Sorry this article is later than normal! I got caught up in a ton of NASCAR content and had to edit some videos earlier this morning as well. Better late than never, right? And I also have the benefit of some late-ish news breaking on Saturday to introduce some new blood into this article. I’ll be in the chat early Sunday morning (8:00am ET) to answer questions for four hours pertaining to waiver wire adds and planning for next week!
Shohei Ohtani (LAA – DH) Ohtani is probably unavailable in your deeper leagues, but there is the slightest chance he’s available in shallow leagues, and if he is, then you should pick him up. His slash line is pretty awful, but he does have three home runs on the short season and when he tore his UCL in 2018 he appeared in most of the games the rest of the season as a designated hitter and did pretty well finishing with 22 home runs on the year. He definitely takes a hit in points leagues, but I like the prospect of rolling the dice on him assuming he’ll start most of their games down the stretch.
Leury García (CHW – 2B, SS, OF) Garcia offers a lot of position flexibility and with the shoulder injury taking Nick Madrigal out for the time being, there are opportunities for Garcia to play regularly going forward. He’s viable in points leagues since he doesn’t strike out much and he’s hitting .304 entering Saturday. He’s batting seventh against the Indians today so we’ll keep an eye out if he can possibly move up in the batting order, but that’s highly unlikely.
Daniel Hudson (WSH – RP) I mentioned Hudson previously but he’s still available in most leagues at the moment. The Nats are off to a slow start, but Hudson has the last two saves for the team. In 4.2 innings of work he’s allowed just one hit and one walk while striking out seven. It seems clear that he’s the closer and will be working the ninth inning going forward and he can help out with ratio categories.
Donovan Solano (SF – 2B) Solano’s on quite the hot stretch right now and likely available only in shallower leagues at this point. He’s riding a 12-game hitting streak heading into Saturday’s slate of games. He doesn’t boast a ton of power with just one home run on the year, but he does have six doubles and 14 RBI already. He’s been hitting third in the Giants lineup of late and he isn’t striking out much, just a 14% K-rate. His slash line will regress but ride the hot streak as long as you can.
Dylan Moore (SEA – SS, OF) I think Moore’s a decent add in deeper leagues. He offers some position flexibility and he can swipe some bags. He stole 11 last year in 113 games but has three already through ten games. He’s appeared in nine of Seattle’s last eleven games and more recently he’s been hitting close to the top of the order. For his career he’s a .218 hitter so expect the batting average to regress. But steals are tough to come by especially off waivers so you should give him a look if you’re in need of speed.
Rafael Montero (TEX – RP) Montero was activated off the Injured List a couple days ago and on Friday night he was brought in for the save. Rangers manager, Chris Woodward, wasted no time throwing Montero into the fire. He advised him there would be no soft landings and that if the game was close, Montero was going to pitch in the ninth inning. Montero stepped up and got the save and a pair of strikeouts, including one on Mike Trout . It was a bold statement and he’s widely available in most leagues. He’s definitely an addition you need to make if looking for saves in deeper leagues, or shallower leagues for that matter.
Isiah Kiner-Falefa (TEX – C, 3B) He offers position flexibility and he’s swinging a hot stick. In his five games prior to Saturday night, he had nine hits and two stolen bases. He doesn’t have a ton of power as only two of his 12 hits on the season have gone for extra bases, but he has a total of four stolen bases on the year. You could certainly do a lot worse if you play in a two-catcher league.
Spencer Howard (PHI – SP) Philadelphia is calling up their top prospect to make his debut on Sunday against the Braves. It’s unclear how Philadelphia will manage his workload, but he is expected to stick in the rotation after Sunday’s start. It wouldn’t surprise me if they threw him in the bullpen either. He’s Philly’s top pitching prospect with a four-pitch arsenal. I’d be surprised if they let him pitch deep enough to get a win, but it’s also a pretty tough matchup for the rookie. He’s still worth a grab in deeper leagues for the pedigree and hopefully he gets more starts.
Jake Cronenworth (SD – SS, 1B) It’s not all that often you see someone with SS and 1B eligibility but thanks ESPN for this new experience. Coming into Saturday night, Cronenworth has a hit in the last six games that he’s appeared in and he’s flexing the power with home runs on Tuesday and Friday. The downside is that he can hit fifth at best, which is still fine and that’s a good spot in the lineup for him. However, Saturday night he was slotted in seventh so his day-to-day value will take a slight hit when he hits in the bottom-third of the order.