Eric Cross' Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Pickups: Hitters and Pitchers (Week 15)

July 3, 2026

Eric Cross' top fantasy baseball waiver wire adds for Week 15 of 2026 (July 5 - July 12). His favorite free agent hitters and pitchers under 40% rostered.

Temperatures are rising across the country, especially here in the Northeast, where it's currently 92° outside here in Maine. Plenty of players are on the rise lately as well, who could help out your fantasy teams in one way or another. There's also a theme to this week's waiver wire report, with a few names providing positional eligibility at three or more positions.

The players below are all under 40 percent rostered in Yahoo! leagues. Some of them might already be rostered in your leagues, but if they're available, I'd recommend considering them to see if they could be good fits for your fantasy teams.

Last week's waiver wire recommendations: Nasim Nunez (WAS), Samad Taylor (SDP), Dylan Crews (WAS), Cole Carrigg (COL), Joey Cantillo (CLE), Jake Bennett (BOS)

Jake McCarthy (OF - COL)

40% Rostered on Yahoo

I'm shocked that Jake McCarthy is still available in 60% of Yahoo leagues. If your league is highly competitive, he's probably already been scooped up. But if he's still sitting on your waiver wire, I'd recommend grabbing him immediately. McCarthy is coming off back-to-back productive months in May and June, highlighted by a .326/.361/.554 slash line in June with 13 runs, 13 RBI, three home runs, and three steals.

The @Rockies retake the lead on Jake McCarthy's 2-run homer! pic.twitter.com/YDbG0XKEWc

— MLB (@MLB) July 2, 2026

This was McCarthy's fourth straight month with at least three steals, and he has one of the top sprint speeds in all of baseball for the season, currently sitting in the 98th percentile. On top of that, McCarthy is running an 84.8% zone and 77.8% overall contact rate while only striking out in 17.8% of his plate appearances. And while his quality of contact metrics are all worse than league average, McCarthy's 14.9% Pull-Air rate isn't bad, and he's taken advantage of playing half his games in Coors Field, with five of his seven home runs coming at home.

Even as a below-average power producer, McCarthy can still provide decent value for your fantasy teams, so I'd go scoop him up if he's available in your leagues.

Tommy Edman (2B/3B/OF - LAD)

24% Rostered on Yahoo

I feel like Tommy Edman is a player I write about in a waiver wire article at least once a season. After missing two and a half months due to an ankle issue, Edman has been hitting extremely well since being activated from the injured list. In his first 51 plate appearances, Edman has slashed .378/.451/.556 with five runs, nine RBI, a home run, and a steal.

Edman has bounced all over the place in terms of position and lineup spot, but that's always been the case with Edman. The important thing is that he's six of the Dodgers' last seven games. And all the moving around on the field has led to Edman having positional eligibility at two or more positions for basically his entire career.

At the plate, it's been a small sample size, but Edman's metrics have been solid. He's currently rocking an 8.3 barrel rate, 90.5 mph AVG EV, and a 38.% hard-hit rate, the latter two of which would be new career-best marks for Edman. He's also walking at an 11.8% clip with a 92.1% zone and 81.2% overall contact rate. Coming into this season, Edman has never produced a walk rate higher than 7.3%.

Edman can do a little of everything for your fantasy team, and the ability to slot him in at three different positions adds value as well.

Kody Clemens (1B/2B/OF - MIN)

25% Rostered on Yahoo

Speaking of sneaky-good waiver wire targets with multi-positional eligibility, Kody Clemens definitely deserves more love in fantasy leagues. Clemens has quietly been putting together a career-year at the plate, slashing .241/.303/.474 with 14 home runs, 38 RBI, 38 runs scored, and six steals in 74 games for the Minnesota Twins. He's one of just 22 players to have at least 14 home runs, six steals, 38 runs, 38 RBI, and a batting average of .240 or higher this season.

Kody Clemens hits a three-run homer in Houston! pic.twitter.com/hOwJ787lXU

— MLB (@MLB) July 2, 2026

Clemens' quality of contact metrics have been impressive once again this season. This is the second straight season where he's recorded a barrel rate above 12%, an AVG EV above 91 mph, and a hard-hit rate of at least 46%. He's also trimmed his strikeout rate to a career-best 21.6% while having a zone and overall contact rate around league average.

No, Clemens isn't going to be a league-winning addition, but he's a valuable piece to have. Clemens is currently on pace for a 70/25/70/10/.240 season while having eligibility at first base, second base, and in the outfield. That also means you can plug him in at corner and middle infield.

Javier Sanoja (2B/3B/SS/OF - MIA)

23% Rostered on Yahoo

Oh look, another waiver wire target with eligibility at three positions or more. Apparently that's the trend this week. The Miami Marlins have been winning a ton of games over the last month, and Sanoja has been a solid part of that run, starting regularly across three different infield positions. Over the last six games, Sanoja has started in five of those, slotting in at third base three times, once at second base, and once at shortstop. He also carries outfield eligibility, making him eligible at four different positions.

Over the last 30 days, Sanoja has been taking advantage of the increased playing time, slashing .316/.338/.500 with two home runs, two steals, 14 RBI, 11 runs, and a 126 wRC+. For the season, Sanoja has below-average quality of contact metrics, but he has stood out in the contact department with a 91.7% zone contact rate, 87.9% overall contact rate, and a strikeout rate of just 9.8%.

While his counting stats won't knock your socks off, Sanoja can provide a little of everything along with a good average and that four-position eligibility I mentioned above.

Garrett Mitchell (OF - MIL)

6% Rostered on Yahoo

If you want to see a fun, yet concerning Baseball Savant page, look no further than Garrett Mitchell. Basically every metric looks really good or really bad, with not many in between. That often leads to plenty of peaks and valleys within a season, which has been the case for Mitchell for nearly his entire career. But overall here in 2026, he's slashed .265/.361/.452 with seven home runs, six steals, 40 RBI, and 36 runs scored across 267 plate appearances.

The areas where Mitchell excels offensively are in the power and speed departments. He's currently sporting a 92.6 mph AVG EV, 14% barrel rate, and a 49.7% hard-hit rate, the latter two of which are career-best marks. Mitchell also ranks in the 98th percentile for sprint speed, 96th percentile for bat speed, 90th percentile for chase rate (22.2%), and has an 83rd percentile walk rate.

But on the other end of the metric spectrum lies a 33.3% strikeout rate, 37.6% whiff rate, and a 54.5% groundball rate. Those three metrics have really limited Mitchell's overall value this season, but he makes for a fine outfield target in deeper leagues. And thankfully, Mitchell's stellar defense in center field helps keep him in the Milwaukee lineup on a regular basis.

Ian Seymour (SP - TBR)

30% Rostered on Yahoo

There aren't a ton of pitchers who intrigue me this week, but one that certainly does is Tampa Bay's Ian Seymour. After spending the first two months of the season in the Rays' bullpen, Seymour has transitioned to the rotation over the last four weeks, and his last two starts have put him in priority add territory. In back-to-back outings against the Kansas City Royals, Seymour combined to allow just three hits, one earned run, and two walks in 12.2 innings while striking out 15 Royals batters.

Ian Seymour, Nasty 84mph Changeup. 👌 pic.twitter.com/Y1W5mS3lGM

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) July 3, 2026

Yes, these two outings came against a below-average offense, but we can't ignore how impressive Seymour has been. For the season, Seymour has a middling 4.02 ERA, but that comes with a 3.33 xERA, 1.09 WHIP, 9.1% walk rate, and a 26.1% strikeout rate. And when you pop the hood, you'll find an impressive 33.5% chase rate, 29.3% whiff rate, and a .207 xBA, which ranks in the 86th percentile. Seymour also does a nice job of limiting hard contact.

While he technically is a 6-pitch guy, Seymour primarily works with a 4-seamer, sinker, changeup, and sweeper, the latter two of which have a whiff rate above 33% this season. Seymour won't dazzle you with his velocity, but he's pitching well right now with plenty of metrics to be encouraged by.

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