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Week 11 Waiver Wire Watch List

Welcome to Week 11 of The Watch List. Each week we’ll be updating this list full of players who you maybe aren’t quite ready to pick up (depending on league size, of course), but who need to be on your radar regardless. We’ll look at several players in-depth each week and keep tabs on players “graduating” into the waiver wire pickups category, as well as players demoted off the list entirely. (Reminder, these are Yahoo ownership and positions.)

With the season beginning to stabilize a bit, there are simply fewer players graduating and being demoted each week. With that in mind, we’ll no longer have a set number of eight players highlighted each week, but rather somewhere in the five to eight range. However many players graduate/are demoted will be replaced and the new players will be highlighted.

Once again, if there are any names who you’d like to see highlighted next week, or even just added to the list as a whole, feel free to at me on Twitter (@FantasyBaseTurv). Let’s get this show on the road.

Be sure to check all of our fantasy baseball lineup tools and resources:

Editor's Note: Our friends at Fantrax have even more fantasy baseball advice columns and videos to help improve your teams. Be sure to also check them out!

 

Players to Watch in 10-team Leagues

Max Kepler (Min, OF): 28% owned

Kepler had a slow week (3-for-24 with just one run and one RBI), but those weeks are bound to come around even for top fantasy options. He still has a strong batted-ball profile that should improve his surface statistics as the season goes along.

Jarrod Dyson (Sea, OF): 17% owned

I wavered for a week or two on Dyson, but for the most part, I have been all-in on Dyson all season. Dyson stole two more bases last week (along with a .294 average and eight RuBIns), and his 16 steals for the season are tied for fourth in all of baseball. Of that top four, he has the best on-base percentage, making him even more valuable in OBP leagues.

Joe Ross (Was, SP): 36% owned

Ross joins the list for what may only be one week, but only because he could easily see his ownership rate jump too high by this time next week to be within its rank for more than seven days. Ross was absolutely electric against the Orioles his last time out, striking out 12 and walking none in 7 ⅓ innings of one-run, four-hit ball. Ross still has a 6.16 ERA, but he has the pedigree (3.43 ERA in 105.0 innings in 2016) as well as the peripherals (3.50 xFIP) to win over a lot of people really fast. Ross is sporting a career-best 9.71 strikeouts per nine, paired with a career-low 1.66 walks per nine. That’s a killer combo, and he may have to be an add not a watch if you want him on your roster.

Lucas Duda (NYM, 1B): 22% owned

Duda went homerless in the past week, but he is still rocking a .547 slugging percentage and .284 isolated power for the season. A few more homerless weeks and it may be time to worry, but not for now. The HR/FB rate (23.8 percent) is backed by some nice pop (46.9 percent hard hit ball percentage).

Pat Neshek (Phi, RP): 21% owned

Neshek will officially be the Phillies closer moving forward, so for owners in needs of saves, Neshek is your best chance to get a true closer with the gig on the waiver wire. Neshek has quietly been pretty strong over the past month, with an absurd 35.3 percent strikeout rate and 2.9 percent walk rate. Neshek got his first save of the season on Tuesday, needing just two outs for the save but doing so without giving up any baserunners. The closer’s role has been in fluctuation in Philly all season, and it’s not as though the team is going to be winning enough games to make Neshek too valuable. Plus, Neris is almost certainly the closer in the long term for the team, but still, finding reliable, in-the-moment saves is a borderline impossible task in any league worth its salt.

Zack Wheeler (NYM, SP): 34% owned

Wheeler continues to live on the cusp of ownership in most leagues, but his production has been undoubtedly strong over the past six weeks, with seven, one-run innings last week. He hasn’t given up more than three runs in a start since April 23.

 

Players to Watch in 12-team Leagues

Trevor Rosenthal (StL, RP): 30% owned

Rosenthal continues to have the edge in nearly all pitching stats (and velocity stats) over Seung-Hwan Oh, but until Oh blows a few saves, this won’t be a conversation. Once he does blow a save or two, pounce on Rosenthal, though.

Tommy Joseph (Phi, 1B): 20% owned

Joseph had ten hits including a home run in the past week, bringing his average to a far more respectable .254 figure with the week. His OBP is still lacking at .304, giving him more value in classic leagues than OBP leagues. The power will play, regardless, though.

Mallex Smith (TB, OF): 28% owned

Smith is arguably the hottest player in baseball right now, and he may well be owned in over 35 percent owned in Yahoo leagues by the time you actually read this. Smith was called up after an injury to Kevin Kiermaier opened up a spot in the Tampa Bay outfield, and he’s doing his absolute best to steal the job outright. Kiermaier will be out almost two months, so there’s a lot of time left, but Smith has managed eight hits in his first three days (four games) since being called back up. He went 2-for-3 with three runs, a bomb, two RBI and three (!) steals on Friday before collecting three more hits (and a run + steal) on Saturday. He finished off his single-handed demolition of the A’s with a 3-for-3 day Sunday in which he scored twice more and drove in another run. He was stealing bases (16 in 30 games) and hitting well (.311 BA) in Triple-A before the call-up and offers a pretty high ceiling as well as a reliable floor given his speed.

Jordan Montgomery (NYY, SP): 22% owned

Montgomery continued a strong rookie season in his last outing, striking out eight Orioles over seven, two-run innings. Montgomery is playing with fire with his 7.8 percent HR/FB rate as a pitcher who pitches half his games in Yankee Stadium, but the strikeout numbers are nice, as is his 3.55 ERA as a 24-year-old rookie.

Jed Lowrie (Oak, 2B): 21% owned

Lowrie just keeps doing his thing, as he had the most at bats of any hitter on the watch list, and collected nine hits and six runs with all those opportunities. He remains a great option while healthy.

Bradley Zimmer (Cle, OF): 17% owned

Zimmer is the type of player for whom this list was made. He’s a talented young rookie who simply isn’t getting enough playing time for his big league roster to be on your fantasy roster right now. He had only two hits in just 16 at bats last week, but one of those was a homer.

 

Players to Watch in 14+ team Leagues

Mike Foltynewicz (Atl, SP): 24% owned

Folty had another seven shutout innings, but he struck out only four batters this time and had a matchup (Philadelphia) that lent itself to some prime stats. He’s a great streaming option right now, and a borderline rosterable pitcher.

Danny Valencia (Sea, 1B/3B/OF): 30% owned

Valencia saw his ownership rise exponentially in the past week despite a rather pedestrian week in which he had just four hits but tallied seven RuBIns (runs+RBI). Having a reputation as a hot hitter will do that, but he might be getting a bit too much buzz for what he is at this point.

Joe Biagini (Tor, SP): 20% owned

Biagini continues to be exceptionally solid for the Blue Jays, tossing his third straight quality start for the club in his last time out. Biagini isn’t going to win you any leagues, but he’s going to give you plenty of really solid (48:12 K:BB ratio) and safe (only one start with more than three runs allowed) innings.

Delino DeShields (Tex, OF): 5% owned

Thanks to a recent spat of success, DeShields is creeping onto fantasy radars once again. The speedster has been in and out of the Rangers lineup this season, but when he has been healthy and getting plate appearances, his numbers are actually excellent, with a .301 BA and 12 steals. He has five steals and eight hits (as well as five run) in the past five days for Texas, and he should continue to get a better portion of at bats with Mike Napoli on the DL and the nice results.

Robert Gsellman (NYM, SP): 11% owned

After a rough start to the season saw him moved to the bullpen, Gsellman has been much better in his second go-around in the rotation. Gsellman has three quality starts in his four second-wave outings, and his only non-quality start saw him go 5 ⅓ innings with just two runs allowed and six strikeouts. Gsellman is the type who isn’t going to win you a league (6.79 K/9), but he’s a reliable innings eater right now, and those arms are hard to find. He draws a tough opponent in Washington this week, but he is far better at home (thanks in part to a very homer-averse home stadium), and he has shown the potential to have a better strikeout rate in the past. I’d take a pass this time to watch how he does in this tough Washington test, but he may be a nice streaming option afterwards.

 

Players to Watch in AL or NL-Only Leagues

Jorge Bonifacio (KC, OF): 5% owned

Bonifacio dropped back down into the AL-only tier with a 3-for-27 week, but one of those hits was a home run, and his line drive rate (31.0 percent) and hard hit ball rate (36.0 percent) are strong enough to demand an eye be kept on the rookie outfielder.

Tommy Pham (StL, OF): 7% owned

Pham got enough at bats last week to maintain his solid spot on this list. He is stealing a lot more bases in 2017 as well. His six steals in 31 games are three times as many as he had in 78 games in 2016. Part of that is an 80 point jump in OBP, but he’s also just being more aggressive.

Joe Mauer (Min, 1B): 6% owned

I probably was a bit too over-excited last week with the effusive praise for Mauer, but he is still getting on base at a .357 clip (with a .283 average), and his plate discipline is just so excellent that it’s hard to imagine him having any truly terrible weeks. Low ceiling but high floor.

Keone Kela (Tex, RP): 4% owned

Kela began the season sitting out due to disciplinary reasons, but he has bounced back nicely for the Rangers, and he is now second in line to Matt Bush for saves in Texas. Kela owns a 11.79 K/9 rate and a 3.42 ERA on the season, and with Bush having given up four runs in his past four outings, there’s at least a little buzz around a potential change. Bush still has a 2.42 ERA and a pretty solid hold on the closer’s gig, but for those desperate to make a move in the saves category, there’s at least a chance that a Kela pickup could pay off down the road.

Colby Rasmus (TB, OF): 2% owned

On the one hand, Kevin Kiermaier is out for two months, so there should be more room in a crowded Rays’ outfield. On the other hand, Mallex Smith (who we covered above) is playing out of his mind and is a better fit for Kiermaier’s role, so Rasmus may end up maintaining his 16-22 at bats a week. He hit another two homers with his 16 at bats last week, so he’s definitely producing for owners despite the low at bats total.

 

Graduated - Ownership Too High

Jimmy Nelson (Mil, SP): 55% owned

Ariel Miranda (Sea, SP): 50% owned

Logan Morrison (TB, 1B): 40% owned

 

Demoted

JC Ramirez (LAA, SP/RP): 24% owned

Jeff Locke (Mia, SP/RP): 4% owned

Gerardo Parra (Col, 1B/OF): 10% owned

 

More Waiver Wire Pickups and Adds




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REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Justin Verlander

Plans to Pitch in 2026
Junior Caminero

Day-to-Day With Back Tightness
Will Smith

Won't Return When First Eligible
Tyler Soderstrom

Returns to A's Lineup
Tyler Warren

Sidelined on Wednesday with Toe Injury
Jaylen Waddle

Questionable for Week 3 Against Buffalo
Joe Burrow

Bengals Not Closing the Door on Joe Burrow Returning This Year
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LaNorris Sellers to Play Against Missouri?
Kyle Tucker

Progress has "Plateaued"
Isaac Paredes

has "Outside Chance" to Return This Weekend
CFB

Kaidon Salter Expected To Start for Colorado on Saturday
Willson Contreras

Goes on 10-Day Injured List, Done for Season
Justin Fields

Ruled Out for Week 3 Due to Concussion
Jayden Reed

Out Indefinitely After Foot and Shoulder Surgery
Washington Commanders

Preston Smith Signs With Commanders
Trey Jemison III

Joins Knicks on Two-Way Contract
Kevin McCullar Jr.

Signs New Two-Way Deal With Knicks
Matt Ryan

Returns to Knicks on Exhibit 10 Contract
New York Knicks

Alex Len Signs Exhibit 9 Deal With Knicks
Nickeil Alexander-Walker

Expected to Take on Larger Offensive Role With Hawks
Thomas Sorber

Undergoes Surgery
Dominic Canzone

Has Five-Hit, Three-Homer Game Tuesday
Cal Raleigh

Sets Single-Season Home Run Record for a Switch-Hitter
Jayden Reed

Undergoes Clavicle and Foot Surgeries, Out for Foreseeable Future
Bo Bichette

to Miss Rest of Regular Season
Zach Neto

Placed on 10-Day Injured List With Hand Injury
Yordan Alvarez

Out on Tuesday, Dealing With "Significant" Ankle Sprain
Aaron Jones Sr.

Vikings Place Aaron Jones Sr. on Injured Reserve With Hamstring Injury
CFB

Diego Pavia Refutes Report of Seeking Seventh Collegiate Season
Christian Kirk

Expected to Return in Week 3
CFB

Diego Pavia Seeking Another Year of Eligibility
Tarik Skubal

on Track to Start Thursday
CFB

Kevorian Barnes Questionable Against SMU
Bo Bichette

has Short-Term Knee Injury, Could Return for Postseason
Tosan Evbuomwan

Joins Knicks
NBA

Kai Jones Links Up With EuroLeague Team
Bismack Biyombo

Returns to Spurs
Bones Hyland

Rejoins Timberwolves
Kobe Bufkin

Moves to Brooklyn
Trey Yesavage

Sets Franchise Strikeout Record On Monday
Yordan Alvarez

To Receive MRI For Sprained Left Ankle On Tuesday
Willson Contreras

Exits Early Monday With Right-Biceps Tightness
Yordan Alvarez

Exits With Ankle Sprain
Brock Bowers

Officially Active on Monday Night
Jauan Jennings

Day-to-Day With Ankle Injury
Logan O'Hoppe

Activated Off Seven-Day Injured List
CBJ

Denton Mateychuk Dealing With Groin Issue
Bo Horvat

Fine for Training Camp
Kirby Dach

on Track to Be Ready for Opening Night
Jose Altuve

Returns Against Rangers
J.J. McCarthy

Expected to Miss 2-4 Weeks With High-Ankle Sprain
J.J. McCarthy

Likely Out for Week 3 With High-Ankle Sprain
Jean Silva

Gets Finished For The First Time In His Career
Aaron Jones Sr.

Unlikely to Play in Week 3 Due to Hamstring Injury
Diego Lopes

Returns To The Win Column
Jayden Daniels

' Week 3 Status in Doubt
Rob Font

Outclassed In The Noche UFC 3 Co-Main Event
David Martinez

Wins His Second UFC Fight
Jared Gordon

Suffers Brutal TKO Loss At Noche UFC 3
Rafa Garcia

Wins Back-To-Back Fights
Brian Thomas Jr.

Dealing with Wrist Injury
Dustin Stoltzfus

Drops A Decision At Noche UFC 3
Kelvin Gastelum

Gets Back In The Win Column
Diego Ferreira

Suffers Second-Round TKO
Alexander Hernandez

Extends His Win Streak With A Brutal TKO
Quang Le

Suffers First-Round Knockout
Santiago Luna

Shines In His UFC Debut
Christopher Bell

Earns his First Bristol Cup Series Victory
Alex Bowman

Falls Short of Advancing Through Cup Series Playoffs
Chase Briscoe

Collects his Third Top-10 Finish at Bristol
Ryan Blaney

Strong Top-Five Bristol Performance Advances him to the Playoffs
Corey Heim

Earns his First Career Cup Series Top-10 Finish at Bristol
Giannis Antetokounmpo

Leads Greece to Bronze Medal
Alperen Sengün

Alperen Sengun Drops 28 Points in EuroBasket Finals
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Indiana's Lee Beebe Jr. Out for Season with Knee Injury
Dennis Schröder

Dennis Schroder Named EuroBasket MVP
Bryce Eldridge

Giants to Promote Bryce Eldridge
Jaren Jackson Jr.

Progressing in Recovery
Jonathan Kuminga

Receives New Offer From Warriors
Kenneth Walker III

Bounces Back with Big Week 2 Performance
Bijan Robinson

Rushes for 143 Yards in Week 2
Justin Fields

Currently in Concussion Protocol
Cincinnati Bengals

Bengals Calling Around to Available Free-Agent Quarterbacks
Joe Burrow

to Undergo Surgery, Out at Least Three Months
Emil Heineman

Aiming to Take the "Next Step" This Season
Braeden Cootes

Good to Go for Camp
Ivan Fedotov

Blue Jackets Acquire Ivan Fedotov From Flyers
Quentin Grimes

Still Not Close to a New Contract Agreement
Joel Embiid

"Looking Slender, Spry and in Positive Spirits"
Ty Gibbs

Has Arguably his Best Career Drive, but Only Finishes 10th
Chase Elliott

Despite Crashing Out at Bristol, Chase Elliott Advances to Round of 12
Austin Dillon

Misses Round of 12 After Extremely Mediocre Bristol Run
Shane Van Gisbergen

Shane van Gisbergen Fails to Advance to Round of 12
Josh Berry

Finishes Last in All Three Round of 16 Races to Fail to Advance
CFB

Ryan Williams Explodes In Return To Field
CFB

Drew Allar Plays Mediocre Game In Blowout Win
CFB

LaNorris Sellers Exits Game In Blowout Loss
CFB

DJ Lagway Tosses Five Interceptions In Loss
CFB

Garrett Nussmeier Plays Game Manager in Saturday's Win
CFB

CJ Carr Remains Poised In Narrow Loss
CFB

John Mateer Leads Oklahoma In Rout
CFB

Arch Manning Struggles Against UTEP
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Jeremiah Smith Impresses In Win
CFB

Sam Leavitt Shines As Arizona State Rebounds From Week 2 Loss
Ivan Demidov

Turning Heads in Rookie Camp
NHL

Calvin de Haan Signs With Swedish Team
Samuel Girard

Skates With Non-Contact Jersey
Mackenzie Blackwood

Dealing With Injury Ahead of Training Camp
Spencer Knight

Signs Three-Year Extension With Blackhawks
Chris Buescher

May have Another Solid Run at Bristol
Corey Perry

Out 6-8 Weeks Following Surgery
Kyle Busch

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Ricky Stenhouse Jr

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Michael McDowell

Could be A Solid Value Option For Bristol DFS Lineups
Chase Elliott

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NASCAR

Bubba Wallace Not as Strong at Bristol as Other Short Tracks
Alex Bowman

Needs to Win to Make Round of 12
Ross Chastain

has Never Led at Bristol but Has Been Pretty Consistent
Austin Dillon

Richmond Speed Unlikely to Carry Over to Bristol
Josh Berry

Might Run Well at Bristol, but Almost Certainly Won't Win to Advance
Justin Haley

Bristol One of Justin Haley's Few Recent Bright Spots
CFB

Austin Simmons Listed As Game-Time Decision Against Arkansas
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Nico Iamaleava Struggles In Fourth Straight Loss
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen

Dealing With a "Tweak"
BUF

Alexandar Georgiev Joins Sabres on One-Year Deal
Corey Perry

Injured During Pre-Camp Skate
CFB

Antonio Williams Out Against Georgia Tech
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CJ Bailey Flashes Again in Win Over Wake Forest
CFB

Jaxson Moi a Game-Time Decision for Tennessee on Saturday
Jean Silva

A Favorite At Noche UFC 3
Diego Lopes

Set For Noche UFC 3 Main Event
Rob Font

Looks For His Third Consecutive Win
David Martinez

Set For Noche UFC 3 Co-Main Event
Rafa Garcia

An Underdog At Noche UFC 3
Jared Gordon

Looks To Win Back-To-Back Fights
Dustin Stoltzfus

Looks To Return To The Win Column
Kelvin Gastelum

In Dire Need Of Victory
Diego Ferreira

Looks To Get Back In The Win Column
Malcolm Brogdon

Heading to Knicks on One-Year Deal
Landry Shamet

Staying with the Knicks

RANKINGS

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