Eric Cross' Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Pickups: Hitters and Pitchers (Week 25)

September 11, 2026

Eric Cross' top fantasy baseball waiver wire adds for Week 25 of 2026 (September 14 - September 20). His favorite free-agent hitters and pitchers under 40% rostered.

Another week has come and gone, and the finish line for the 2026 fantasy baseball season is drawing closer and closer. But for those of you still looking to utilize the waiver wire, there are plenty of exciting targets to consider this week.

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: Tommy Edman (LAD), Heriberto Hernandez (MIA), Hector Rodriguez (CIN), Henry Bolte (ATH), Andrew Painter (PHI), Hayden Wesneski (HOU)

Josue De Paula (OF - LAD)

13% Rostered on Yahoo

As I was just about to drift off to dream world on Wednesday night, the news broke that the Dodgers were promoting outfield prospect Josue De Paula for his Major League debut on Friday. With only two weeks left in the season, I had given up hope of seeing De Paula or any other of their elite prospects debuting this season, but Shohei Ohtani going on the IL prompted the Dodgers to bring up their top prospect, and my #1 overall prospect in my August prospect rankings.

Josue De Paula has a case for being the #1 prospect in baseball for fantasy purposes (and real life).

- Elite blend of contact and approach
- Not "fast", but aggressive/efficient with steals
- Plus power that is translating more in games#Dodgerspic.twitter.com/zg4VCW65Q8

— Eric Cross (@EricCrossMLB) July 13, 2026

You won't find a prospect with a better blend of power, speed, contact, and approach than De Paula right now. In 124 games in Double-A this season, he slashed .303/.401/.547 with 37 doubles, 27 home runs, 31 steals, and nearly as many walks (81) as strikeouts (87).

I'm not quite sure how the playing time situation will shake out, as the Dodgers have options and are oftentimes unpredictable. However, I can't imagine they'd bring up De Paula to play sparingly. With every move being so important right now for those ending their Roto/Points season or currently in a H2H playoff matchup, adding a prospect often isn't the best course of action. But I'm only recommending De Paula here because he truly could make a sizeable impact while Ohtani is out.

Henry Bolte (OF - ATH)

31% Rostered on Yahoo

One of my personal rules regarding who I select for my waiver wire articles is to never have the same player in back-to-back weeks. But every now and then, I'll break that rule if a priority waiver wire target is still available in a ton of leagues, as is the case this week with Henry Bolte of the Athletics.

"League-winning add" isn't a term I like using, as I believe it's incredibly misleading and inaccurate, but Bolte is a player who can absolutely be a notable reason why you succeed in your fantasy leagues over the next two weeks. In 37 games since the start of August, Bolte is slashing .320/.398/.517 with seven home runs, seven steals, and 27 runs scored. And in his last eight games, Bolte has smacked four homers, stolen five bags, and slashed .379/.514/.828.

Players in the 80th percentile or better in hard-hit rate, sprint speed, and bat speed.

Corbin Carroll
Jordan Walker
Fernando Tatís Jr.
Elly De La Cruz
Pete Crow-Armstrong
Garrett Mitchell
Henry Bolte 👀

The problem is that Bolte has a 64.4% groundball rate...…

— Eric Cross (@EricCrossMLB) August 24, 2026

If that doesn't tickle your fancy, how about an 81st percentile AVG EV, 88th percentile hard-hit rate, 96th percentile bat speed, and a 100th percentile sprint speed? The issue is Bolte has whiffed too much and pounded the ball into the ground too frequently, both of which have gotten better of late.

Bolte is a highly talented hitter currently on a hot streak. This is exactly the type of player that can give you a push towards a championship.

A.J. Ewing (2B/OF - NYM)

18% Rostered on Yahoo

After a rough final three weeks of August, AJ Ewing has gotten back on track here in September. In his last six games, Ewing has picked up 11 hits, including two doubles and a home run, along with a steal, two walks, and only two strikeouts. On top of that, Ewing has three multi-hit efforts in his last four games and has gotten on base in each of his last nine games.

For the season, Ewing is now up to eight home runs and 23 steals in 430 plate appearances with a .252/.322/.370 slash line. Sure, that slash line doesn't jump off the page at you, but Ewing is a high-impact runner with a 95th percentile sprint speed who has a full-season pace of around 35 steals. He's also no slouch with the bat either, recording an 89.3 mph AVG EV, 42.5% hard-hit rate, 84.4% zone contact rate, and a 76% overall contact rate.

Thanks to Yahoo, Ewing has eligibility at both second base and outfield. So if you need a boost at either of those positions, I'd give Ewing a look this week now that he's snapped out of his funk and heated back up at the plate.

Coby Mayo (1B/3B - BAL)

18% Rostered on Yahoo

Would it shock you if I told you Coby Mayo has 22 home runs this season? Certainly shocked me when I was looking at his profile the other day, but it helps that Mayo has been hitting very well over the last five weeks or so. In his last 31 games dating back to August 5, Mayo is slashing .283/.349/.586 with 13 extra-base hits and eight home runs. He's also done a better job of keeping his strikeout rate in check over this span at 24.8%.

Many of us have been burned by Mayo over the last few years at one point or another. I'm definitely included in that group. But I'm more optimistic about Mayo now than I have been in quite some time, largely due to his 82.8% zone and 69% overall contact rate since August 5. Given his power, a league-average zone contact rate and near-70% overall contact rate can definitely work. If you need a power boost and/or a corner infielder, Mayo is a nice target this week.

Bryce Eldridge (1B - SFG)

24% Rostered on Yahoo

Following a skid in late July and early August, Bryce Eldridge has really heated back up over the last month, slashing .326/.418/.554 with six doubles, five home runs, and 16 walks over his last 25 games. He's also driven in 24 runs during this span, including nine in his last eight games and seven in his last three games.

Bryce Eldridge lasers one out 😤 pic.twitter.com/6WkPmkUt97

— MLB (@MLB) September 9, 2026

Many of Eldridge's metrics under the hood look promising as well. He's currently running a 92.5 mph AVG EV, 11.5% barrel rate, and a 52.4% hard-hit rate, while also having a respectable 82.8% zone contact rate, 73.4% overall contact rate, and 24.8% chase rate. With Eldridge's power and recent performance, I'd look to pick him up wherever he's available if you need a first baseman right now.

Griffin Jax (SP - TBR)

36% Rostered on Yahoo

Now that we're in the middle of September, pitching recommendations on the waiver wire need to be more specialized and focused. We have to look at who can help us the most in that given week, especially in H2H formats. So that's the approach I'll be using with these two pitching recommendations this week, starting with Griffin Jax.

Jax is scheduled for two home starts next week against the Athletics on Tuesday and the Red Sox on Sunday. Both of those teams have a wRC+ under 100 as a team over the last 14 days.

Jax is coming off a nice outing against the Braves on September 9, allowing just two hits, one walk, and one earned run in five innings. And before he landed on the IL in early August and missed a month, Jax had three straight outings of at least five innings and just one earned run allowed. He also had back-to-back starts with at least eight strikeouts in his last two outings before landing on the IL.

Ryan Johnson (SP - LAA)

6% Rostered on Yahoo

If Jax isn't available in your leagues, Ryan Johnson is more of a deeper dart throw that I'd consider for the upcoming week who is only 6% rostered on Yahoo at the moment.

I'm not going to ramble on about his season-long metrics or performance, as neither have been pretty. However, Johnson has pitched much better of late, recording a 2.11 ERA in his seven starts since the beginning of August. Another reason why Johnson is included here is that he lines up for a two-start week next week, facing the Mariners and Twins at home.

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