Mid-Week Waiver Wire Rankings: Fantasy Baseball Pickups for Week 3

April 16, 2026

Mid-week fantasy baseball waiver wire rankings for Week 3 (2026). Free-agent hitters and pitchers to add include Mick Abel, Tony Santillan, Angel Marrtinez, Jake Burger, and Colt Emerson.

Incredibly, it's already mid-April, and we are already in Week 3 of the fantasy baseball season.  At RotoBaller HQ, we update our waiver wire rankings with the latest injuries and news to help fantasy managers in leagues that allow daily moves. In this article, you will find our mid-week fantasy baseball waiver rankings for Week 3 -- April 13  through April 19. Find out where key players such as Seranthony Dominguez, Max Muncy, Mick Abel, Alex Vesia, Jakob Junis, Jorge Soler, Spencer Arrighetti, and Sam Antonacci are. This list covers the top 100 hitters and pitchers to add off the waiver wire. 

There are key performances, prospect promotions, and injuries to watch for this week. The Astros placed right-hander Tatsuya Imai on the injured list with right-arm fatigue, while the Padres placed Nick Pivetta on the IL with right elbow inflammation. Christian Yelich also lands on the injured list with a left groin strain. The Dodgers went with Alex Vesia over Edwin Diaz to handle ninth-inning duties in Tuesday's win over the Mets. Diaz was unavailable on Tuesday after throwing a bullpen earlier in the afternoon. Vesia struck out the side to earn his second save of the season. 

Stay on top of our weekly waiver wire rankings and turn on MLB news alerts in our free mobile app to stay ahead of the curve. Once you're done here, check out our fantasy baseball prospects articles for the latest names to stash and pick up.

Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Pickups List

Since many fantasy baseball leagues have daily waiver-wire moves or multiple waiver-wire runs per week for adding players, this early-week rankings list should help you keep track of players emerging in the middle of the week before we reach Sunday. This article will guide you through our weekly ranking of the relevant waiver-wire pickup options, including how to prioritize them for your league (depending on the league size).

Waiver wire pickup options, including how to prioritize them for your league - depending on the league size:

Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Outlooks

Some of the top waiver wire names include Mick Abel, Tony Santillan, Jake Burger, Colt Emerson, Angel Martinez, and more. Read some of the waiver wire outlooks below:

Mick Abel, SP, Minnesota Twins

Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Mick Abel was excellent against the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday, pitching seven strikeout innings with 10 strikeouts and earning his first win of the season in his team's 6-0 victory. Abel allowed just four hits and did not allow a walk. Across his first four appearances (20 1/3 innings) of 2026, the 24-year-old has pitched to a 3.98 ERA and 1.59 WHIP with 23 strikeouts. However, since allowing nine earned runs over his first 7 1/3 innings of the year, Abel has now thrown 13 straight scoreless frames. Abel's walk rate is still 10.8% even after his most recent start against the Red Sox, so control is an issue. Still, if he can limit free passes, Abel has good enough stuff to consistently generate strikeouts and work deep into games. He profiles as a priority waiver wire target ahead of his next scheduled start against the New York Mets next Tuesday.

Tony Santillan, RP, Cincinnati Reds

Cincinnati Reds reliever Tony Santillan is off to a strong start to the 2026 season, as he's recorded 10 strikeouts and has yet to allow an earned run across his first eight innings pitched (eight games). With the news that Reds closer Emilio Pagan (hamstring) is being evaluated for a hamstring injury, Santillan could be in line to assume the ninth-inning role in Cincinnati.

The 29-year-old was one of the Reds' best high-leverage arms in 2025, recording a 2.44 ERA and 1.11 WHIP with 75 strikeouts across 73 2/3 innings (80 games). Santillan also picked up seven saves and has 11 saves in his big-league career, so he has some experience as a closer. If Pagan ends up missing time, Santillan would immediately become a priority target on the waiver wire for fantasy managers.

Jake Burger, 1B, Texas Rangers

Texas Rangers first baseman Jake Burger was seeing the ball well in Monday night's 8-1 win over the division-rival Athletics in Sacramento, going 2-for-4 at the plate with two home runs, four RBI, a walk, and a strikeout. Burger got the party started in the first inning with a three-run tater off of right-handed starter Luis Severino, and the Rangers never looked back. He got Severino again for a solo job in the eighth inning.

The home runs were the 30-year-old's first since he homered in back-to-back games to begin the 2026 regular season. Burger is known as a streaky hitter, so fantasy managers will want to ride his power bat until he cools off. After his big power performance on Monday night, the former first-rounder by the Chicago White Sox in 2017 out of Missouri State is hitting .246 (16-for-65) with four home runs, 12 RBI, and seven runs scored in 17 games played.

Colt Emerson, SS, Seattle Mariners

When asked how far away Seattle Mariners infield prospect Colt Emerson is from the big leagues on MLB Now on Monday, president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto said, "he's as close as they come." Emerson, 20, suffered a foot injury over the weekend at Triple-A Tacoma, but he's already back in action and is knocking on the door to join the big-league roster for the very first time early in the 2026 season.

The former 22nd overall pick in 2023 has gone 13-for-49 (.265) with a home run, five RBI, five runs scored, two stolen bases, two walks, and 17 strikeouts in 13 games at Tacoma to begin the year. It's unclear what the Mariners intend to do with current shortstop J.P. Crawford, but his playing time could be in jeopardy by the summer if Emerson is up in the big leagues by then.

Emerson is considered Seattle's top prospect, per MLB Pipeline, and he's also considered the No. 7 overall shortstop prospect in all of baseball. Fantasy managers in deep-mixed leagues should consider adding him off the waiver wire now.

Angel Martinez, 2B/OF, Cleveland Guardians

Cleveland Guardians outfielder Angel Martinez got off to a miserable start at the plate, going 3-for-21 (.143) over his first nine games; however, he shook off the rust and went a sizzling 10-for-17 (.588) over the next four contests, with two doubles, a home run, six RBI, four runs scored, and three stolen bases.

The Dominican hit 11 home runs for the Guardians in 2025, so there is a little pop in his bat, and an 88.3 percent contact rate is easily the best of his career so far since debuting in 2024. The switch-hitter has done nearly all of his damage from the left side of the plate, with a 234 wRC+ there compared to an 18 wRC+ from the right side, so make sure to check the handedness of the pitcher if considering for DFS.

The 24-year-old could be a speculative waiver add in deeper leagues in hopes he'll continue the hot hitting, and there's pretty much nowhere to go but up from the right side of the plate. The youngster is available in over 70 percent of Yahoo! leagues and is eligible at both 2B and OF.

First Base Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Second Base Waiver Wire Rankings

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Third Base Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Shortstop Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Outfield Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Catcher Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Closer/Reliever Waiver Wire Rankings

Pickups are in priority order:

Who Should I Pickup Fantasy Baseball Tool

Trying to decide who to pick up off the waiver wire? Check the Who Should I Pickup tool:

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2026 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players such as Max Muncy, Mick Abel, Tony Santillan, Jake Burger, Spencer Arrighetti, Sam Antonacci, Mauricio Dubon, Carter Jensen, Jeffrey Springs, Alex Vesia, Clayton Beeter, Sam Antonacci, Liam Hicks, Angel Martinez, and Colt Emerson. These are some common searches for 2026 fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups.

Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player's name. In the second box, search for the second player's name. Compare up to four MLB players at once, and then click the Who To Pickup? button to see who the recommended waiver wire pickups are based on fantasy baseball rankings, projections, and more.

Improvements For Who Should I Pickup? You may have noticed, our Who Should I Pickup? tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win on the waiver wire in 2026. You'll see MLB player tiles with stats, projections, and a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!

How It Works. Our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy baseball waiver wire rankings and projections based on their research, and updates them constantly throughout the week. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked.

Popular Player Comparison Searches - Who To Pickup

Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Pickup tool for 2026 for players like Max Muncy, Mick Abel, Spencer Arrighetti, Sam Antonacci, Tony Santillan, Jake Burger, Mauricio Dubon, Carter Jensen, Jeffrey Springs, Alex Vesia, Clayton Beeter, Sam Antonacci, Liam Hicks, Angel Martinez, and Colt Emerson.:

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