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Jake Burger Losing Waiver Steam Amid Slow Start in July
Texas Rangers first baseman Jake Burger has reached the 30-homer mark in his career before (in 2023) and has already matched his home run total (16) from his first year in Texas in 2025, making him a deep-league target for power. Through his first 95 games and 386 plate appearances with the Rangers in 2026, Burger is slashing .239/.301/.415 with a .715 OPS, 16 homers, 59 RBI, 41 runs scored, and two stolen bases. The caveat to suggesting the 30-year-old veteran as a waiver-wire addition is that he's pretty streaky at the plate, and right now, he's struggling offensively. Through his first 12 games (51 plate appearances) in July, he's gone 7-for-48 (.146) with two home runs, seven RBI, three runs scored, two walks, and 15 strikeouts. Burger's .236 expected batting average and .306 xwOBA don't exactly give hope for the rest of the second half, either, and he's in the 25th percentile in strikeout rate, the 15th percentile in chase rate, and the seventh percentile in whiff rate. He's currently rostered in just 23% of Yahoo leagues.
Source: Baseball Reference
Source: Baseball Reference
