Starting Pitcher Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Pickups - Week 17 (July 21 - July 27)

Mike's starting pitcher (SP) fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups for Week 17 of 2025 (July 21 - July 27). These are his top free-agent pitchers to add and stream.

Welcome, everyone, to our starting pitcher fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups for Week 17 of the 2025 season (July 21 - July 27). In this weekly piece, we search for starting pitchers rostered in less than 50 percent of Yahoo! leagues. For deeper leagues, we try to find pitchers rostered in less than 30 percent of Yahoo! leagues.

The All-Star break came and went, and we have 40% of the season to go. We need to make moves to keep our teams competitive, even as some of our competitors transition to prepare for football. We are in it until the very end. Let's go.

Let's see what is on the waiver wire this week. There are options available for any league. You need to be proactive and add players before your league wakes up to them. At the end of the article, you will see players rostered in less than 15% of leagues who could help your squad.

• Fantasy baseball trade analyzer
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• Who should I start? Fantasy baseball comparisons
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• Fantasy baseball injury reports

Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Pickups for Shallow Leagues

Recommendations for leagues of any size rostered between 30-50% on Yahoo!

Trevor Rogers, Baltimore Orioles (46% rostered)

Rogers continues to surprise and perform well for the Orioles. In six starts, Rogers has two wins, with a 1.53 ERA and a 0.82 WHIP, with 32 strikeouts in 35 innings.

You can see his work below. He is keeping guys off balance with his pitch mix, and he is limiting barrels and keeping the ball on the ground. Rogers could be on the move at the trade deadline, and he looks like he can keep this up.

Taj Bradley, Tampa Bay Rays (46% rostered)

I have heard fantasy players say that Bradley is frustrating for them to roster, and this seems to be due to people expecting him to be better. But I would argue he is fine as is. Four of his last five starts have been very good, pitching at least five innings in each.

On the season, he is 6-6 with a 4.35 ERA, a 1.24 WHIP, and 95 strikeouts in 109 innings. In three July starts, he has a win and has not surrendered more than three runs. Below, you can see that he is getting the highest groundball rates of his career.

I think Bradley is worth giving a shot at as we start the second half.

Quinn Priester, Milwaukee Brewers (42% rostered)

Priester is having a career year and is a viable pitcher on just about any fantasy roster. He went six innings against the vaunted Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday night, striking out 10 hitters while surrendering no runs.

The veteran has eight wins, a 3.33 ERA, a 1.20 WHIP, with 80 strikeouts in 94 innings. Priester has six wins in his last eight starts, and he has gone at least five innings in six of those eight starts. He would fit in nicely at the back end of most rotations.

Jeffrey Springs, Athletics (36% rostered) 

Springs has eight wins, a 3.93 ERA, a 1.18 WHIP, and 86 strikeouts in 110 innings. That is why he is on the waiver; we want more strikeouts. Yet Springs is getting wins, and the ratios can help you control yours.

The changeup remains his best pitch, with a 38.4% whiff%. Despite the lack of strikeouts, he is limiting hard contact each time out; look at his chart below. Springs should be rostered for the back end of more fantasy rotations.

Eric Lauer, Toronto Blue Jays (30% rostered)

Lauer has been a revelation for the Blue Jays this year. He's got five wins, with a 2.80 ERA, a 0.97 WHIP, and 65 strikeouts in 61 innings. You can see his accumulated stats below. He is only 30% rostered, and I don't understand why his rostered percentage is so low.

Lauer has a 26.4% K% in 2025, and does it all with no pitch thrown harder than 91 miles per hour. The slider and the curveball have been excellent, leading to a higher whiff percentage than in years past. Lauer fits well in the middle of your rotation right now.

Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Pickups for Deeper Leagues

Recommendations for leagues of any size rostered in less than 30% on Yahoo!

Dean Kremer, Baltimore Orioles (25% rostered)

I like Kremer and try to roster him when I can in my leagues. Quite simply, he gives you mostly quiet innings, and I enjoy the peace that comes with that. He is not going to get you strikeouts, but he has eight wins with serviceable ratios.

See below. After a tough April, Kremer has rebounded to be his usual sturdy self. The last two and a half months show an ERA and WHIP that can help your fantasy team. People should stop bypassing Kremer, in my opinion.

Charlie Morton, Baltimore Orioles (24% rostered)

I know Morton had a tough first start after the All-Star break, but we cannot deny what the veteran has done over the last two months. Morton pitched into the sixth inning on Friday night, but gave up seven earned runs in the process.

Still, I think it is fine to continue to trust Morton in most situations. The season-long statistics of 5-8 with 5.58 ERA and 1.56 WHIP do not tell the full tale. He has won four of his last eight starts and has 47 strikeouts in 41 innings.

Plans can change with the return of Zach Eflin, but we will have to see what happens.

Zebby Matthews, Minnesota Twins (24% rostered)

Matthews is set to be reinstated from the IL this weekend, and it will be interesting to see how he does in his first start back. He should be given an extended run in Minnesota as the organization tries to decide its next steps for this season.

Matthews is yet to make a big splash in the majors, but he's got good stuff with the potential to nab strikeouts as well. He has 68 strikeouts in 56 career major league innings. He gets a swing-and-miss on his slider (43.6%) and changeup (33.3%).

Although the sample size is limited, refer to the box below for a more comprehensive understanding.

Logan Allen, Cleveland Guardians (21% rostered)

Allen has a 6-7 record with a usable 4.12 ERA, a 1.36 WHIP, and 72 strikeouts in 94 innings. Allen has succeeded by avoiding hard contact, with an average 87.9 exit velocity and a low 34.8% hard-hit percentage.

Allen has at least five strikeouts in his last three starts. He will not help you much there, but similar to how he keeps the Guardians in games, he should keep your fantasy teams in the running if you are looking for help in the back end of the rotation.

Slade Cecconi, Cleveland Guardians (18% rostered)

Cecconi did not pitch particularly well on Friday night, but did pitch into the ninth inning while giving up six runs. He gave up no walks while nabbing only two strikeouts. His line would have looked better, but he gave up three of the runs in the ninth inning.

Cecconi gets his next start against the Baltimore Orioles next week, and his recent efforts should allow him to remain in the Cleveland rotation.

Other Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Options

• Lance McCullers Jr., Houston Astros (14% rostered)
• Kumar Rocker, Texas Rangers (14% rostered)
• Taijuan Walker, Philadelphia Phillies (5% rostered)
• Logan Evans, Seattle Mariners (3% rostered)

Happy hunting for starting pitchers this weekend! If you have questions, you can always message me on X @mdrc0508. You can even tell me you hate these picks. Remember that fantasy baseball is supposed to be fun above everything. Enjoy it!

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