X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Join the Best Live Fantasy Chat Community!

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Pickups & Streamers
Rookies & Call-Ups
News and Alerts

Digging Deeper - Waiver Wire Options for Week 24

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.

Editor's Note: Our incredible team of writers received 13 award nominations by the Fantasy Sports Writers Association including Baseball Writer of the Year, Football Writers of the Year, Golf Writer of the Year and many more! Be sure to follow their analysis, rankings and advice all year long, and win big with RotoBaller! Read More!

 

Edmundo Sosa - 2B/SS, Cardinals

8% rostered
Recommended move: Add for a few weeks 

Sosa has firmly taken hold of the starting shortstop spot for the Cardinals down the stretch with the continued struggles of Paul DeJong. It makes sense considering that Sosa has played well for a Cardinals team trying to make a late-season surge towards a wild card spot.

His overall line isn't all the overwhelming at a .275/.352/.399 mark (108 wRC+), but it does show that he can be at least a competent bat for fantasy purposes. He'll provide enough in terms of batting average to make up for little power and not the most counting stats. He has, however, been playing at an even greater pace since the start of August, with a .347/.424/.583 triple slash, which seems to explain why he continues to stick in the Cardinals' lineup on a near-everyday basis. His Statcast metrics aren't the most impressive in that span, with just a 36.7% hard-hit rate and a 6.7% barrel rate, so this level of production is probably not all sustainable, but maybe he can make it last a few weeks longer and still help out some fantasy teams.

It also doesn't hurt that Sosa is dual eligible at both middle infield spots, so he does offer some additional roster flexibility. Additionally, while he isn't a super-huge stolen base threat, he does have three of them, so perhaps there will be some extra opportunities in the final weeks of the year. All in all, Sosa looks like a decent enough option, who probably won't overwhelm with his performance, but should be solid enough.

 

Lane Thomas - OF, Nationals

8% rostered
Recommended move: Add for a few weeks

Thomas was acquired by the Nationals from the Cardinals in exchange for Jon Lester at the deadline back in July. After spending a couple of weeks in the Nationals' minor league system, they called him up on August 15th, and he's done nothing but hit in that span. He's hitting at a .333/.402/.556 (153 wRC+) clip since his call-up, which is miles ahead of what he did in limited playing time for the Cardinals this season and in 2020, in which he had wRC+ marks in the 20s.

How much should we buy into this though? Looking at Thomas' Statcast metrics since becoming a National, it does look like he's hitting the ball a lot harder, which corresponds with the strong results he's gotten. His hard-hit and barrel rates of 46.4% and 8.9% are both well ahead of where they were earlier in the year and last season. His barrel rate would only be topped by what he did in a brief look for the Cardinals back in 2019 when he had a strong 13.3% rate in just thirty batted balls. We are still dealing with a small sample though, and of course, we would rather have a lot more to base this off of, but it does appear that Thomas is doing a lot of things right at the plate, with the Statcast metrics backing up his actual ones in that regard.

He could come back down to Earth in the next couple of weeks, but he's hitting too well at the moment to be ignored, and if he can make this last for the rest of the season, it'll be very worth it for a few fantasy managers out there. There's not much to worry about when it comes to playing time, either. He's been hitting leadoff for the Nats pretty much since his call up, and there really isn't any reason for the team to move him down any time soon unless things get really ugly.

 

Bradley Zimmer - OF, Cleveland

3% rostered
Recommended move: Add for a few weeks 

Zimmer has been recommended here before, and while he's not coming off the best week in which he hit at an extremely weak .167/.259/.167 line, the overall trend on Zimmer still looks to be going up, as his performance in the second half of the year has been much better than what we saw from earlier in the year and in the past couple of seasons. For the second half, it's been a .259/.327/.424 slash line, which is solid, if unspectacular.

For Zimmer, his biggest weakness is his strikeout rate. Even in the better second half, his strikeout rate is still well over 30%, which limits just how much upside he has. But when he makes contact, he does really well. His overall 39.6% hard-hit rate is his highest mark since 2018, and the same goes for his barrel and average exit velocity marks. His maximum exit velocity is a strong 113.9 miles-per-hour, which places him in the 92nd percentile of all hitters this year, and his overall wOBA on contact mark of .430 is hovering around the same area of the leaderboard as Max Muncy, Bryan Reynolds, and Trea Turner. Zimmer definitely does get good results when he puts the ball in play, the problem is that it just doesn't happen enough. While that does have an impact on just how productive a fantasy player he will be, he does look to be a good source of power for those managers that are willing to stomach a lower batting average.

Zimmer is also a good option for some sneaky stolen base potential. He has 12 of them on the season, with two of them coming since August 26th. His power-speed profile could make him more intriguing for those looking to bank some extra steals for the stretch run of the season.

 

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

3% rostered
Recommended move: Add for a few weeks 

Starting around late June, Urias has gotten the majority of playing time for the Orioles first at shortstop and now at either second or third base. He has quietly been a solid producer, with a .280/.361/.418 slash line, which is good enough for a 118 wRC+ in that span.

It's not the most glamorous type of fantasy production, as he isn't hitting for much power or providing much of anything in terms of stolen bases or counting stats, but it is a solid profile of competency at the plate-- something that can be rather difficult to find on the waiver wire this deep into the season and in deeper formats. He's also doing it with respectable barrel and hard-hit rates of 10.3% and 41.1%, respectively, both of which are well above the league average.

While we would obviously like for there to be something extra or something that truly stands out about Urias, there isn't anything overly wrong with being a boring, steady contributor, which is what Urias looks to be. He's going to be playing every day and with triple eligibility, he can be someone that a manager plugs and plays into their lineup to fill in for a couple of days a week in case a starter is on the bench or injured. It's not glamorous, but it is useful.

 

DJ Peters - OF, Rangers

3% rostered
Recommended move: Add for a few weeks 

Peters was a quiet waiver claim by the Rangers back in early August. He did have some fanfare as a prospect at one point, mostly due to his power, which got a 70 grade from FanGraphs coming into the year. However, as is typical for huge power hitters, that came with a high strikeout rate. His 35.2% strikeout rate for the season pretty much shows this, and with the Dodgers needing the space on their 40-man roster, they felt free to let him go to waivers.

He has been doing the whole power and hitting home runs thing since joining the Rangers, as he's hit nine of them in just a little over a month. He's still striking out a ton and not walking all that much, and overall, it's a .208/.234/.467 triple slash as a Ranger, which only translates to an 83 wRC+. Yet, he's been doing much better in the last two weeks or so. He's still not walking much at all, but the strikeouts have come down to a more manageable 26.8% rate and he's still hitting home runs, with a whopping six of them being hit since August 24th. All told, it's a .264/.286/.642 line in that span. He's absolutely crushing the ball, with a 17.9% barrel rate and a 46.2% hard-hit rate, and he's doing a good job of keeping the ball off the ground with just a 33.3% groundball rate in this hot stretch, which likely is a good explanation for this power surge.

Still just 25-years-old, the Rangers will definitely be interested in evaluating what they have in Peters for the remainder of the year. He's been locked into the starting lineup ever since becoming a Ranger and in the cleanup spot most nights. It's a one-dimensional profile, in that he's going to be hitting for a ton of power and not much else, it should still at least come with some decent counting stats. If he can keep this home run binge going for a few more weeks to close out the season, he could be quite the difference-maker in deep leagues,

 

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.

Odubel Herrera (OF, PHI)  

Last week: 9% rostered. This week: 13% rostered. 

Herrera had a good week last week, albeit a somewhat one-dimensional one with a .320/.414/.320 slash line. The batting average was certainly helpful, and he should remain somewhere around league-average to slightly above league-average for the rest of the year while continuing to hit leadoff for the Phillies. He should stick around on fantasy teams going forward.

Current recommendation: Hold.

Yadiel Hernandez (OF, WAS) 

Last week: 5% rostered. This week: 3% rostered. 

Hernandez did not have a good week last week, as he had just two hits. He should still be in the lineup most days going forward as the Nationals close out their season, but it is likely that there are better outfielders available on the wire (the aforementioned Thomas, his teammate, being one of them). He seems like a safe drop.

Current recommendation: Drop. 

Jorge Mateo (2B/SS/OF, BAL)

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

After having an unsustainable BABIP during his time with the Orioles so far, Mateo did cool down last week, as he had just four hits. He did hit a home run and drove in three, so it wasn't all bad, but he did get caught stealing on his only attempt. It's probably worth holding onto him for one more week to see if he can get something back, and the stolen base threat he poses may be too juicy to drop.

Current recommendation: Hold.  

Emmanuel Rivera (3B, KC)

Last week: 1% rostered. This week: 0% rostered. 

Adalberto Mondesi came back from his oblique injury last week and is now playing third base, so that likely will mean the end of Rivera's time as an everyday player. Rivera only started twice since September 2nd, so this is definitely not worth holding.

Current recommendation: Drop. 

Josh VanMeter (1B/2B/3B/OF, ARI) 

Last week: 0% rostered. This week: 0% rostered. 

VanMeter started just three games for the D-Backs last week with the team facing just three right-handed starters. He had just two hits in those games, and didn't do anything particularly meaningful with them. The D-Backs do face the Rangers this week, but then get the Mariners and a batch of lefty starters, so it's unlikely VanMeter makes much of an impact this week, and there isn't much of a point to roster him in that case.

Current recommendation: Drop. 



Download Our Free News & Alerts Mobile App

Like what you see? Download our updated fantasy baseball app for iPhone and Android with 24x7 player news, injury alerts, sleepers, prospects & more. All free!



More Fantasy Baseball Advice




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Pickups & Streamers
Rookies & Call-Ups
News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Keenan Allen33 mins ago

Questionable For Week 13
Dallas Goedert36 mins ago

Doubtful To Play In Week 13
Treylon Burks1 hour ago

Questionable To Face Colts
DeMar DeRozan1 hour ago

Uncertain To Play Against Pelicans On Saturday
Pat Connaughton1 hour ago

Ruled Out On Saturday
Keegan Murray1 hour ago

Practices On Friday
Chris Olave1 hour ago

Still In Concussion Protocol But Not Ruled Out
Doug McDermott1 hour ago

Will Not Play Against Pelicans
Luka Doncic2 hours ago

Ruled Out On Friday Due To Personal Reasons
Joel Embiid2 hours ago

Will Be True Game-Time Decision On Friday
Devin Booker2 hours ago

Will Sit Out Against Nuggets On Friday
Victor Wembanyama2 hours ago

Will Be Sidelined On Friday
Trey McBride2 hours ago

Iffy For Week 13 Action
Marquise Brown2 hours ago

Officially Questionable Against Steelers
Julius Randle2 hours ago

Tagged As Questionable On Friday
Dalvin Cook2 hours ago

Breece Hall, Dalvin Cook Questionable For Week 13
Treylon Burks2 hours ago

Cleared To Play In Week 13
Aaron Jones3 hours ago

Ruled Out For Week 13
Jerick McKinnon3 hours ago

Chiefs Expect Jerick McKinnon, Kadarius Toney To Play In Week 13
Dougie Hamilton3 hours ago

Simon Nemec Called Up To Devils Friday, Dougie Hamilton Placed On IR
Zach Charbonnet3 hours ago

Dealing With Swelling In Knee
Adin Hill4 hours ago

Leaves Thursday's Contest Early As Precaution
Timo Meier4 hours ago

Close To Returning, Could Play Friday
Jonathan Taylor4 hours ago

Officially Ruled Out
Sam Montembeault4 hours ago

Signs Three-Year Extension With Canadiens
Nikita Zadorov4 hours ago

Traded To Vancouver
Kenneth Walker III4 hours ago

"Might" Be Able To Play In Week 14
Hayden Hurst4 hours ago

Ruled Out, Tommy Tremble Doubtful For Week 13
Dalton Schultz5 hours ago

Not Expected To Play Against Broncos
De'Von Achane5 hours ago

To Play In Week 13
Tampa Bay Buccaneers5 hours ago

Lavonte David, Devin White Out For Buccaneers Defense
Chris Godwin5 hours ago

To Be A Game-Time Decision
Aaron Rodgers5 hours ago

Returns To Practice Friday
Marquise Brown5 hours ago

"Trending In The Right Direction" For Week 13
Michael Wilson5 hours ago

Won't Play In Week 13
Beneil Dariush6 hours ago

Arman Tsarukyan A Favorite Over Beneil Dariush At UFC Austin
Jack Eichel6 hours ago

Steers Vegas Back On Track
Beneil Dariush6 hours ago

Has A Dangerous Task In Front Of Him
Brayden Schenn6 hours ago

Leads Blues To Victory Thursday
Bobby Green6 hours ago

Looking For Third Win In A Row
Noah Dobson6 hours ago

Grabs Three Assists In Thursday's Win
Jalin Turner6 hours ago

A Favorite At UFC Austin
Tyrese Haliburton6 hours ago

Notches Another Big-Time Performance
Jack Hughes6 hours ago

Adds Three More Points To His Tally
Dustin Stoltzfus6 hours ago

In Dire Need Of Victory
Trae Young6 hours ago

Posts A 45-Point Double-Double
Tom Wilson6 hours ago

Celebrates First Career Hat Trick
Jalen Brunson6 hours ago

Drops 42 Points In Win Over Pistons
Punahele Soriano7 hours ago

Looking To Return To Win Column
Jonathan Isaac7 hours ago

Tagged As Questionable On Friday
Tristan Jarry7 hours ago

Caps Off Winning Performance With Historic Goal
Jose Alvarado7 hours ago

Questionable On Friday With Ankle Sprain
Kristaps Porzingis7 hours ago

Ruled Out Against 76ers
Nicolas Batum7 hours ago

Probable To Play Against Celtics
Xavier Tillman7 hours ago

Sr. Questionable To Return On Friday
Zach LaVine7 hours ago

Will Miss One Week With Foot Soreness
Mitchell Marner16 hours ago

Scores Hat Trick In Victory
Alex Lyon17 hours ago

Earns Third Consecutive Victory
Jeremy Swayman17 hours ago

Posts Shutout Against Sharks
Matt McLain20 hours ago

Fully Healed
Shohei Ohtani20 hours ago

Wins Most Outstanding Designated Hitter Award
Chris Paul20 hours ago

To Be Re-Evaluated On Monday
Aaron Gordon20 hours ago

Listed As Questionable For Friday
Jamal Murray21 hours ago

Uncertain For Friday
Zach Hyman23 hours ago

Ready To Return On Thursday
Juuso Valimaki23 hours ago

Back For Coyotes On Thursday
Ilya Mikheyev24 hours ago

Good To Go Thursday
Dougie Hamilton24 hours ago

Won't Play On Thursday
Radko Gudas24 hours ago

On Track To Return Thursday
Andrei Svechnikov1 day ago

Expected Back On Thursday
Mark Kastelic1 day ago

Ridly Greig Placed On Long-Term IR By Senators
Dylan Cease1 day ago

Cardinals Interested In Dylan Cease
Joaquim Silva1 day ago

Looking To Return To The Win Column
Clay Guida1 day ago

Set For 36th UFC Fight
Kelvin Gastelum1 day ago

Returns To Welterweight
Tyler Glasnow1 day ago

Cubs Have Held Trade Talks On Tyler Glasnow
Sean Brady1 day ago

Looking To Rebound After First Career Loss
Deiveson Figueiredo1 day ago

Moving Up To Bantamweight
Rob Font1 day ago

Set For Third Fight Of 2023
Nick Martinez1 day ago

Agrees To Two-Year Deal With Reds
Jackson Chourio1 day ago

Brewers Expected To Complete Record-Breaking Deal
Joey Wendle2 days ago

Agrees With Mets
Devin Williams2 days ago

Wins NL Reliever Of The Year Award
Félix Bautista2 days ago

Felix Bautista Named AL Reliever Of The Year
Luis Severino2 days ago

Mets, Luis Severino Finalizing One-Year Deal
Shohei Ohtani2 days ago

Expected To Sign Before End Of Winter Meetings
Dylan Cease2 days ago

Trade Talks For Dylan Cease Have Intensified
Randy Arozarena2 days ago

Being Shopped By Rays
Bo Bichette2 days ago

Likely Staying Put
Emilio Pagán2 days ago

Emilio Pagan Agrees To Two-Year Pact With Reds
Dylan Cease3 days ago

Dodgers "Among Most Aggressive" Teams For Dylan Cease
Shohei Ohtani3 days ago

Yoshinobu Yamamoto "Above All Other Options" For Giants
Juan Soto3 days ago

"Almost Certain To Be Traded"
Cody Bellinger3 days ago

Earns NL Comeback Player Of The Year Award
Liam Hendriks3 days ago

Earns AL Comeback Player Of The Year Award
Jackson Chourio3 days ago

Brewers Discussing Deal With Top Prospect Jackson Chourio

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

MORE RECENT ARTICLES

 
Breece Hall - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Fantasy Football Injury Reports For Week 13 (Friday Updates): Aaron Rodgers, De'Von Achane, Jonathan Taylor, Keenan Allen, David Montgomery, Aaron Jones, Breece Hall, more

Heading into Week 13 of the NFL season, there is no shortage of big-name players in the injury headlines. The fantasy football playoffs are just around the corner, and these injuries could complicate start or sit decisions. Our injury updates and reports for Week 13 as of Friday, December 1, 2023, will give you the... Read More


Rhamondre Stevenson - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Week 13 Fantasy Football Matchups We Love: The Fantasy Matchmaker

Welcome back to the Week 13 Fantasy Matchmaker article looking at Week 12 matchups we love! This is my weekly series for RotoBaller where I look at the matchup strength for pretty much every viable fantasy football player across the fantasy skill positions. With only two weeks left in the fantasy football regular season, each... Read More


Kyler Murray - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL Injury News, DFS Lineup Picks

Week 13 Fantasy Busts? Players Who May Disappoint Include Kyler Murray, Breece Hall, D'Andre Swift, Drake London

Dodging busts with a full 16-game slate can be easy. With six teams on bye, it's a little bit more difficult. The Bills, Ravens, Vikings, Bears, Raiders, and Giants all get their week off this Sunday. It couldn't have come at a worse time with the fantasy playoffs for the majority of leagues just two... Read More


jaylen waddle fantasy football rankings news NFL DFS lineup picks

WR/CB Matchups to Target and Downgrade - Week 13 (2023)

Welcome to Week 13 of the WR/CB Matchups article. For those who are not familiar, this is a weekly series looking at fantasy football matchups for wide receivers versus the cornerbacks who are projected to cover them. During the past three seasons, I have tweaked my process to make the chart more user-friendly and predictive,... Read More


Bijan Robinson - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL Rookies, Draft Sleepers

Rest of Season Half-PPR Rankings: Fantasy Football Top 200 for Week 13

December approaches and the fantasy football playoffs are on the horizon. Prepare for the championship push as best you can with our Week 13 fantasy football half-PPR rankings for the rest of 2023, as of November 30. Check where key players shifted, such as Bijan Robinson, Cooper Kupp, Zack Moss, and more. These half-PPR fantasy... Read More


Brandon Aiyuk - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL Injury News

Fantasy Football Start 'Em, Sit 'Em - Week 13 Matchups Analysis

Welcome back RotoBallers to our Week 13 matchups analysis and Start Em, Sit Em column for fantasy football. Last week started out with some lopsided Thanksgiving and Black Friday contests before the game of the week on Sunday between the Eagles and Bills. The schedule goes back to normal with just one Thursday matchup, but we... Read More


Najee Harris - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Booms and Busts - Fantasy Football Starts and Sits for Week 13 Lineups

Week 13 is finally here, and it might be the most important week for those fantasy managers still fighting for a playoff spot. With most leagues having their playoffs start in Week 15, there are just two regular season games left. That means if your fantasy team is on the bubble, you have to win... Read More


Kyren Williams - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Updated Fantasy Football Staff Rankings

      Fantasy Football Rankings by NFL Position ALL - QB - RB - WR - TE - DEF Above you will find all of RotoBaller's fantasy football rankings, tiers, player news and stats for your 2023 fantasy football leagues. Our Ranking Wizard displays our staff's fantasy football rankings for various league formats, all in one easy place. Here's what you'll find: Fantasy Football... Read More


C.J. Stroud - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Week 13 NFL DFS Prop Picks - Over/Under Prop Picks for Sleeper.com

We started this week on fire, finishing 4-0 for our Thursday picks. Last week we had a good showing finishing 10-7 in total (6-6 Thursday and 4-1 Sunday) and moving our total to 53-45. This might be my last week this season writing a Sunday prop article so I have something special lined up for... Read More


C.J. Stroud - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

FanDuel NFL DFS Week 13 Picks: Top Daily Fantasy Lineup Plays Include C.J. Stroud, Kyren Williams, Amon-Ra St. Brown, George Kittle, More

It’s Week 13, and it’s the time of the year when every game matters just a bit more moving forward. The 13-game schedule began with a Thursday night meeting between the Seahawks and Cowboys, with Dallas squeezing out a win in the high-scoring affair. Then, on Sunday, teams like the Lions and Chiefs could ascend... Read More


Tua Tagovailoa - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Bold Predictions for Fantasy Football Week 13: Tua Tagovailoa, Najee Harris, Bijan Robinson, Mike Evans, Evan Engram

Week 13 is here, and I’m back with another edition of fantasy football bold predictions. This week’s list of bold predictions will include Tua Tagovailoa, Najee Harris, Bijan Robinson, Mike Evans, and Evan Engram. Every week, I will provide some fun and bold fantasy football predictions. While these bold predictions aren’t the most likely outcomes,... Read More


Jaylen Waddle - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL DFS Picks

PrizePicks NFL DFS Prop Picks - Over/Under Props for Week 13 (Sunday Main Slate)

Hello everybody, and welcome to our PrizePicks NFL DFS prop picks for Week 13 - Sunday Main Slate! The 2023 NFL season is underway, and that means our friends over at PrizePicks have a TON of great DFS plays we can look to take advantage of. Our partners at PrizePicks offer some of the best... Read More


Tua Tagovailoa - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

NFL Week 13 Fantasy Football Weather Report

Greetings, fellow football fans! I'm Erik Salveson, the newest member of the RotoBaller family. With a longstanding passion for fantasy football, I'm thrilled to dissect the weather's influence on the gridiron. This article delves into the conditions at various NFL stadiums, unraveling the secrets behind how they shape game outcomes and player performances. Rain, snow,... Read More