May 16, 2017

Matthew Stamper recommends some waiver wire adds at each position for fantasy baseball owners in points leagues. These players could be sleepers for 2017.

The season is just flying by and as we're halfway through May, it's time to figure out where you stand. It's a little too early to be a seller or a buyer, but some of these waiver wire pickups are more than just fodder. These guys can give you the extra few points to put you over the top in the next few weeks, or maybe you can sell them to someone else because you got there just a little bit faster.

Here are a few guys who can contribute in points leagues, one at each position to consider for the next week. All of these guys have ownership numbers between 30% and 50% so if you're not picking them up, target them in a trade! These are your points leagues waiver wire pickups for Week 7. Let's get to it.

Note: All ownership percentages are courtesy of Yahoo! Fantasy Sports.

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Points League Waiver Wire Adds - Week 7

UTIL - Kevin Pillar, Toronto Blue Jays - 57% owned

Due to a lack of catchers that I can recommend, I'm going to give points league owners an extra utility bat that they can use anywhere they need. I'm going to go slightly above 50% because I can't believe he isn't owned in more places. It feels good to finally be able to recommend a Blue Jay because they have just been flat out bad this season. But, not Pillar. He's fixed something in his swing, and has been way more patient at the plate. He's swinging at pitches outside the zone about six percent less, he's swinging at first pitches about 8% less and is walking about 3% more. Add all these things to the fact that he got bumped from the bottom of the order to the top and that he's hitting in one of baseball's most hitter-friendly parks, and you understand why Pillar needs to be owned in more than 57% of leagues.

1B - Mike Napoli, Texas Rangers - 39% owned

Mike Napoli's rank in my primary points league: 186. Mike Napoli's rank in my primary categories league: 677. This is why I'm recommending Napoli. Napoli has an atrocious average, and he's not contributing anything special to too many categories, but in points leagues, he's making up for every game with no points with the occasional game with 10-20. In most cases, Napoli might be invited to take a seat and ride the pine, but with lack of better options in Texas, Napoli is the guy. He may not be the Napoli of the past yet, but he's still a slugger with the potential to go yard. Take a flier on him for a week to see if he can blast a few more.

2B - Josh Harrison, Pittsburgh Pirates - 40% owned

Harrison won't blow you away at the plate but with Robinson Cano, Logan Forsythe, and Howie Kendrick all 2B-eligible but injured, and many other options taken, at 40% ownership, Harrison can do a good job as a filler. He's one of the most consistent Pirates on the team and has found steady success at the top of the lineup. He's never showed off tons of power, but he's already got as many home runs as he has doubles, and can get on base, and come home to score more than enough to fill up the box. Harrison is a good filler for those who have an injured two-bagger.

3B - Brandon Drury, Arizona Diamondbacks - 48% owned 

With an average well into the 300s, Brandon Drury is impressing. His hitting out of the six spot hasn't allowed too many RBI or run opportunities, as he sits with 14 in each, but like Harrison, his consistency is something any team could use. Drury has also hit 10 doubles, with five of those coming in the last 10 days. Drury isn't going to hit a lot of homers, but he will be on base enough to make it worth it for most owners. Not to mention he's hitting after Paul Goldschmidt, Jake Lamb and Yasmany Tomas, three guys who will give Drury the chance to drive them home.

SS - Brandon Crawford, San Francisco Giants - 50% owned

This one almost feels like cheating, because Crawford is generally owned in more leagues than this. His groin injury has set him back. If you're lucky enough to be in the half of Yahoo leagues that doesn't own him, grab him now. I know San Fran has been struggling, but Crawford would be the guy to give this team a boost. He hits a ton of doubles; at least 20 in each year he's been in the league. Two out of those four years, he also hit double-digit triples. He'll drive in tons of runs and he's already been slotted into a prime position in the batting order. AT&T is a nice big ballpark with tons of places for Crawford to drive it. Pick him up if you're short on a shortstop.

OF - Carlos Gomez, Texas Rangers - 39% owned 

Gomez is such a blast from the past that I remember when he was being drafted as a first-round talent just a few years ago. Now in some leagues, he wasn't even drafted, and in shallow points leagues, he's not even owned. Gomez has the kind of consistency that everyone loves in points leagues, between five and eight points most nights, and pretty much guarantees two and a half to four. It makes those lonely, game-less nights a little bit better. He's walking more and striking out less, and of course the power, which may not always turn into home runs, play well as doubles. Gomez is a great pickup in a year when so many outfielders have gone down and left the position in shambles.

SP - Zach Wheeler, New York Mets - 25% owned 

Wheeler is one of my favorite bargain two-start pitchers this week, mainly because of his matchups, but also because he's using his slider a lot more. He's got a great slider that he gets batters to swing at, but he rarely leaves it in a dangerous spot for them to hit hard. That slider of his is getting 20% usage this year compared to 15% in his last few full years in the majors.

RP - Nate Karns, Kansas City Royals - 25% owned

As a reliever-eligible starter, Karns has put together quite a few nice starts in recent memory, including his last two where he struck out over 10 batters in each. His ERA is well over four, but in points leagues, we're chasing strikeouts and he's provided tons of that lately. With a start against the surprisingly strong Minnesota Twins, I'll still take the Karns pickup with no doubt in my mind. Minnesota is in the bottom half in the league in regards to batting average and home runs, so I'm not too concerned that they'll beat up on Karns. With his past few starts, he's built up some confidence to roll with.

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