: The Duffmeister has come back with a fury after a DL stint, posting a 2.15 ERA over six starts. Even more impressive has been the month of July where he owns a 1.37 ERA, including his latest outing vs HOU (6 IP, 1 ER, […]

Erasmo Ramirez (SP, TB) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 10+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 33% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: Erasmo Ramirez has been discussed at Rotoballer previously so I’m not going to dive too deep here. After his rough outing vs Baltimore (7.1 IP, 5 ER, 3K) it’s possible a few owners jumped ship this weekend. Keep in mind the majority of that damage […]

Chris Tillman (SP, BAL) - Waiver Wire Analysis

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 40% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: Chris Tillman was drafted in almost every league this preseason with most projecting he would serve as the Orioles ace. That didn’t come to fruition (Wei-Yen Chen has been their best SP) and Tillman saw his ownership start to tank after posting a […]

Randal Grichuk (OF, STL) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 10+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 33% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: According to StatCast, Grichuk’s exit velocity (the average speed of the ball off his bat) is second in all of baseball, behind some guy named Giancarlo Stanton. Put another way, this kid hits the crap out of the ball. The former first-round pick has […]

Nori Aoki (OF, SF) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 38% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: Aoki will be returning from his leg injury on Monday. Before suffering the small fibula fracture, he was having an excellent first season in the Bay Area with a .317/.383/.386 slash line. With just three homers over his last 750 at-bats, Aoki won’t help you […]

Dexter Fowler (OF, CHC) - Waiver Wire Analysis

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 46% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: Fowler slumped badly after an excellent start to the season. He’s still managed to accrue enough counting stats to be relevant in many leagues with eight homers, 15 steals, and 58 runs scored. That .239 batting average isn’t doing owners any favors, but there’s […]

Jed Lowrie (SS, HOU) - Waiver Wire Analysis

BALLER MOVE: Stash in 14+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 7% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: Lowrie has just begun his rehab stint after being on the shelf since late April. While Carlos Correa and Jose Altuveare locked in up the middle, Lowrie should see ample playing time at the corner infield positions and spelling both of the aforementioned middle […]

Scooter Gennett (2B, MIL) - Waiver Wire Analysis

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 5% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: I don’t get how Gennett’s ownership percentage is still so low. In his last 30 games (roughly around the time he was recalled from Triple-A), Gennett is hitting .364 with 13 runs scored, two homers, 11 RBIs, and only six total strikeouts. He’s hitting […]

Delino DeShields (2B / OF, TEX) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 1o+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 16% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: DeShields has been thriving at the top of the capable Rangers lineup in recent weeks, hitting .333 with over his last 15 games. He’s also swiped three bags over that time span, bringing him to 16 on the season. He should continue to score […]

Jung Ho Kang (3B / SS, PIT) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 10+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 20% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: While Kang’s power hasn’t translated to the majors as much as the Pirates probably hoped, he’s having a fine rookie season. A barrage of hits since the break has lifted his overall slash line to a tidy .285/.363/.418. Even with the return of prodigal […]

Nick Castellanos (3B, DET) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 10+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 17% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: Losing Miguel Cabrera was a huge blow to the Tigers’ precarious playoff hopes. While they remain on the edge of the bubble, Castellanos has improbably stepped up to help fill the void. He’s hit .292/.356/.523 in July with four homers and 26 R+RBI. As […]

Billy Butler (1B, OAK) - Waiver Wire Analysis

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 38% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: Since his career year in 2012, the man they call Country Breakfast has been more like a crappy hotel continental. Butler’s numbers have dropped pretty much across the board every season. Given that, it’s sort of surprising he’s owned in as many leagues as […]

Kelly Johnson (1B / 3B / OF, NYM) - Waiver Wire Analysis

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 11% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: With a new ball club, it’s unclear exactly how the Mets plan to deploy Johnon. He’s done what he can to prove he shouldn’t be relegated to the bench, though. With a .925 OPS this month, he’s raised his season line to .275/.321/.451. Johnson […]

C.J. Cron (1B, LAA) - Waiver Wire Analysis

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 9% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: Though they might be able to do better. Cron struggled badly for most of the first half, but has turned a corner in July. Since the calendar flipped, he’s exploded for a .447/.460/.723 line. While that obviously isn’t going to continue, Cron definitely has […]

Matt Shoemaker (SP, LAA) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 14+ and AL-Only Leagues OWNED IN: 21% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: After a breakout season in 2014, Matt Shoemaker had every intention of becoming a mainstay in the Angels rotation. After a rough first two months, Shoemaker has settled back into some form of normalcy and has become a viable part […]

Trevor Plouffe (3B, MIN) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 10+ and AL-Only leagues. OWNED IN: 43% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: The only talk coming out of the Twin Cities that involved Trevor Plouffe this season was how long would it take for Miguel Sano to take his job? The answer to that clearly has been that Mr. Plouffe still has […]

Robbie Ray (SP, AZ) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 10+ and NL-Only Leagues. OWNED IN: 9% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: If someone were to ask you who the best pitcher in 2015 has been for the Arizona Diamondbacks, the answer should be Robbie Ray. Chase Anderson had a nice first half, but ever since Robbie Ray was inserted into the […]

Danny Duffy (SP, KC) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ and AL-Only Leagues. OWNED IN: 11% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: Ever since Danny Duffy came back from left biceps tendinitis, he has become the pitcher the Royals were expecting all along. The stats may not wow anyone, but his effectiveness has taken some serious strides forward this season. With less […]

Aaron Hicks (OF, MIN) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 4% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: While Byron Buxton and Torii Hunter have grabbed the headlines during Minnesota's surprisingly resurgent season, it is Aaron Hicks who has been stealing the show lately (not in attention though, just look at his ownership). Hicks has just 155 AB in […]

Michael Conforto (OF, NYM) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 16% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: The 22-year-old Conforto was just called up from Double-A, and he’d only been there since May. So expectations probably should be on the modest side. On the other hand, he was the 10th overall pick in last year’s draft and hit .312/.396/.503 in that […]