RADIO
Welcome back to the Outfield Waiver Wire, where we take a look at the best outfielders available in at least 50 percent of Yahoo leagues. Consider this column your recommendations for Week 3 outfield waiver wire pickups.
Any and all advice at this point in the year carries the implicit caveat of "It's April." Don't get carried away with making any major changes to your roster at this stage of the game. Tinkering on the edges, though? That's perfectly fine, and that's what this column is designed to help you do.
Let's get down to business.
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Week 3 Outfield (OF) Waiver Wire Targets
Corey Dickerson, OF, Tampa Bay Rays (37% owned)
Dickerson's first season in Tampa was a disappointment, if not entirely unsurprising. After all, trading half a season at Coors Field for Tropicana Field would put a dent in anyone's production. Dickerson still showed playable pop in 2016, hitting 24 home runs. Through the current campaign's first two weeks, he's got his batting average back above .300 (.333, to be precise) and three homers to his name. Some BABIP regression is likely, but the veteran is making a ton of high-quality contact right now. He's also locked into the leadoff spot against RHP.
Max Kepler, OF, Minnesota Twins (28%)
Kepler exploded onto fantasy owners’ radar with a three-homer game on Aug. 1, but hit just three homers over the remainder of the season. Fortunately, he's started strong in 2017, hitting .302/.375/.512 with six extra-base hits in 12 games. Kepler is still just 23 (he was in rookie ball at age 17 after signing out of Germany) and has always shown good plate discipline. Over the last couple of years, he’s begun to tap into his power without an increase in strikeouts, and his contact quality metrics are encouraging. He managed 17 homers and six steals last year in 113 games, so 20/10 seems like a realistic possibility with upside for more.
Domingo Santana, OF, Milwaukee Brewers (27%)
Santana hits the ball extremely hard and takes a lot of walks. That's a solid base of skills from which to build. A combination of injuries and contact issues have kept the 24-year-old from enjoying a true breakout, but early results in 2017 suggest that one could be in the offing. Santana's hitting .237/.356/.500 so far, with a pair of homers and a stolen base to his credit. That low average might seem like more of the same, but he has actually trimmed his strikeout rate to a reasonable 20 percent. It's still early, but that metric is one of the first to stabilize. That he's done this without suffering a drop in walk rate is certainly encouraging. If Santana can start putting a few more balls in the air, he'll be a monster.
Steven Souza, OF, Tampa Bay Rays (20%)
Souza delivered some category juice in his first two big-league seasons, totaling 33 homers and 19 stolen bases despite only playing in 230 games due to myriad injuries. Like Santana, though, he struggled with strikeouts. Thus far in 2017, he's chopped a dozen points off of his K rate and brought his walk rate up over 16 percent. He hasn't swiped any bags yet, but is hitting .304/.418/.522 even after going 0-for-4 on Sunday.
Andrew Toles, OF, Los Angeles Dodgers (4%)
I had Toles on my radar this season as a stealth source of stolen bases. He hasn't been active on the base paths to this point, instead providing value with the bat. The rookie has hit .267/.313/.567 with three homers despite a BABIP that's hovering around the Mendoza line. The pop is something of a surprise, and unlikely to continue. What's really interesting is the sharp rise in contact and fall in swinging strike rate. Toles has only gotten starts against RHP to this point, but he's hit leadoff for the Dodgers every time he's been on the lineup card. Deep and NL-only leaguers should take note.
